28/09/1999 Chelsea 1 Galatasaray 0 Amid pitch invasions, a sending-off and heightening tension as chance after chance again went begging, Dan Petrescu kept his cool to score the invaluable goal which reinvigorated Chelsea's flagging Champions League hopes. Despite being reduced to 10 men after just 32 minutes when Brazilian goalkeeper Claudio Taffarel was dismissed for a deliberate handball well outside his area, Turkish champions Galatasaray contributed to another nervous night at Stamford Bridge. For after Chelsea had gained just one point from their opening two group games, nothing short of victory was required if Chelsea were to progress to the lucrative second stage of the competition. And while the Blues still face a hostile, intimidating reception back in Turkey - as well as a trip to AC Milan - they were given a taste of what to expect at the cauldron of Galatasaray's ground in two weeks' time - and came through the ordeal. A handful of Galatasaray followers twice invaded the pitch and one Chelsea supporter also shamed himself by attempting to grab a banner from the visiting fans before being led away. The tension was just as great on the pitch as Chelsea's forwards yet again failed to score for the 10th consecutive game and it was left to Petrescu to overshadow his influential Romanian international team-mate Gheorge Hagi with his 55th-minute strike. Galatasaray may never have beaten an English side in six previous meetings with West Bromwich Albion and Manchester United, but they had come straight at Chelsea from the kick-off with some committed and skilful attacking forays. Chris Sutton had scored since the second game of the season but he was on target with a header after just seven minutes. The only problem was that it was towards his own net as he attempted to clear a header directed back into the goalmouth following a corner and it was only keeper Ed De Goey's fine reflexes which clawed the ball off the line. De Goey received a painful blow on the head from a challenge by Hagi for his efforts and had little time to clear his head before Chelsea's defence - so solid in the Premiership but so weak in Berlin last week - creaked again. This time Galatasaray broke with devastating speed after Dennis Wise had volleyed straight at Taffarel and De Goey was relieved to see Erdem Arif shoot just wide. Chelsea - deprived of the influence of Didier Deschamps, who was rested - gradually started to match the Turks in midfield and Gianfranco Zola's chest control almost put Wise through only for Taffarel to smother. Then came the first pitch invasion by two Galatasaray followers, who emerged from the Chelsea end and ran towards the centre circle with a banner. One of them chose an unfortunate route past Wise, though, and the midfielder produced an effective - if unsurprisingly unwise - two-footed tackle to floor him. A third Galatasaray supporter also tried to make it onto the playing surface and the atmosphere hardly improved when Taffarel was sent off soon afterwards for handling the ball 20 yards outside his area. With Sutton intelligently running back onside, Zola had played a through ball to Petrescu, whose first touch would have taken him past the Brazilian who denied Italy in the 1994 World Cup final penalty shoot-out. Taffarel claimed he had used his head to intercept the ball but Dutch referee Dick Jol's instantaneous decision to show the red card appeared to be backed by television replays and Galatasaray had to send on inexperienced 21-year-old replacement Bolukbasi Mehmet. Chelsea at last started to threaten against the 10 men, with the dangerous Arif withdrawn from attack, and Mehmet clung on to a shot by Sutton while claims for a penalty when Akyel Fatih took the ball off Zola's toe while shoulder-barging him were turned down. The Blues certainly had a gilt-edged chance to take the lead just after the break when a weak clearance fell at Sutton's feet, but the centre forward's close-range shot was incredibly saved one-handed by Mehmet. Gustavo Poyet was introduced for the unproductive Gabriele Ambrosetti and placed a header wide from a Zola free-kick within a minute of his arrival. But finally the breakthrough came as a superb flick-on by Sutton set Petrescu clear and although the Romanian's initial effort was well saved he steadied himself for what seemed to be an age as the rebound fell at his feet before shooting home as the defence regrouped on the line. The goal re-energised Chelsea and from then on they flooded forward in numbers only to pepper the crowd behind the Galatasaray goal with a series of off-target efforts. Zola scuffed a shot wide, headed past the post and drove just over, Poyet hit a volley just a yard too high and Leboeuf had an effort tipped over. The Chelsea fans, who have become frustratingly accustomed to their side's profligacy, bit their well-chewed nails even further as the visitors even survived a strong penalty appeal when substitute Belozoglu Emrah tackled Wise in the area. Galatasaray, who had only threatened with two long-range efforts by Hagi before he was substituted, responded by turning the pressure back on, with Hakan Sukur their main battering ram. But Leboeuf was in commanding form at the back and that gave Chelsea the platform to go in search of a second goal, with Zola hitting the outside of the post with a free-kick and being denied by the keeper when clean through. So yet again a stream of chances came and went but at least Petrescu had this time made one opening count. It may yet be worth millions of pounds in revenue if it secures a place in the second group stage. A heartfelt vote of thanks from chairman Ken Bates would certainly not go amiss.