05/04/2000  Chelsea 3 Barcelona 1

Chelsea thrillingly displayed their ability to rise to the 
biggest occasions of all with a memorable 3-1 Champions' 
League quarter-final first-leg triumph against tournament 
favourites Barcelona.

But never, even in their wildest dreams, could the Blues 
have predicted such an historic result as the lead which they 
secured ahead of the return fixture at the Nou Camp in a 
fortnight's time.

The Blues' array of overseas internationals, such as former 
European Cup winners Marcel Desailly and Didier Deschamps, may 
sometimes struggle at venues like at Vicarage Road or Pride 
Park.

But put them into the heart of a full-blooded European 
encounter with Spanish champions Barcelona, who had been 
unbeaten in their 12 group games, and the pulse quickens, the 
stride lengthens and the net result holds immense promise.

For make no mistake, even previous thrilling wins against 
Galatasaray and Feyenoord, or draws against AC Milan and 
Lazio, have rivalled this 3-1 win for significance.

The key to Chelsea's victory was a devastating eight-minute 
spell towards the end of an intoxicating first half, as first 
Gianfranco Zola curled home a superb free-kick and then Tore 
Andre Flo struck twice with a close-range finish and an 
accomplished lob.

The two strikers have had numerous problems in front of 
goal since the New Year but having both scored against 
Feyenoord in mid-March, they again rediscovered their 
finishing touch when it mattered most.

And while the return of the Blues' talisman Dennis Wise to 
European action was certainly crucial in midfield alongside 
the inspirational figure of Jody Morris, Zola was simply 
outstanding as he produced surely his best display of an 
inconsistent season.

Barcelona managed to strike back with a second-half goal by 
Luis Figo to sound a worrying note of caution and to ensure 
that Chelsea must remain realistic as they could still go out 
if they succumbed to a 2-0 defeat in the return fixture in the 
Nou Camp.

But even the potentially crucial concession of an away 
goal, as well as the concerted second-half pressure by the 
visitors, should not take the gloss off what was a truly 
memorable night at Stamford Bridge.

Do not forget that, having lost at home in Europe for the 
first time ever against Lazio, Chelsea had been condemned to 
the supposedly impossible task of overcoming the favourites, 
who had scored 112 goals this season - 36 of them in 12 
European games.

After all, this was the team that tore Arsenal apart in a 
4-2 win at Wembley earlier this season but, for all of their 
wealth of attacking talent in the shape of Rivaldo, Patrick 
Kluivert and Luis Figo, Barcelona's defence remains their one 
Achilles heel.

They had conceded three goals on six previous occasions 
this season and were, perhaps crucially, deprived of the 
heartbeat of their side, defensive midfielder Josep Guardiola, 
through injury at Stamford Bridge.

Vialli meanwhile employed three central midfield terriers 
in Wise, Jody Morris and Didier Deschamps, and they snapped at 
the visitors' heels straight from the kick-off.

Barcelona threatened first, with Rivaldo curling a superb 
free-kick which keeper Ed De Goey dived to claw away, while 
the Dutchman also denied Gabri at the near-post when the 
Brazilian world player of the year crossed the ball back 
in.

Chelsea responded by counter-attacking at frightening speed 
and while Morris hit his shot into the ground, it was an 
appetising foretaste of what was to come.

After Emerson Thome - ably replacing the suspended Frank 
Leboeuf - had produced a superb covering tackle on Rivaldo, 
Zola crossed for Desailly to power a thundering header just 
too close to keeper Ruud Hesp.

There was nothing that the Dutch keeper could do, however, 
to keep out Zola's magical curling free-kick on 25 minutes 
after Figo had been cautioned for handball.

It was amazingly the Italian's first goal of the season 
from a dead-ball effort but those countless hours of overtime 
on the training ground, spent practising what is normally his 
trademark, had finally paid off.

If that strike wounded Barcelona's pride, they were soon 
almost fatally injured as Chelsea were galvanised into a 
devastating eight-minute spell.

Wise, Morris and Deschamps established a stranglehold on 
central midfield, Zola was simply inspired and, after a brief 
pause in which Rivaldo shot wide, ex-Barcelona defender Albert 
Ferrer then picked out the Italian in space on the edge of the 
penalty area.

Zola again made the most of the opening by crossing low, 
straight into the path of Flo, who flicked the ball inside the 
far post with aplomb.

Just four minutes later the Norwegian was put clean through 
a second time as this time Deschamps sliced open the Barcelona 
defence and, having immediately spotted keeper Hesp straying 
off his line, Flo calmly lobbed him to spark ecstatic scenes 
on the Chelsea bench.

Vialli will nevertheless surely have urged caution at 
half-time, given that Barcelona came back from 3-0 down 
against Newcastle three years ago to only just lose 3-2 at St 
James's Park.

The attack-minded Spaniards can certainly never be 
discounted and they duly threw on another striker, Jari 
Litmanen, for full-back Carles Puyol at the break.

Nineteen minutes later, they finally pulled a goal back by 
similarly carving their way through Chelsea's defence, with 
Rivaldo's cross picking out Figo, who had escaped the 
attentions of Desailly, to shoot past De Goey.

The remaining 26 minutes were an ominous warning of what is 
come at the Nou Camp - sustained Barcelona pressure as yet 
another multi-million pound striker, Dani, was plucked off the 
bench to strengthen their attacking options.

Flo pulled a shot wide on the counter-attack and a scramble 
in the box almost resulted in a goal but Barcelona simply sped 
away on the counter-attack and Figo should have been on target 
after a thrilling one-two with Gabri.

With Desailly and Thome forming an impenetrable barrier at 
the back, Chelsea remained resolute and came through probably 
the biggest ever test of their renaissance with flying 
colours.

A standing ovation, to the sound of Land of Hope and Glory 
at cosmopolitan Stamford Bridge, was indeed richly 
deserved