Chelsea refuse to yield to logic as they eye Barcelona scalp in Champions League semi-finals
Funny how many people remember the flip-flops. Didier Drogba was making the biggest statement of his political life but the eye drifted inexorably to his feet.
“It’s a disgrace,” he yelled, like a man who had just stepped out of the steam room at Champneys to make a point.
He was right, too. The Chelsea-Barcelona Champions League semi-final of 2009 was one of the most volcanic games played in these isles. On YouTube it has become cult horror, or comedy, depending on which team you support.
Michael Ballack running after the inept ref Tom Henning Ovrebo has been set to the Benny Hill theme tune and Drogba’s rant was turned into a tidy rap.
Along with the 2008 final against Manchester United in Moscow, that 2009 barnburner at Stamford Bridge continues to haunt Chelsea fans.
The latest shot arrives with Barcelona improved and Chelsea much less formidable than the Guus Hiddink team who gave Spain’s best so many problems.
The suffocating power of those days has departed and Chelsea will see even less of the ball. But you have to admire the way they refuse to take the hint in Europe and keep fighting their way back into the picture.