LONDON (AP) ― A boyhood fan of Paris Saint-Germain, Demba Ba showed any lingering affection he has for the club is in the past.
With Chelsea facing Champions League elimination, Ba scored just his sixth goal of the season in the 87th minute Tuesday night, evening the total-goals series at 3-3. The Blues’ 2-0 win enabled them to advance to the semifinals on away goals following a 3-1 loss in the French capital last week.
“It happened so quickly,” Ba said. “I was on the floor, just looked at the goal, and I saw the ball was in the net. It was a big joy for everyone. I just do what I have to do when I get chances. I haven’t had many this season.”
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Chelsea’s Demba Ba (right) and PSG’s Alex Costa vie for the ball on Tuesday. (AFP-Yonhap) |
Both goals at Stamford Bridge came from substitutes.
Andre Schuerrle began the comeback from close range in the 32nd after David Luiz flicked on Branislav Ivanovic’s throw-in.
Schurrle and Oscar both hit the crossbar within a two-minute span early in the second half.
Ba entered in the 66th for Frank Lampard and scored after an initial shot by Samuel Eto’o ricocheted to Cesar Azipilicueta. His attempt got through the defense, perhaps deflecting off Alex, and Ba beat Maxwell to the ball and swept it past goalkeeper Salvatore Sirigu with his left foot from the top of the 6-yard box.
“I think everyone probably doubted that we would do it,” Chelsea captain John Terry said. “But I think we showed great character, great desire and will to fight no matter what.”
Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho, who had criticized his team’s forwards last week, improved to 8-0 in Champions League quarterfinals. After Ba’s goal, Mourinho sprinted down the sideline to join his celebrating players at the corner flag. It came a decade after Mourinho’s memorable dash at Old Trafford following Costinha’s 90th-minute goal that eliminated Manchester United during Porto’s run to the 2004 Champions League title.
Chelsea, the 2012 champion, reached the semifinals for the seventh time in 11 years.
“It’s a good victory, but so many semifinals for me, so many semifinals for Chelsea,” Mourinho said. “Nothing extraordinary.”
PSG was eliminated in the quarterfinals on away goals for the second straight year following a defeat to Barcelona. The visitors were missing forward Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who scored 10 of his team’s 25 goals in the competition this season.
“In the second half, Chelsea was a lot better and we lacked a bit of fluidity,” PSG manager Laurent Blanc said. “But Chelsea believed until the end, and they were rewarded.”
In the night’s other match, Real Madrid reached the semifinals for the fourth consecutive season with a 3-2 aggregate win following a 2-0 defeat at Borussia Dortmund. With Real star Cristiano Ronaldo sidelined by a left-knee injury, Real’s Angel Di Maria’s 17th-minute penalty kick was saved by Roman Weidenfeller after a hand ball by Lukasz Piszczek.
