Chelsea relinquished an early advantage but held on for a 1-1 draw in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie against Galatasaray in Istanbul.
The visitors had looked in command for much of the encounter at the Turk Telekom Arena. Fernando Torres put Chelsea ahead inside 10 minutes against a Galatasaray side led by Roberto Mancini that came out suicidally adventurous. But Chelsea failed to take further advantage of the inviting openness of their opponents, who improved in the second half after Mancini had made changes to temper his attacking lineup. After Aurelien Chedjou volleyed in a corner from close range, the tide had turned and Jose Mourinho decided to hold on for a draw and an away goal.
Both managers, who continued their war of words dating back to Mourinho’s succeeding of Mancini at Internazionale, will likely be contented yet a tad disappointed that their side did not come away with more. After such a torrid opening to the match, Mancini will have then settled for going to Stamford Bridge with the tie still very much alive. Still, having got back on level terms, Galatasaray were unable to go on and get another. As for Mourinho, who was caught out criticizing his strikers this week, he may reflect that if he had more firepower at his disposal then the tie could well have been put out of reach in the early stages. Mourinho’s safety-first tactics may also be blamed for not doing so, but ultimately his side will still begin the second leg as strong favorites to progress to the quarterfinals.
More to follow.
Galatasaray 0-1 Chelsea (Goal Fernando Torres) by all-goals
Galatasaray 1-1 Chelsea (Goal Aurelien Chedjou) by all-goals
VIDEO Chelsea 1-1 Galatasaray: Highlights; Early Torres Goal Cancelled Out In Istanbul Stalemate
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