C
Chelsea road to Champions League victory 2012. Chelsea started as one of the underdogs of the tournament. It was drawn was drawn against Bayer Leverkusen, Genk and Valencia in group E. Chelsea started their campaign at home against Bayer Leverkusen winning the tie 2-0, with goals from David Luiz and Juan Mata.
The second game for Chelsea was away to Valencia where the tie ended in a draw with goals from Frank Lampard and Roberto Soldado respectively.
The third tie saw Chelsea host Genk where goals from Fernando Torres (2), Raul Meireles, Salomon Kalou and Branislav Ivanovic helped Chelsea cruise 5 goals to Zero.
The fourth game of the group saw Chelsea travel to Belgian side Genk where the tie ended in a 1-1 draw. Goals coming from Ramires and Jelle Vossen.
The fifth game for Chelsea from Group E saw Chelsea travel to German to face Bayer Leverkusen. Chelsea lost the tie 2-1. Goals coming from Eren Derdiyok and Manuel Friedrich for Leverkusen while Didier Drogba scoring the only Chelsea goal.
The last game for Chelsea in the group saw Valencia visit stamford bridge where goals from Ramires and Grogba (2) helped Chelsea win the tie 2-0.
Chelsea topped the group with 11 points
Group E winners
| Pos | Team | Pts |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Chelsea | 11 |
| 2 | Bayer Leverkusen | 10 |
| 3 | Valencia | 8 |
| 4 | Genk | 3 |
Up next for chelsea was Napoli with away fixture starting. Juan Mata opened the scoring in minute 11 before Napoli equalizer in minute 38 through Ezequiel Lavezzi. Napoli took the lead through Edison Cavani just before half time. 23 minutes after half time, Ezequiel Lavezzi added the third goal and the last one for Naples. Napoli won the tie 3-1
The second leg saw Chelsea host the Italian side at Stamford bridge. Chelsea won the tie 4-1 with goals from Didier drogba, John Terry, Frank Lampard and Branslav Ivanovic. Chelsea proceeded to quarters after winning 5-4 on aggregate.
Chelsea was drawn against Benfica in the quarters, with the first game happening at Porto. Salomon Kalou scored the only goal to help Chelsea get an away advantage.
The second leg at Stamford bridge Chelsea won 2-1 with goals from Frank Lampard (penalty) and Raul Meireles.
In the semis, Chelsea hosted favourites Barcelona at Stamford bridge for the first leg. Though defensively, Chelsea won the tie 1-0 courtesy of Didier Drogba goal.
The finals determinant game and the second leg of the tie was at Camp Nou, where every team feared playing Barcelona at. Barcelona opened scoring in minute 35 through sergio Busquets. John Terry received a straight red card in minute 40 before Andreas Iniesta doubling the lead in minute 43. Second to half time, Ramires lobbed the ball past Victor Valdes to equalize the tie. Miraculously in last minute of the game, fernando Torres rounded Victor Valdes to extended Chelsea lead and final goal of the tie. This was gateway for Chelsea to finals.
The finals were held in Munich, Allianz Arena, the home soil of Bayern Munich which was Chelsea’s opponent. The tie ended goalless in first half. The first game came in minute 82 via Thomas Muller. 6 minutes later, talismanic Didier Drogba equalized. The tie was decided by penalties where Chelsea emerged victorious.
