Nicolas Anelka bagged a brace as Chelsea won 2-0 at Copenhagen to put one foot in the quarter-finals.
Chelsea on course for last eight after comfortable away win
Nicolas Anelka bagged a brace as Chelsea won 2-0 at Copenhagen to put one foot in the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals.
Copenhagen became the first Danish side to reach the last 16 after finishing second in Group D behind Barcelona and came into the game unbeaten at home in the competition.
But they offered little resistance as Anelka claimed a 17th-minute opener before converting another right-footed strike in the 54th minute for his seventh goal in six Champions League games this season.
Fernando Torres was recalled in place of Didier Drogba to make his Champions League debut for Chelsea but was unable to get the goal his performance deserved as he missed several chances to break his Blues duck.
Last season's double winners are virtually out of the Premier League title race and were knocked out of the FA Cup on Saturday by Everton.
Alive and kicking
But the Blues showed they are very much alive and kicking as Anelka ensured they stayed in the hunt for silverware this season and eased the pressure on manager Carlo Ancelotti.
Copenhagen had not played a competitive match since their last group game in December and it showed within the first minute as Torres was allowed room for Florent Malouda to volley well over.
Johan Wiland then saved well at Torres' feet before the £50million man began to settle, playing in Anelka for a shot that was deflected behind.
There was minor panic in the Chelsea defence when Zdenek Pospech burst forward and saw a shot blocked and ricochet around the area.
But any nerves were calmed when a wayward pass by ex-Chelsea winger Jesper Gronkjaer in his own half found Anelka, who bore down on goal before calmly firing across Wiland and inside the far post.
Torres lacked conviction when he tried to beat the last man and was again closed down by Wiland and also made a mess of a Frank Lampard through-ball, while Anelka headed Malouda's cross over as Chelsea maintained their stranglehold.
Torres was booked 10 minutes from half-time for tripping Cristian Bolanos before Anelka drilled over another decent opportunity.
Copenhagen tried to wrest the momentum by bringing on Martin Vingaard for Cesar Santin for the second half and the new man made an immediate impact by forcing the first significant save from Petr Cech with a long-range strike.
He then curled straight into Cech's arms as the hosts began to show a determination almost completely absent during the first half.
Clinching goal
But they were hit by a sucker-punch when a delightful through-ball on the turn from Lampard released Anelka, and it was perfectly weighted for the French striker to shoot first time and again drill low across Wiland.
Torres' torment continued when he magnificently turned two defenders, only to see his close-range effort kept out by Wiland.
Copenhagen's fans screamed for a penalty when Gronkjaer went down after turning Branislav Ivanovic but the flag was already up for offside.
Drogba replaced Anelka before Torres was again denied after superb skill from Malouda, his scuffed finish beating Wiland before being hacked clear by Oscar Wendt.
N'Doye drilled wide from 25 yards and both Vingaard and Claudemir fired straight at Cech from similar range as Copenhagen became increasingly desperate.
Malouda picked up a needless booking for time-wasting while leaving the field to be replaced by Yuri Zhirkov before John Terry was also shown a yellow card for bringing down Vingaard late on.
| FC København |
Team Statistics |
Chelsea |
| 0 |
Goals |
2 |
| 0 |
1st Half Goals |
1 |
| 5 |
Shots on Target |
6 |
| 7 |
Shots off Target |
10 |
| 3 |
Blocked Shots |
6 |
| 1 |
Corners |
3 |
| 14 |
Fouls |
9 |
| 2 |
Offsides |
8 |
| 2 |
Yellow Cards |
3 |
| 0 |
Red Cards |
0 |
| 85.1 |
Passing Success |
79.6 |
| 17 |
Tackles |
18 |
| 58.8 |
Tackles Success |
77.8 |
| 54.9 |
Possession |
45.1 |
| 41.6 |
Territorial Advantage |
58.4 |
|
