Soccer

Champions League
Scoreboard | Match Schedule | Standings | Teams | Player Leaders | Home
Matchday 2
Final
Apoel Nicosia 0-1 Chelsea
Half: 0-1
Goals
  0-1N. Anelka18'
Stats  |  Matchcast
Final Boxscore
Commentary  |  Team Stats  |  Player Stats
Apoel Nicosia v Chelsea
Time Commentary
93' GAME OVER
That's it then. Chelsea labour to victory in Nicosia thanks to Nicolas Anelka's first half effort. It was hardly convincing and after a below-par and complacent display, Carlo Ancelotti will no doubt be happy to get out with the three points. As for the Cypriots, they may just spring a surprise or two in Group D. Apoel Nicosia 0-1 Chelsea.
92' CONFUSION
Shaky moment as Petr Cech comes for a long ball, but doesn't collect and JT has no option but to put the ball behind. Apoel corner comes to nothing.
91' POT SHOT
Pretty woeful effort from Florent Malouda, who lamps the ball high and wide from 30-yards.
90' TIME ADDED ON
Three to go in Nicosia...
88' WELL HELD
Mario Breska lumps an awkward ball in at Petr Cech, but the backtracking Chelsea stopper makes a smart claim from under his crossbar.
85' SUBSTITUTION
Final throw of the Apoel dice as Paulista replaces Constantinos Charalambides.
84' LET OFF
What a chance. Constantinos Charalambides steals a yard on Carvalho to meet Pinto's inviting cross, but heads wide with the goal at his mercy.
83' GROUP D UPDATE
Atletico Madrid's season just gets worse and worse; Porto now two-up in Group D's other clash.
81' SUBSTITUTION
Joe Cole makes his first Champions League appearance of the season, replacing Salomon Kalou.
81' YELLOW CARD
Branislav Ivanovic has been walking a fine line for a while now and that line's finally broken as the referee flashes the Chelsea defender a yellow card after a poorly-timed challenge on Constantinos Charalambides.
79' SUBSTITUTION
Apoel's Mario Breska replaces Boban Grncarov.
78' GROUP D UPDATE
Porto have taken the lead at home to Atletico Madrid. Chelsea going top if they can hold on, with two wins from two.
75' SHOULD BE TWO
Gilt-edged chance to kill off the game as a contest, but Salomon Kalou fires straight into the arms of Dionisios Chiotis from just 12 yards out.
72' RESPITE
That's more like it. An Apoel attack breaks down and Kalou leads the charge before playing in Frank Lampard, but the England man blazes his effort wide.
69' VITAL INTERCEPTION
Nicosia, buoyed by the raucous 12th man, have Chelsea pinned back as Ashley Cole makes an absolutely vital interception to cut out Nenad Mirosavljevic's Helio Pinto-bound cross. Carvalho was again at fault in the build up.
68' SUBSTITUTION
Carlo Ancelotti rings his first change, with Deco trotting on in place of Juliano Belletti.
65' POWER OF THE PUNCH
Chelsea at sixes and sevens from the resulting corner and it's Cech, who's off his line in a flash to punch the ball up field.
64' HANGING ON
Backs against the wall stuff for the Blues. Malouda plays Cole into danger, inadvertently releasing Savvas Poursaitides, but Petr Cech saves the Frenchman's blushes with a top-draw save. Corner kick...
61' ASKING QUESTIONS
Good spell for the Cypriot champions as Savvas Poursaitides pings one into the box after a prolonged spell of keep ball. Just a shame no one was on the end of it.
58' SUBSTITUTION
Fresh legs for Apoel as Kamil Kosowski replaces the impressive Nectarios Alexandrou.
57' ACCESS DENIED
Apoel have become wise to the Cole-Malouda connection down the left flank. Chelsea need a plan B.
55' CYPRIOT ROAR
The home fans are on their feet as some schoolboy play from Carvalho gifts possession to Nectarios Alexandrou. The Apoel midfielder looks to cross, but Ashley Cole intervenes with a timely interception.
53' ROUTE ONE
Apoel go for the long ball option. Nenad Mirosavljevic is on the chase, but the ball runs through to Petr Cech.
50' MIDFIELD TUSSLE
Very, very scrappy at the start of the second period in Nicosia. No rhythm whatsoever to Chelsea's play.
47' SIDE NETTING
Frank Lampard bursts forward and smashes the ball into the side netting from the edge of the box. Apoel's defending is timid at best.
46' SECOND HALF
Up and running again in Nicosia.
45' HALF TIME
So far so good for Ancelotti's boys, who go in at the break a goal to the good thanks to Nic Anelka's sweetly-struck effort. The Blues are well on top, but their lack of urgency is cause for concern. Apoel have shown the odd flash of goal-scoring potential and are still well in with a shout of upsetting the odds if Chelsea continue to play with such blatant complacency.
44' GOLDEN CHANCE
They won't get many like this. Nectarios Alexandrou whips one in from the left and Christos Kontis heads wide from six-yards with the goal gaping.
43' YELLOW CARD
Salomon Kalou receives a ticking off after bundling into Helio Pinto.
40' INZAGHI-ESQUE
Chelsea on the defensive as Kalou concedes possession. Apoel break, but at least three men are a good few yards offside.
38' AMBLING ALONG
No real purpose about Chelsea's play since Anelka opened the scoring. Apoel are making it far too easy for the Blues, who don't look like breaking sweat any time soon.
36' IN THE SAME BOAT
Chelsea had never played a Cypriot club before tonight. And for Apoel, tonight's clash marks their first English encounter in European competition.
33' TUGGING AWAY
Michael Essien's penalised for pulling the shirt of Helio Pinto. The resulting set piece is pretty awful, though, and Cole can clear.
31' GROUP D UPDATE
Still goalless over in Oporto between FC Porto and Atletico Madrid. We'll keep you up to date with any developments...
28' WILD EFFORT
Essien picks the Apoel pockets and releases Malouda, who spanks one comfortably over the bar from 25-yards.
26' APOEL CORNER
Nectarios Alexandrou wins a corner off the back of Ivanovic, but the Apoel midfielder's delivery from the resulting kick falls straight to Frank Lampard.
24' BLUES CONTROL
At this rate, it won't be long before Ancelotti's boys bag a second - they're cruising. Lampard's pulling the strings from midfield and Ashley Cole's having an absolute field day down the left-hand side.
21' ON THE PROWL
The Cypriots are struggling to keep tabs on the marauding Ashley Cole, who darts in from the left and heads over from Ivanvoic's teasing cross.
20' WARNING SHOT
Apoel respond and it's not far away as Constantinos Charalambides cracks one over the top on the volley.
18' GOAAAAL!!!!
It's been coming. Juliano Belletti hares down the Chelsea right and drags the ball back across the box for the unmarked Nicolas Anelka. The Chelsea hit man needs no invitation and rifles the ball into the top corner from the edge of the box. Superb finish.
16' HALF CHANCE
This time Anelka does pick out a man after some neat play by Ashley Cole. The French striker lays the ball off to Salomon Kalou, but his effort sails wide.
14' POOR BALL
Nicolas Anelka pounces on a loose ball, but takes it early and fails to pick out the run of Malouda.
12' WIDE OF THE MARK
Frank Lampard plants one at pace on the head of Ivanovic, who heads narrowly wide under pressure from Christos Kontis. The big Serb wants a corner, but Apoel get the goal kick.
9' ESSIEN LETS RIP
Apoel back off as Michael Essien steams forward, jinks inside and fires wide on his weaker left peg. His last goal came against Barcelona - what a peach that was.
8' STAT ATTACK
The Blues are unbeaten in their last nine Champions League outings and have lost only two of their last 12 away from the Bridge.
5' RASH CHALLENGE
Nenad Mirosavljevic hits the deck under the fierce challenge of Ivanovic. French referee Bertrand Layec awards the home side a free kick, but ignores the pleas of the Apoel fans to book the Chelsea defender.
3' BOO BOYS
As expected, every Chelsea touch is greeted with a frosty chorus of boos. And the boos turn to cheers when Ashley Cole miscontrols and concedes a throw in.
1' WING PLAY
Florent Malouda skins his man and plays in Ashley Cole, who wins a corner. Not the most convincing piece of defending from Lampard's resulting kick, but Apoel get it clear nevertheless.
0' AWAY WE GO
The ball's rolling at the Neo GSP in Nicosia.
0' APOEL TEAM NEWS
Two changes to the Apoel side that held Atletico Madrid, with Nenad Mirosavljevic coming in for Marcin Zewlakow up top and Boban Grncarov replacing Paulo Jorge at centre back. Ex-Blue Nuno Morais starts in midfield. Team in full: Chiotis, Poursaitides, Kontis, Grncarov, Haxhi, Charalambidis, Morais, Michael, Alexandrou, Pinto, Mirosavljevic. Subs: Kissas, Papathanasiou, Kosowski, Satsias, Elia, Jean Paulista, Breska.
0' CHELSEA TEAM NEWS
Just the one change to the side that laboured to victory over Porto as Juliano Belletti replaces the injured Michael Ballack in midfield. Ashley Cole's shaken off a knock picked up in the defeat at Wigan, but Joe Cole's only fit enough for a place on the bench. Team in full: Cech, Ivanovic, Carvalho, Terry, Ashley Cole, Belletti, Essien, Lampard, Kalou, Anelka, Malouda. Subs: Hilario, Joe Cole, Zhirkov, Deco, Sturridge, Hutchinson, Bruma.
0' STAY TUNED
Join us around 1920BST for confirmed team news and all things Apoel-Chelsea.
0' REF WATCH
French referee Bertrand Layec takes charge of this one. The 44 year-old dished out 15 yellow cards in five games in last season's competition, but has yet to send anyone off in the Champions League proper since taking his CL bow back in 2004.
0' FAMILIAR FACE
Apoel strike duo Zewlakow and Adrian Sikora face late fitness tests, while defenders Joost Broerse and Paulo Jorge miss out. Former Chelsea defender Nuno Morais, if selected, will face the Blues for the first time since his 2007 departure.
0' APOEL WHO?
Founded in 1926, Apoel Nicosia are the biggest and most successful team in Cyprus, having won the league title 20 times as well as 30 domestic cups. Their team sheet may not boast any of world football's household names, prima donnas and mercenaries, but the likes of Polish duo Kamil Kosowski and Marcin Zewlakow, Albania's Altin Haxhi, Greek defender Savvas Poursaitides, ex-Chelsea defender Nuno Morais and Cypriot winger Constantinos Charalambides have already shown they have the skills to pay the bills after beating Danish side FC Copenhagen en route to the Champions League proper, before drawing in Madrid. The ‘12th man' is also a huge factor in the Cypriot side's success and the Chelsea players can expect a raucous reception at the 22,000-seater JSP stadium. Apoel have lost just once on home turf in the past year...
0' JOE COLE GIVEN GREEN LIGHT
Jose Bosingwa and Didier Drogba miss out, both serving the second of a three-match ban following last season's semi-final second leg antics. Michael Ballack (calf) and John Obi Mikel (ankle) are both injured, but Joe Cole could make his European return after a lengthy spell in the treatment room.
0' PREVIEW
After last weekend's humbling at the DW Stadium, Chelsea will be looking to bounce back with victory over Cypriot minnows Apoel Nicosia. A win on the Mediterranean island should provide the perfect pick-me-up ahead of the Blues' upcoming domestic clash with Liverpool, but it perhaps won't be as straight forward as you'd think. Apoel stunned Atletico Madrid in the opening game in Group D, holding the Spaniards to a goalless draw in the Spanish capital and proved that if there are any whipping boys in this season's Champions League, it certainly ain't them.
Commentary  |  
Team Stats  |  Player Stats
Teams
Apoel NicosiaStarter
Dionisios Chiotis - 22Y
Boban Grncarov - 5Y
Savvas Poursaitidis - 7Y
Konstantinos Charalambides - 10Y
Helio Pinto - 23Y
Christos Kontis - 24Y
Nuno Morais - 26Y
Nektarios Alexandrou - 29Y
Nenad Mirosavljevic - 30Y
Altin Haxhi - 32Y
Chrysostomos Michail - 33Y
Kamil Kosowski - 11N
Jean Paulista - 20N
Mario Breska - 37N
ChelseaStarter
Petr Cech - 1Y
Branislav Ivanovic - 2Y
Ashley Cole - 3Y
Michael Essien - 5Y
Ricardo Carvalho - 6Y
Frank Lampard - 8Y
Florent Malouda - 15Y
Salomon Kalou - 21Y
John Terry - 26Y
Juliano Belletti - 35Y
Nicolas Anelka - 39Y
Joe Cole - 10N
Deco - 20N
  
Substitution
58' - Kosowski
 - Alexandrou
80' - Breska
 - Michail
85' - Paulista
 - Charalambides
Deco - 68'
Belletti - 
Cole - 80'
Kalou - 
  
  
Yellow Cards
 
 
Kalou (44')  
Ivanovic (79')  
Apoel NicosiaTeam StatsChelsea
0 Goals 1
0 Assists 1
7 Shots 15
2 Shots on Goal 2
1 Saves 2
0 Penalties Scored 0
0 Penalty Kicks 0
19 Crosses 21
8 Corner Kicks 2
4 Offsides 2
6 Fouls Committed 21
0 Cautions/Yellow Cards 2
0 Red Cards 0
Commentary  |  
Team Stats  |  Player Stats
Apoel Nicosia
  GA SHT SHT-OG Svs SPct PKF PKS YC RC
D. Chiotis - 22 1 15 2 1 50.0 0 0 0 0
  SUB G Ast SHTS SOG SOG% CK CR FC FS Off YC RC
B. Grncarov - 5 0 0 0 0 - 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
S. Poursaitidis - 7 0 0 1 1 100.0 0 0 1 3 0 0 0
K. Charalambides - 10 -86 0 0 3 0 0.0 3 4 3 5 0 0 0
K. Kosowski - 11 +59 0 0 1 1 100.0 1 5 0 1 0 0 0
J. Paulista - 20 +86 0 0 1 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
H. Pinto - 23 0 0 0 0 - 1 3 1 3 0 0 0
C. Kontis - 24 0 0 1 0 0.0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0
N. Morais - 26 0 0 0 0 - 0 1 0 1 0 0 0
N. Alexandrou - 29 -59 0 0 0 0 - 2 2 0 3 3 0 0
N. Mirosavljevic - 30 0 0 0 0 - 0 0 0 2 0 0 0
A. Haxhi - 32 0 0 0 0 - 0 2 0 0 0 0 0
C. Michail - 33 -81 0 0 0 0 - 0 1 0 0 1 0 0
M. Breska - 37 +81 0 0 0 0 - 1 1 0 1 0 0 0

Chelsea
  GA SHT SHT-OG Svs SPct PKF PKS YC RC
P. Cech - 1 0 7 2 2 100.0 0 0 0 0
  SUB G Ast SHTS SOG SOG% CK CR FC FS Off YC RC
B. Ivanovic - 2 0 0 1 0 0.0 0 5 4 1 0 1 0
A. Cole - 3 0 0 1 0 0.0 0 5 2 1 0 0 0
M. Essien - 5 0 0 2 0 0.0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0
R. Carvalho - 6 0 0 0 0 - 0 0 2 0 0 0 0
F. Lampard - 8 0 0 3 0 0.0 1 2 0 1 1 0 0
J. Cole - 10 +81 0 0 0 0 - 0 0 1 0 0 0 0
F. Malouda - 15 0 0 4 1 25.0 1 1 5 0 0 0 0
Deco - 20 +69 0 0 0 0 - 0 1 0 0 0 0 0
S. Kalou - 21 -81 0 0 1 0 0.0 0 1 3 0 0 1 0
J. Terry - 26 0 0 0 0 - 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
J. Belletti - 35 -69 0 1 0 0 - 0 2 1 1 0 0 0
N. Anelka - 39 1 0 3 1 33.3 0 4 2 1 1 0 0

Goalkeepers
GAGoals Allowed
SHTShots Faced
SHT-OGShots on Goal Faced
SvsSaves
SPctSave Pct.(Percentage)
PKFPenalty Kicks Faced
PKSPenalty Kicks Saved
YCCautions/Yellow Cards
RCRed Cards
Players
GGoals
SHTSShots
SOGShots on Goal
SOG%Shots on Goal %
CKCorner Kicks
CRCrosses
FCFouls Committed
FSFouls Suffered
YCCautions/Yellow Cards
RCRed Cards
AstAssists
OffOffsides
SUBSubstitution
s1 © 2009 by STATS LLC.
Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of STATS LLC is strictly prohibited.

Latest Scores and Results