Nicolas Anelka, believed to be on the outs at Chelsea, scored both goals in Blues' 2-0 win at FC Copenhagen in the first leg of their UEFA Champions League round-of-16 series on Tuesday. Meanwhile, Real Madrid coach Jose Mourinho's frustration boiled over continued as he blasted the refereeing in the Merengues' 1-1 tie with Lyon.
Anelka's penalty-kick miss contributed to Chelsea's exit from the FA Cup on Saturday, but Blues manager Carlo Ancelotti kept him in the Chelsea attack alongside recent signing Fernando Torres whileDidier Drogba began the game on the bench.
The Frenchman, nicknamed "Le Sulk" for his moodiness, silenced the sellout crowd at Parken Stadium with the opening goal in the 17th minute and the second nine minutes after the break.
The win took some of the pressure off Ancelotti after three straight games without a win that left Chelsea 12 points off the pace in the EPL and out of the FA Cup.
“Anelka was able to score, and Torres had a lot of opportunities that he created with his movement,” said Ancelotti. “[Our season is] still alive. I had this idea before the game and I maintain it now. We are not dead.”
Former Lyon player Karim Benzema scored an excellent goal in the 64th minute, shortly after entering the game at the stade Gerland, but Bafetimbi Gomis equalized with seven minutes to play.
The tie was better than the result of Real Madrid's last three trips to Lyons -- all losses -- but Mourinho was fixated on what he termed an unacceptable error by German referee Wolfgang Stark.
Shortly after he hit the post with a free kick, Cristiano Ronaldo had another attempt stopped by aYoann Gourcuff handball.
"It's difficult to be a referee and there are errors in matches that are due to fatigue or slowness to react," said Mourinho. "These are the errors we have to accept. After, there are other errors that you can't accept. There was a free kick and in the slow-motion replay you can see it clearly. I was 50 yards away and I could see it. He [Stark] was five yards away with all his assistants and he didn't. I don't understand. It could still be decisive in the series. I just hope it won't be."
Anelka's penalty-kick miss contributed to Chelsea's exit from the FA Cup on Saturday, but Blues manager Carlo Ancelotti kept him in the Chelsea attack alongside recent signing Fernando Torres whileDidier Drogba began the game on the bench.
The Frenchman, nicknamed "Le Sulk" for his moodiness, silenced the sellout crowd at Parken Stadium with the opening goal in the 17th minute and the second nine minutes after the break.
The win took some of the pressure off Ancelotti after three straight games without a win that left Chelsea 12 points off the pace in the EPL and out of the FA Cup.
“Anelka was able to score, and Torres had a lot of opportunities that he created with his movement,” said Ancelotti. “[Our season is] still alive. I had this idea before the game and I maintain it now. We are not dead.”
Former Lyon player Karim Benzema scored an excellent goal in the 64th minute, shortly after entering the game at the stade Gerland, but Bafetimbi Gomis equalized with seven minutes to play.
The tie was better than the result of Real Madrid's last three trips to Lyons -- all losses -- but Mourinho was fixated on what he termed an unacceptable error by German referee Wolfgang Stark.
Shortly after he hit the post with a free kick, Cristiano Ronaldo had another attempt stopped by aYoann Gourcuff handball.
"It's difficult to be a referee and there are errors in matches that are due to fatigue or slowness to react," said Mourinho. "These are the errors we have to accept. After, there are other errors that you can't accept. There was a free kick and in the slow-motion replay you can see it clearly. I was 50 yards away and I could see it. He [Stark] was five yards away with all his assistants and he didn't. I don't understand. It could still be decisive in the series. I just hope it won't be."
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