Chelsea held on for a 1-1 draw with Turkish football team Galatasaray in Istanbul Wednesday, giving the London club the upper hand after the first leg of their Champions League last 16 tie.
© Photo: AFP
The visitors led at half-time thanks to an early goal from Fernando Torres, but Galatasaray improved in the second half and restored parity after the hour mark when Cameroon defender Aurélien Chedjou found the net.
A draw was a fair reflection of the way the game went, but Chelsea will now hope to finish the job in the return at Stamford Bridge on March 18.
It was a sixth goal in his last five Champions League starts for Torres, and it briefly silenced the Turkish fans inside the impressive Turk Telecom Arena.
Chelsea could possibly have put the tie to bed in the minutes that followed, with Galatasaray utterly disorganised and poor in possession.
There was little by means of a response from Roberto Mancini's men, with Didier Drogba unable to wriggle free from the marking of John Terry and Wesley Sneijder incapable of influencing proceedings from the left flank.
Winger Izet Hajrovic saw his snap-shot from 20 yards saved by Petr Cech, but the recent signing from Swiss side Grasshoppers was then the victim of a tactical switch by Mancini, who sent on central midfielder Yekta Kurtulus in his place and changed to a 4-2-3-1 formation.
Gala improved after that and an Alex Telles cross-cum-shot had Petr Cech panicked before Burak Yilmaz put the ball in the net after a quickly-taken throw, but with an extra ball on the pitch at the time, the Spanish referee disallowed the goal, and booked Chelsea skipper John Terry for throwing one ball away.
A lively Torres almost made it 2-0 for Chelsea in the 52nd minute, bursting through the middle of the home back line before seeing his shot turned behind for a corner by Muslera.
However, Galatasaray finally started to grow into the contest in the second half, the raucous crowd receiving a lift when Gary Cahill nearly turned the ball into his own net after intercepting a Burak Yilmaz pass intended for Drogba.
The Ivorian striker almost created an equaliser against his old club in the 62nd minute, heading down a left-wing cross for Selcuk Inan, but the home captain somehow contrived to stab the ball against the post from a yard out.
The Turkish champions were not to be denied a leveller three minutes later, though, Chedjou wriggling free of his marker to convert a Sneijder corner from point-blank range.
Galatasaray finished strongly, although the closest they came to winning the game was from a fierce Telles shot that Cech tipped over.
In the night’s other Champions League tie, Real Madrid cruised to a rare victory on German soil as they romped to a 6-1 win at Schalke.
Karim Benzema, Gareth Bale and Ballon d'Or winner Cristiano Ronaldo all scored twice each, while Netherlands striker Klaas-Jan Huntelaar scored a 91st-minute consolation for Schalke.
Source: FRANCE 24 with AFP
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