This past Saturday was one of the most exciting and
memorable days of my life. There are
thousands of Chelsea fans around the world that can say that, but I feel it is
my duty to fully inform you of my experiences on the day my cherished club
lifted their first UEFA Champions League trophy.
Anthony and Erin are two of my best friends in the world;
I’ve known Anthony since we were children playing football together and Erin
since the earliest stages of their relationship in the Delaware Valley
cafeteria. Anthony is a colossal Spurs
fan (I don’t hold it against him) and last year after nine years of dating, he
proposed to Erin. Their wedding was a
model of perfection, taking place on a lovely Saturday afternoon in May,
directly conflicting with the Champions League final. When Chelsea defeated Barcelona at the Camp
Nou a few weeks ago, the first thing Anthony said to me was “We’ll find a way
for you to watch the match.”
Sure enough when Saturday came around, Anthony kept his
word. This is not only a testament to how much we love our respective clubs,
but to our friendship as a whole. As the
time grew closer to kickoff and the marriage ceremony, Anthony and I grew
nervous together, but for vastly different reasons. Twitter had revealed that Chelsea would be
beginning the game with 5 defenders on the pitch; Di Matteo was locking into
the siege mentality meaning it was going to be a nervous day for Chelsea
supporters around the world.
As the ceremony began, the match kicked off, Erin made her
way down the aisle, while half a world away Chelsea absorbed the beginning of a
German onslaught that would continue through the evening. Anthony and Erin exchanged their beautiful
handwritten vows in front of the Justice of the Peace and shared a passionate
kiss amid the cheers of those assembled.
They made their retreat down the aisle and the celebration was
underway. My celebration would have to
wait longer.
While the wedding guests greeted each other and
congratulated the bride and groom, I retreated to the house that contained the
facility’s lone television. I arrived
just as the second half began and settled in for what I knew would be an
intense half of football. Repeatedly I
watched the waves of attacking Bayern players have their efforts blocked,
parried, punched, and deflected away by the brave Chelsea defense and Peter
Cech.
The bride and groom briefly joined me to escape the heat and
the crowd gathered to enjoy a semi-private moment amongst themselves. They soon returned to their guests, while I
returned my attention to the television where yet another corner was conceded
and cleared by Chelsea, but as the minutes drew closer to 90 I knew something
had to give.
Surely enough, Thomas Muller was able to find the goal off a
header that bounced off the ground and over the head and hands of Petr
Cech. I was devastated; all the
excitement I had felt immediately vanished, replaced by bitterness and
defeat. Chelsea hadn’t showed much
promise on the attacking end and it looked like Bayern would triumph in their
home stadium.
Didier Drogba restored my faith just a few short minutes
later, by sending Juan Mata’s corner kick into the goal off the hands of Manuel
Neuer. It was an incredible moment, a
cathartic excitement over came me and I screamed. Drogba had redeemed himself from the shame of
the 2008 Final in the best way possible, giving Chelsea a glimmer of hope off
of their only corner kick of the match.
Fernando Torres’ introduction had changed the game in Chelsea’s favor
and I believed they had the upper hand when the end of the second half was
signaled.
Just a few minutes later, my world was turned on its head
again, as Didier Drogba conceded a penalty by clipping the heels of Franck
Ribery. While Arjen Robben strode
forward to take the crucial penalty, I prayed that Peter Cech would be able to
redeem Chelsea for that mistake. He
did. Robben scuffed the penalty, and
Cech made the save, giving Chelsea another chance.
While my hysteria reached a fever pitch, various friends and
family members became aware of my absence as dinner was beginning shortly. I didn’t care, my friends would understand,
this would all be worth it. Time slipped
away as Bayern squandered chance after chance.
Ashley Cole, David Luiz, and Gary Cahill all gave incredible
performances to ensure the Chelsea back line held strong. When the full time whistle blew, I felt no
relief at the prospect of penalties.
Juan Mata’s first penalty was stopped by Manuel Neuer,
putting Chelsea’s backs against the precipice of defeat yet another time. Only this time there was hope that was
replacing despair. That didn’t waiver when Neuer sunk his penalty and Luiz
responded by thumping his own. When Olic
and Robben strode to the penalty spot, I knew that Cech had the upper hand and
the massive keeper responded appropriately by stopping both. As Drogba took the long walk to the penalty
spot it felt like destiny. As he rolled
the ball past Neuer, it became destiny.
While Drogba celebrated with his teammates, I screamed with joy. I was alone in my happiness, but united with thousands of Chelsea fans around the world. As I returned to the celebration with my friends I was greeted with scowls and stares from people wondering how I could be so selfish. They wouldn’t understand, but I wouldn’t want them to. Later, Anthony shook my hand and congratulated me and the celebration continued long into the night.
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