Chelsea v Barcelona 1 0 - Di Matteo Post Match | Premier League 18.4.2012
Roberto Di Matteo paid tribute to Chelsea's "old guard" for answering their critics last night after Didier Drogba's goal gave them a crucial 1-0 lead over Barcelona going into Tuesday's Champions League semi-final second leg.
In Chelsea's third win over Barcelona in the Roman Abramovich era, Drogba, John Terry and Ashley Cole summoned up a performance redolent of the best of the Jose Mourinho years to shut out the defending champions and clear favourites for the competition.
"In the past, a lot of the public opinion has been that these boys are over the line, too old to play two games, and to play at this level," the Chelsea caretaker manager said of witnessing excellent performances from his older players, three days after they turned on the style in the FA Cup semi-final win over Tottenham Hotspur.
"It wasn't just him [Drogba]. There were other players on the pitch that you regard as the old guard who can't play two games in such a short period of time," Di Matteo added. "But they gave an answer on the pitch tonight."
