UCL:Atletico Madrid Sink Chelsea; Set Up showdown with neighbours Real

*Dream finalists: AFP

  CHELSEA have been dumped out of the Champions League as Atletico Madrid set up a dream final against near-neighbours Real in Lisbon on Mw 24.

Despite taking a first-half lead through Fernando Torres, Chelsea had no answer to the classy Spaniards as goals from Adrian Lopez, Diego Costa and Arda Turan secured a 3-1 semi-final win both at Stamford Bridge and on aggregate.
After a 0-0 draw in last week’s first leg in Madrid, Torres seemingly put Chelsea in the box-seat with his 36th minute opener but the lead lasted barely eight minutes before Adrian capitalised on some poor chelsea defending and gave Mark Schwarzer no chance.
The second half belonged entirely to the visitors and their dominance was such that any further goals wouldn’t have flattered them.

 Diego Simeone’s team are also two wins from claiming a first La Liga title in 18 years, meaning that they could be looking to complete an improbable double when they meet their old foes Real on May 24.

Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho, meanwhile, was denied a reunion with his former employers Real, with whom he had also experienced semi-final disappointment in each of the previous three seasons.
The pre-match build-up had been dominated by talk about Chelsea’s ultra-defensive display in their 2-0 win at Liverpool last weekend and Mourinho seemed determined to continue in the same vein by selecting three full-backs.
Fears of a new-fangled defensive configuration proved unfounded, as Cesar Azpilicueta was deployed as a fairly orthodox right-sided midfielder, but the early stages proved every bit as cagey as last week’s first leg.
Koke almost gave Atletico a fourth-minute lead with a mishit left-wing cross that deceived Mark Schwarzer and hit the crossbar, but the teams were generally content to hold each other at arm’s length.