AFCON 2025
Former Chelsea midfielder, John Obi Mikel has revealed details about the mayhem that erupted after the club’s dramatic Champions League semi-final exit to Barcelona in 2009.
Chelsea were minutes away from reaching their second consecutive final when Andres Iniesta’s stoppage-time goal sent Barcelona through on away goals, following a 0–0 draw in the first leg and a fiercely contested second leg at Stamford Bridge that ended 1–1.
The game remains one of the most controversial in Champions League history, with Chelsea furious over several rejected penalty appeals. The frustration boiled over at the final whistle, famously prompting striker Didier Drogba’s on-camera outburst, calling the officiating a “disgrace.”
Mikel, who did not feature that night, told TalkSport that tempers flared immediately after the match.
“Everybody was screaming and shouting,” he recalled. “Tables were flying, drinks were everywhere.”
“We could not believe the decisions that went against us, in our home, in our backyard and to get robbed that way was absolutely incredible.”
“It was a disaster in the dressing room and everybody went quiet and nobody spoke for maybe an hour and we just took our shower and left.”
Barcelona went on to defeat Manchester United 2–0 in the final, while Chelsea eventually lifted the trophy three years later in 2012 after a memorable victory over Bayern Munich in Munich.
