Zlatan Ibrahimovic
won't lack for suitors when his contract expires in June -- but Chelsea will
hope it won't have to face the Swede again anytime soon.
That's because the
Paris Saint-Germain forward scored once again as his side knocked Chelsea out
of the Champions League for the second year in succession.
Ibrahimovic has yet
to decide where he'll be playing his football next season but a move to English
football would not be out of the realms of possibility.
The 34-year-old,
who scored in his side's first leg victory of this last-16 tie, steered his
team into the quarterfinals of Europe's top club competition with a hugely
impressive performance.
He was on form at
Stamford Bridge, setting up his side's first goal and scoring its second to
secure a 2-1 victory on the night and a 4-2 win on aggregate.
PSG, 23 points
clear at the top of the French league, wobbled briefly when Diego Costa
canceled out Adrien Rabiot's opener
But Ibrahimovic
smoothed over any nerves when he fired home from close-range to seal the win.
Old friends
For the third year
in succession these two clubs were paired in the knockout stages of the
competition.
In 2014, Chelsea
triumphed on away goals after winning 2-0 at Stamford Bridge to wipe out a 3-1
defeat in the first leg.
Last season it was
the French side which progressed, courtesy of a 2-2 draw in London after the
first game had ended 1-1.
Throw in the fact
that Ibrahimovic was sent off in that game and PSG came through courtesy of
Thiago Silva's 114th minute equalizer, it's not difficult to see why this was
such a highly anticipated clash.
PSG, leading 2-1
from the first leg three weeks ago, showed little sign of sitting back and
defending its lead during the opening stages.
The game started at
a frenetic pace and only a last-ditch block by Branislav Ivanovic, the Chelsea
defender, prevented Angel Di Maria from opening the scoring after five minutes.
The visitors, who
started in confident mood, struck first when Rabiot bundled home Ibrahimovic's
fine right-wing cross at the far post.
Chelsea, which had
struggled to cope with PSG's pace and movement in the opening stages, gradually
got to grips with its opponent.
And it drew level
through Costa's wonderful strike 12 minutes later with the Spaniard turning his
man before firing the ball into the far corner from the edge of the penalty
area.
Costa's 11th goal
in 15 games breathed new life into a Chelsea side which had until that point
looked unlikely to find a way past the PSG defense.
The Spaniard went
close again on the stroke of halftime when his fierce drive was only parried by
Kevin Trapp, the PSG goalkeeper, with a defender clearing the ball before Eden
Hazard could pounce.
Chelsea, 10th in
the Premier League and unbeaten in 12 league games under interim manager Guus
Hiddink, continued to move forward after the interval.
But it was dealt a
blow on the hour mark when Costa, who had been in fine form, was forced to limp
out of the action with a groin injury.
Deprived of its
star striker, Chelsea persevered and Trapp produced a fine save to deny
Willian's fierce drive before palming Hazard's effort away to safety.
It was to prove the
turning point of the contest as just minutes later PSG struck the fatal blow.
Di Maria, who had
caused Chelsea problems throughout the contest, played a delightful one-two
with Thiago Motta before crossing to the far post where Ibrahimovic applied the
finishing touch to send his side into the last eight.
"We did a good
game, very stable," Ibrahimovic told BT Sport. "We played with lots
of patient possession and when we had a chance to strike we scored two goals.
We had enough to win the game.
"Overall we
played the way we wanted to. It was not easy, you have to watch out. Chelsea's
front four are able to do anything.
"We are doing
good things, where we end up we don't know. We are not satisfied yet."
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