Chelsea headed into today's Europa League second leg against Rubin Kazan with a comfortable 3-1 lead from the first encounter at Stamford Bridge.
While the Blues have booked their place in the semi-finals with a 5-4 victory on aggregate, they were beaten 3-2 on the night in Moscow due to a second-half meltdown.
The Blues will now be in the draw tomorrow with a potential clash against Premier League sides Tottenham Hotspur or Newcastle United, who remain in the competition.
Read how the 90 minutes unfolded with our minute-by-minute commentary below.
4pmHello all! The Champions League action may be over for the week, but we're not done with European football just yet as we have the remaining quarter-final encounters in the Europa League! Here, we will be focusing on Chelsea's second leg against Rubin Kazan.
4pmHello all! The Champions League action may be over for the week, but we're not done with European football just yet as we have the remaining quarter-final encounters in the Europa League! Here, we will be focusing on Chelsea's second leg against Rubin Kazan.
4.02pmCast your memories back (well, it's not that far back) to last week when the Blues took a 3-1 lead from the first leg at Stamford Bridge courtesy of two goals from Fernando Torres and one from Victor Moses. Due to Rubin clinching an away goal, they can progress into the semi-finals with a 2-0 win in Moscow tonight if they don't concede.
4.05pmChelsea are expected to make plenty of changes for today's clash due to a number of injuries and interim manager Rafael Benitez's desire to rest certain players. So, without further ado, let's bring you the team news!
4.07pmCHELSEA XI: Cech; Azpilicueta, Luiz, Terry, Ferreira; Ake, Lampard; Ramires, Benayoun, Moses; Torres
Rubin XI: Ryzhikov; Kuzmin, Ansaldi, Navas, Marcano; Orbaiz, Kasaev, Eremenko, Karadeniz; Natcho, Rondon
4.15pmApologies for our slight technical difficulties there, but we're back! We don't have the bench for the home side as yet, but Chelsea's is as follows: Turnbull, Ivanovic, Oscar, Mikel, Hazard, Marin, Mata
4.17pmAs we already knew, Ryan Bertrand was pulled out of the travelling squad to Moscow due to a virus, and Ashley Cole is still struggling with injury, which means that youngster Nathan Ake starts tonight.
4.18pmHowever, instead of filling in at left-back, the lineup indicates that the teenager will move into midfield with Paulo Ferreira taking the full-back spot.
4.20pmJohn Terry comes into the side to captain his team, while Frank Lampard and Ramires are given spots in midfield. Fernando Torres has been given the nod up front due to Demba Ba being cup-tied following his European excursions with Newcastle United.
4.24pmAs expected, Oscar, Juan Mata and Eden Hazard have dropped down to the bench. The trio can cause plenty of danger, so if the Blues find themselves biting their nails in the second half, Benitez has a strong bench to opt for.
4.25pmAs for Rubin, Colombian striker Jose Rondon, who has netted five goals since the start of the group phase in the competition, starts up front, while Yann M'Vila, who you may remember had interest from QPR and Fulham, will play no part in the game due to injury.
4.28pmWhile skipper John Terry has failed to regain a regular starting place in the Blues' lineup since that troublesome knee injury, there is some good news for the former England international - he will be making his 100th European appearance tonight for the West London outfit.
4.31pmChelsea are in a strong position heading into this match, but Rubin have that vital away goal, which could prove crucial during the match. They, of course, will have to stop Chelsea finding the back of the net!
4.35pmFancy refreshing your memory on last week's tie? Of course you do. Here are the goals and highlights from the Blues' 3-1 win at Stamford Bridge...
4.37pmWhile Terry can celebrate reaching a European feat today, he will be keeping his fingers crossed that it goes better than five years ago when he suffered Champions League heartbreak against Manchester United. The Luzhniki Stadium was the scene of Terry's famous penalty slip that helped hand the European trophy to their Premier League rivals. I think showing a replay of THAT penalty would be too cruel...
4.40pmAnyway, enough about the past! Looking forward to today's clash, which will get underway in around 20 minutes or so. Rubin boss Kurban Berdyev has been speaking about UEFA's decision to move the clash from their home of Kazan to Moscow...
"If we had played in Kazan, we'd have a full stadium with fans to support us and of course we'd have more chance to beat Chelsea," BBC Sport quotes Berdyev as saying.
"We have the chance to fight on Thursday. They won in London because we made two mistakes which cost us two goals."
4.44pmIf you weren't aware, the reason the game has been moved to Moscow is due to UEFA deeming the pitch in Kazan not good enough to play on, which means that around three quarters of the Luzhniki Stadium is expected to be empty!
4.47pmAs we all know, Chelsea have had somewhat of a fixture pileup of late, and it's not quite over yet as they are due to take on Manchester City in an FA Cup semi-final on Sunday. Not only that, but Chelsea midfielder John Obi Mikel has expressed his discontent in competing in the Europa League.
Mikel told the London Evening Standard this week: "No disrespect to the Europa League but when you saw the game on Thursday, it was not [the same]. You get that buzz when you hear the song of the Champions League, it's different.
"We want to be involved in the Champions League again next season. We've been used to it, those kind of special nights, and we want to get it back."
4.52pmMore from Mikel: "I think for us and the fans, Champions League football [is the number one target]. It's what this club have always been involved in and as players it's what we want to achieve.
"It's been frustrating to watch [the Champions League games], while we have to play on Thursday nights. I have been here several years and never played football on Thursday nights. So, hopefully, next season we are not going to be in it."
4.54pmRight, we're just minutes away from kickoff now! How do you see it going? Will Chelsea be able to hold on to their 2-0 aggregate lead and put their name in the hat for tomorrow's semi-final draw? We'll find out soon enough!
4.57pmThe teams are out on the field in chilly Moscow and we're just seconds away from the start of this second leg.
0 minAnd we're off! Chelsea get us underway from left to right on this artificial pitch...
1 minRamires snatches the ball in midfield and storms down the left to fins a swift, short pass to Torres, but the striker loses his footing and gives the ball back to the opposition.
2 minFerreira is forced to hit the ball out of danger after an attack from the home side. There was no real threat as the ball bobbled up and down.
4 minGOAL! Rubin 0-1 Chelsea (Torres)
5 minWell, it's the best possible start for Chelsea, and it's the man whose been struggling in a Blues shirt - Torres. Lampard picks out a pinpointed pass from midfield to find the feet of Torres, who goes one-on-one with the goalkeeper. He manages to lob the ball over the top of the keeper, who storms out from his line, and the ball drifts into the back of the net. Chelsea are now 4-1 on aggregate.
6 minMinutes before though, Rubin were close to breaking the deadlock through Eremenko, but his shot from inside the box bounced right into the path of John Terry, who was able to clear.
8 minA long pass from the Rubin defence tries to find Rondon, who is searching for the ball, but Cech comes off his line early to gather the ball and end their attack.
10 minTorres plays the ball out wide to Benayoun, who in turn plays a one-two with Azpilicueta, but Marcano manages to get a foot on it to push the ball out of play to concede a throw-in. Lampard tries to guide the ball towards the keeper's near post, but there's too much power on it and it drifts behind the line.
13 minCHANCE! Torres, who is still sporting his protective mask, drifts out wide to get a cross in to Benayoun, who leaps for the ball, but his flicked header goes wayward.
15 minChelsea get a free kick a yard outside the corner of the penalty box. Lampard whips the ball in with a great delivery, but a Rubin shirt gets to the ball first and heads the danger clear.
16 minMoses tries a curling shot on goal after storming to the edge of the area, but his attempt is weak and Ryzhikov manages to drop to his knees to smother the ball.
18 minLampard once again looks for Torres with a long ball over the top, but the Spaniard gets muscled out by Kuzmin, who knocks it across the back four to give Rubin some composure.
20 minRondon tries to launch an attack by playing a one-two with Karadeniz. He frees up some space for himself to take a right-footed shot on goal but he effort goes way wide of the post.
23 minThe home side are having a good spell of possession, but they're unable to have that bit of class in the final third, especially since Rondon isn't receiving enough service. Chelsea are defending well, and they're looking relatively comfortable so far.
23 minAfter failing to break the Blues down, Rubin try a long-ball attempt from the back through Kuzmin, but his effort fails to find one of his teammates and Cech gathers the ball with ease.
25 minEremenko finds himself just yards outside the box as he launches a right-footed shot towards Cech. Terry manages sticks his left foot out to halt the ball's path, and he does just enough to stop the pace and allow his keeper to pick the ball up.
26 minWell, that move just pretty much summed up Rubin's threat on this game so far. Kasaev gets the ball back on the left - he has plenty of time to position himself and wait for his teammates to get into the box but he puts in an early cross into no-man's land.
28 minMinutes later at the other end, Lampard drives into the box to latch onto on overhead ball with hies head, but his attempt doesn't have enough power on it to trouble the Rubin keeper.
29 minGokdeniz pulls the play out wide on the right and launches a quick cross aimed at Rondon, who picks the ball up with a volley shot, but once again his aim is poor and Chelsea avoid any real danger.
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31 minChelsea are on the attack again, this time through Moses. He goes one-on-one with Kuzmin and ends up the successful of the two as he jinks past him to get a cross into the box aiming for Lampard, but Rubin shirts get their first to snuff out any attempts.
33 minSAVE! Cech is forced to make his first save of the game, but it wasn't too much of a danger for the Chelsea man. Kasaev drives through the Blues defence, leaving Azpilicueta and Terry behind. He flicks the ball back to Eremenko, who fires the ball towards goal, which forces Cech to dive to his left and grasp the ball in his hands.
37 minRubin are having a lot more of the ball in the last few minutes as Luiz is forced to header out an incoming cross, while Terry makes a block just seconds later. While the home side are probing, Chelsea look comfortable to just sit back and hold on to their lead.
38 minKasaev breaks down the left and draws the ball back looking for Eremenko, but Chelsea youngster Ake gets their first and brings an end to Rubin's attack.
41 minChelsea continue to knock the ball back and forth between the defence. As mentioned, they seem happy to hold on to their substantial lead, so they have no rush to play Torres in.
42 minMoses finds space on the edge of the area to play in Lampard, who is oncoming from the middle of the park. The ball drifts too far out wide for the midfielder, though, and it runs away from him to prevent a shot on goal.
45 minSAVE! That was close! Cech is called upon to make a decent save to stop Rubin from equalising. A ball over the top finds Gokdeniz onside. He latches onto the end just inches away from Cech, who dives to his right to connect just fingertips to the ball when the shot is launched. Chelsea can breathe a sight of relief!
45 minHALF TIME: Rubin 0-1 Chelsea
5.49pmSo, there we have it, it's 1-0 to the Premier League outfit at half time, and you'd have to say it's thoroughly deserved. Chelsea clinched the early goal through Torres and have been content to just sit back and let Rubin come at them considering they have a 4-1 lead.
5.51pmWhile Rubin have had plenty of possession, they have struggled to show that deadly touch in the final third, which is what they'll need to improve if they want to get anything out of this tie.
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5.53pmIt could have been a completely different story in the first minute of the half, though. A Terry block prevented Rubin from taking an early lead, which could have turned the game on it's head. Rubin may end up ruing that missed opportunity.
5.54pmThe home side will need to get more service to Rondon in an attempt to break down the Chelsea defence. In turn, the frontman needs to be more composed on the ball as the majority of his chances in the first half went wayward.
5.57pmSo, can Chelsea maintain their lead or will Rubin launch a second-half comeback? We're minutes away from finding out.
6pmThe players are back onto the pitch to a relatively empty stadium. Rubin are making one substitution - It's a straight swap as Kaleshin comes on for Kuzmin.
45 minAnd we're away! Rubin kick off the second half...
45 minRubin have started attacking early as expected as Ansaldi launches a long ball into the box but Terry clears with a header.
46 minAt the other end, Torres, who gets a slight knock in his face, commits a great turn to storm towards the box but the ball runs away from him and Rubin retake possession.
47 minAnsaldi drives down the left before pulling the ball back to Kasaev, who tries to break into the box by pushing through Chelsea's defence, but Azpilicueta gets a foot in within the penalty area to deny the Rubin player.
49 minGOAL! Rubin 1-1 Chelsea (Marcano)
50 minRubin get a glimmer of hope with a headed goal from Marcano. Orbaiz receives the ball outside the 18-yard box and with no pressure from the Chelsea players he drifts the ball in to find the head of Marcano, who manages to beat Ramires to the ball, to slot his attempt into the back of the net. Cech barely moved to make a save.
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53 minRubin are picking up the pace as they continue to probe Chelsea's defence. This time, Kasaev finds space to cross into the area but Terry muscles his way in to header the danger away.
54 minGOAL! Rubin 1-2 Chelsea (Moses)
55 minI think it's safe to say that this game is all but over. Ramires snatches possession after closing down his man, and swiftly passes back to Lampard, who feeds the ball into Moses. The Nigerian does a one-two with Ramires to slink into the box and launch a curling right-footed shot into the back of the net. It takes a slight deflection, but Chelsea won't care about that!
57 minJust minutes after celebrating, Chelsea come under some pressure by the home side as they are forced to do some frantic defending in the box. Kasaev latches onto the ball and tries some fancy footwork to wriggle into space but enough blue shirts clear the danger.
58 minSUBSTITUTION Chelsea make their first change of the game as Ramires makes way for John Obi Mikel.
59 minSeconds before the substitution was made, Moses found himself down the left and managed to get a cross into the box to find Lampard, who connected with the ball poorly, which resulted in his shot bouncing off Rubin's defence.
61 minGOAL! Rubin 2-2 Chelsea (Gokdeniz)
62 minWell, they're not lying down are they! Gokdeniz draws level for Rubin on the night after latching onto a high cross into the box. He manages to get away from Ake, who should have done better, to head the ball into the back of the net. Despite netting two this evening, Rubin have to score three more to progress into the semi-finals.
64 minMISS! Marcano was inches away of getting a second! The ball floats into the box and the Rubin player is once again left with a free header. He connects with the ball but his effort just drifts wide of the post. Chelsea will need to address this problem, they're letting Rubin dominate on set pieces.
65 minSUBSTITUTION Rubin make their second change by bringing Dyadyun on for Orbaiz.
67 minTerry is under pressure in his own half as he's forced to knock back a header to prevent Kasaev from latching onto it. The ball bounces free but a nudge in the back on Terry from the number 10 alerts the referee to blow his whistle and give the Blues a free kick.
69 minThe game has stretched a little bit as Chelsea move up the pitch but Rubin are having much more of the ball in this second half.
70 minSpeaking of, Gokdeniz moves to the corner of the box to swing a cross into the box. Despite Terry missing the ball, Azpilicueta is able to follow up and head the ball away from danger.
71 minSUBSTITUTION Rubin make their final change of the clash as Kasaev leaves the field and is replaced by Ryazantsev.
72 minPENALTY! Well, well, well. The home side get a slice of luck with a penalty after Ryazantsev appears to get a slight push from Azpilicueta.
73 minGOAL! Rubin 3-2 Chelsea (Natcho)
75 minIt's Natcho that gives Rubin the lead on the night with a well-taken spot-kick, which drives into the top of the net, with Cech failing to get anything on it. Rubin need two goals to go through, and Chelsea aren't making things easy for themselves!
77 minSUBSTITUTION Benitez calls on Oscar to help his side out, as Benayoun makes way.
78 minLooking back on the penalty incident, replays have shown that there was very minimal contact from Azpilicueta. Ryazantsev made a meal of it, and his wink following the incident suggests that he knew it too!
80 minCHANCE! The ball is clipped into the box leaving Rondon with another free header. He gets plenty of space, but the attempt is poor and the ball falls right into the hands of Cech.
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81 minA rare set piece for Chelsea materialises in the form of a corner, which is taken by Oscar, but the Brazilian's ball fails to find one of his teammates as it gets cleared by the home side.
83 minRubin are trying shots from everywhere now as time is running out for them to get two crucial goals. Eremenko picks the ball up just outside of the area. He positions himself and takes a right-footed shot towards goal but he fails to get his attempt on target and it blasts out wide.
84 minLampard tries to play in Oscar into the box with a floating ball over the top but Navas is able to deal with it as he muscles out the Brazilian.
86 minRubin gives the ball away, which allows Oscar to latch onto it and feed in Torres who turns and gets blocked by Marcano, who gets booked for his troubles.
88 minKaleshin receives the ball out wide of the area on the left to cross into the box, but it's hit too hard and Azpilicueta does enough to hook it away.
89 minIt's a half-chance for Dyadyun as the ball is driven into the penalty area. The Rubin player gets a foot to it and tries to lift it over the keeper, but Cech just jumps slightly to grab the ball.
90+1 minDown the other end, Torres switches the play to Oscar, who moves into the penalty to take a swinging shot towards goal, but the attempt fails to trouble the keeper.
90+3 minFULL TIME: Rubin 3-2 Chelsea
6.51pmChelsea will be in the draw for tomorrow's Europa League semi-final thanks to a 5-4 victory on aggregate over Rubin. Well, the home side will feel slightly hard-done by considering their second-half display, which had Chelsea nervous, but it wasn't to be for the Russian outfit.
6.53pmWhile the Blues looked very comfortable in the first half, it was a different story in the second as Rubin nabbed two goals and were gifted a third when they received a penalty that should never have been awarded.
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6.54pmWhile the Blues' attacking play was positive, they struggled defensively, giving away too many free headers in the box, which resulted in the conceding of two goals. While Rubin were more dominant in the second 45 minutes, a large majority of it was down to the Blues' mistakes.
6.55pmSo there we have it. Chelsea are one game away from the Europa League final, but who will join him in the final four? Tottenham Hotspur, Basel, Newcastle United, Fenerbahce, Benfica and Lazio are all in contention.
6.58pmI hope you enjoyed our coverage of Chelsea's triumph. Remember to stick around on Sports Mole for all of tonight's remaining Europa League action. Enjoy!
