Sideshow? More like horror show. David Luiz helped set up the winner and put it in the net. Unfortunately, it was his own net, and his vital creative input benefited only Paris Saint-Germain.
It will be a giant struggle from here after a quite brilliant solo goal from Javier Pastore in added time left Chelsea chasing a two-goal deficit in the return leg. Pastore skipped around two defenders at a breathtakingly acute angle before finishing low past Petr Cech at the near post.
Jose Mourinho immediately shook hands with the PSG bench —whether for the night or the tie, who can say?
What is certain though is the rot set in for Chelsea with 28 minutes remaining when Luiz’s intervention changed the game. At that time Chelsea were, if not coasting, then certainly growing in confidence.
Fernando Torres had just replaced Andre Schurrle, the false nine, and Mourinho was looking to go for the kill, the goal that would put Chelsea in charge of this quarter-final tie, heading back to Stamford Bridge for the second leg.
Not in the plan: John Terry, David Luiz, Petr Cech and Cesar Azpilicueta look dejected after Chelsea concede a second
Oh no! Luiz can't get out of the way of the ball as it hits him and goes in
Back of the net: Luiz ends up in the goal along with the ball after PSG go 2-1 up
Match facts
PSG: Sirigu, Jallet, Alex, Thiago Silva, Maxwell, Verratti, Thiago Motta, Matuidi, Cavani, Ibrahimovic, Lavezzi
Subs: Douchez, Cabaye, Marquinhos, Digne, Rabiot, Pastore
Goals: Lavezzi 3, Luiz OG 61
Chelsea: Cech, Ivanovic, Cahill, Terry, Azpilicueta, Ramires, Luiz, Willian, Oscar, Hazard, Schurrle.
Subs: Schwarzer, Lampard, Torres, Mikel, Ba, Ake, Kalas.
Goal: Hazard 27
Referee: Milorad Mazic (Serbia)
*Player ratings by SAMI MOKBEL at Parc des Princes
And then Luiz suffered what is best described as one of his lapses of concentration. Required to shepherd a PSG move going nowhere to safety in the corner, he clumsily gave away a free-kick instead. It was unnecessary, inviting danger where there had been none, and what happened next revealed the folly of his action.
Ezequiel Lavezzi whipped the ball in low, it eluded Zlatan Ibrahimovic, and Cech in the Chelsea goal and suddenly dropped into the path of Luiz who, entirely unexpecting, could only run it into his own net.
In his defence, the foul was a greater crime than the goal. It was a quite brilliant strike by Lavezzi, asking questions of Chelsea’s back line the nearer it got to the target; Luiz was merely a hapless bystander.
The foul, though, was foolish. Chelsea had done so well to keep it tight against PSG’s magical front-line. They had contained Ibrahimovic and partner Edinson Cavani, and only Lavezzi had truly troubled them all night.
It was a soft way to lose and Luiz’s night could have been worse had referee Milorad Mazic not taken a lenient view of a late tussle with Cavani, that ended with Luiz being led away by opposition coach Laurent Blanc. Yellow was the punishment, not red. Probably right but it was a silly chance to take.
Leaving it late: Javier Pastore celebrates after scoring his sides third
Advantage PSG: Pastore is mobbed by his team-mates after giving his side a two goal advantage
PSG’s emergence as a European force is new enough to inspire the locals still, and when so much of even the highest quality Champions League football feels like the same old, same old — this year’s quarter-final, Borussia Dortmund versus Real Madrid, was last season’s semi-final — it was good to feel the buzz around the place.
They cheered their team, obviously, then they cheered the Champions League anthem, more of a rarity. Give it a few years and they’ll be as sick of it as the rest of us.
The occasion drew something from the Paris players, though. They started with purpose and were a goal up on four minutes.
Blaise Matuidi struck a cross from the left which John Terry repelled with a soft header. That would not have made a huge difference had there been a second line of defence to mop up, or had Paris’s forwards not read the move so perfectly. Sensing that Matuidi had put little pace on the ball, they dropped off, knowing any defensive header would not travel far.
Pile driver: Ezequiel Lavezzi smashes home the opening goal against Chelsea
Off he goes: Lavezzi runs off in celebration as Branislav Ivanovic lies on the floor
Dream start: Lavezzi celebrates giving PSG an early lead
All together now: Lavezzi is mobbed by his teammates after his opening goal
From despair to where? Oscar and Andre Schurrle are shocked by the early goal
It left Lavezzi in Position A for when the ball flopped at his feet — he attacked it and smashed his shot into the roof of the net.
It was the worst start imaginable for Chelsea, considering Mourinho had made the decision to open up here without a recognised striker, Schurrle taking the place that should have gone to Torres, left to consider his options on the bench.
It at first appeared a brave, if conservative, move by Mourinho — the last use of Schurrle in the false nine role being the match at Manchester United near the start of the season that produced an interminable goalless draw that delighted only insomniacs and Roy Hodgson. Yet what choice did he have? In his last three games Torres has not been responsible for a shot at goal. He has been every bit the false nine, despite a more impressive record in this tournament.
Firm punch: Petr Cech gets to the ball ahead of PSG defender Thiago Silva
Eyes on the ball: Christophe Jallet shields the ball from Chelsea's Cesar Azpilicueta
Not happy: Jose Mourinho protests on the touchline
When Ramires was booked trying to stop Lavezzi escaping on the left after 12 minutes, putting him out of the return leg, it looked as if it could be a long, perhaps humbling, night for Chelsea. Yet from this inauspicious opening they rallied and dominated the remainder of the first half.
Chances came slowly. A run by David Luiz capped by a weak shot easily saved by Salvatore Sirigu was the first sign of life, but when Alex was forced to take out Ramires and collect a booking a minute later, it was an indication that PSG could be vulnerable if attacked directly. So it proved. The equaliser, which came after 27 minutes, was the result of ordinary defending.
Oscar tried to get round Thiago Silva and the defender went to ground and left a leg out, invitingly. Oscar fell over it.
Up for the challenge: Hazard takes the ball past the sliding tackle of Jallet
Keeping an eye on things: Brazil head coach, and former Chelsea manager, Luiz Felipe Scolari keeps an eye on the Brazilian contingent
The home crowd roared their protests, sensing a dive, but Serbian referee Mazic was adamant in pointing quickly to the penalty spot.
He was right. Oscar didn’t dive, he just didn’t jump to avoid Silva’s outstretched limb. And why should he? Eden Hazard stepped up and finished low to his left, not the cleanest strike, but effective.
Mourinho punched the air several times. Chelsea were back in the game, PSG in retreat.
Spot on: Eden Hazard levels the tie with a goal from the penalty spot
Going the wrong way: Hazard puts the ball past Salvatore Sirigu
Back on terms: Chelsea's players celebrate after Hazard makes it 1-1
Joy and despair: Hazard celebrates with team-mates after scoring as Zlatan Ibrahimovic looks dejected
It could have been Chelsea ahead at half-time after a Willian cross picked out Hazard on 40 minutes.
He struck the ball on the volley, only for it to hit the inside of the far post and rebound fortuitously to a PSG boot to clear.
The French side, meanwhile, were being kept at arm’s length. Gary Cahill intelligently kept Lavezzi company on a fabulous sprint down the left, staying on his feet, refusing to be suckered like Silva and eventually forcing his man to take a harmless shot into the sidenetting.
High jump: Ibrahimovic wins the ball ahead of John Terry
Face in the crowd: Legendary French actor Gerard Depardieu (centre) is greeted in the stands by fans
Zlat attack: Ibrahimovic and Gary Cahill of fight for the ball
On the run: PSG's Marco Verratti (centre) is challenged by Chelsea's Andre Schuerrle
Cavani, an anonymous presence in the first half at least, had a shot on the turn comfortably saved, and Chelsea’s biggest scare was of their own making.
In the 34th minute, Cesar Azpilicueta attempting to repel an inswinging corner but succeeding only in diverting the ball past his Cech, who had come charging off his line to take.
Having lost to a Terry own goal at Crystal Palace on Saturday, this looked another calamity in the making, but Branislav Ivanovic was alert at the far post to head it away.
Catch me if you can: Hazard looks to escape from the clutches of Cavani
Masked man: Thiago Silva gets his shot away under the challenge of Luiz
Stop there: Laurent Blanc does his best to separate Luiz and Cavani
All smiles: Former French President Nicolas Sarkozy (left) watches from the stands
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