Have Chelsea finally put Champions League heartbreak behind them?

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Nobody likes revisiting the scene of any form of heartbreak or misery, particularly when the initial disappointment and the subsequent visit are there for all to see on global television channels.

However, it can actually turn out to be the best thing for an individual, or in this case a football team, to face the scene of past disappointment in the hope that it will finally bring closure.

Chelsea fans will hope that, after watching their team put on a professional if not scintillating performance in Moscow on a plastic pitch, their club has finally banished the memories of their 2008 Champions League final loss at the hands of Manchester United, which occurred at the same stadium in Moscow.

Although Carlo Ancelotti insisted that his players were not bothered by revisiting the scene of their defeat, with a cruel loss inflicted in the most bitter of fashions on penalties, even the composed Chelsea boss must be contemplating the potential long-term significance of his side’s 2-0 win, which came thanks to goals from the impressive Yuri Zhirkov and the in-form Nicolas Anelka.

Just a few years ago, those looking at Premiership betting prices regularly suggest that Chelsea may have crumbled under the pressures arising from a long away trip to Russia and the need to compete on an artificial pitch. However, in the match this week, they looked mentally resilient, physically determined, and rather like the kind of professional outfit capable of going the whole way in this season’s competition. After their win in Moscow, they need just a point to qualify for the next round and look very likely to top their group, something that Ancelotti has made a priority despite their comfortable position.

How Chelsea, and Roman Abramovich, who last night occupied the exact same seat he sat in during the ill-fated 2008 final, would love to banish for good any traces of Champions League disappointment by lifting the trophy next May at Wembley Stadium. On the basis of what we’ve seen from them so far this season in the competition, you wouldn’t want to bet against the Champions league prices suggesting this dream becoming a reality.