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Chelsea hosted Barcelona at Stamford Bridge in the first leg of the UEFA Champions League round of 16 matches on Tuesday night. While most individuals favoured the Blaugrana on paper, it was a rather different story in reality.
Despite retaining a whopping 73 percent possession on the night, Barcelona failed to test Thibaut Courtois as the Camp Nou outfit managed only one shot on target. Chelsea, on the other hand, examined the discipline of the Barcelona defence repeatedly and came close to scoring on many occasions.
Willian was unlucky to have scored only one goal in the game and was undoubtedly the best player on the pitch. His goal was cancelled out by Lionel Messi as the Argentine was finally able to score against Chelsea following a defensive error by Chelsea's Danish centre-back Andreas Christensen.
This culminated in a 1-1 draw as the visitors were able to take an important away goal back to Camp Nou for the second leg. Let us now have a look at the five key stats from the game.
#1 A man in form
Willian looks like a rejuvenated man for Chelsea as the Brazilian has been turning up with some important performances for the Blues of late. Not only does his presence on the pitch create a visible impact on Chelsea's attacks, the winger has delivered with goals and assists as well.
In his last three starts for Chelsea, Willian has scored a total of four goals and set up another one. His last Premier League start came against Brighton where he scored an early goal and teed up with Eden Hazard to create a goal for the Belgian. He scored a brace in Chelsea's encounter with Hull City last weekend and was also on the score sheet against Barcelona.
#2 Tight at the back
Ever since the drubbing at the hands of Real Madrid in the Spanish Super Cup, Barcelona have been rock solid at the back. Before the game against Chelsea, Barcelona had conceded only 14 goals in all competitions - 11 in La Liga, two in Copa del Rey, and one in the Champions League.
Following Willian's goal, Barcelona have still conceded only 15 times in their last 39 encounters, a defensive record any manager would be proud of!
#3 Lionel Messi finally scores against Chelsea
The little magician was finally able to open his account against the West-London outfit as he was wonderfully set up Andres Iniesta following a costly mistake by Andreas Christensen. Messi was made to wait though as this was his ninth appearance against the Blues and he was able to score only with his 30th attempt against Chelsea.
The five-time Ballon d'Or winner had scored 534 goals in his Barcelona career and also against 70 sides prior to this game but never against Chelsea.
#4 The art of passing
Cesc Fabregas is one the most pristine passers of the game. His vision was on display yet again as he created several chances for Chelsea against Barcelona. The Spaniard has created a total of 22 chances in this season's UEFA Champions League, the most by any player.
Fabregas has created a total of 24 goals in all the Champions League games that he has played so far in his career but has managed to assist only one goal in this year's edition of the tournament. His passing skills have however been on display elsewhere as he has managed to set up a total of nine goals in all competitions this season.
#5 A nightmare for English clubs
Despite just managing to open his tally against Chelsea, Lionel Messi has been a scary figure for British clubs as the Argentinian has scored 18 times against them in the Champions League.
Messi has scored a total of 18 goals against the Premier League sides in just 17 games - nine against Arsenal, six against Manchester City, two against Manchester United, and now one against Chelsea.
