tottenham 5-1

Independent:
Ruthless Chelsea finishing and 'ghost goal' send Spurs out

Tottenham 1 Chelsea 5
PAUL HIRST

Chelsea set up an FA Cup final against Liverpool after putting Tottenham to the sword with a ruthless beating at Wembley, but they were helped on their way by a goal which should never have been given.
Juan Mata put the Blues two up after the break in hugely controversial circumstances with referee Martin Atkinson awarding the goal despite replays showing the Spaniard's shot did not cross the line.
But that slice of luck could not detract from Chelsea's superiority.
Didier Drogba scored his seventh goal at Wembley to put the Blues ahead and, even though an incensed Spurs pulled one back straight after Mata's second through Gareth Bale, a cool finish from Ramires, a blistering 30-yard free-kick from Frank Lampard, and a late fifth from Florent Malouda wrapped up a huge win for the west London club and piled yet more misery on Spurs boss Harry Redknapp.
Many saw this evening's game as an audition for Redknapp at the home of English football, but his team were nowhere near clinical enough and Roberto Di Matteo's deserved the win.
Chelsea, now through to their 11th FA Cup final, raised their game to play like a team used to gracing the Wembley turf while Redknapp's team were wasteful and nervous.
Tottenham, who went in to this game with one win in their last eight league matches, will have no trophy to show for a season that started with so much hope but threatens to end with a big whimper.
Chelsea thoroughly deserved their win and will now go into Wednesday's game against Barcelona rightly full of confidence.
There was no indication this game would end up being a goal-fest during a nervy opening quarter in north London.
Drogba bustled his way past William Gallas to get on the end of a long punt from the back but he horribly mis-hit a volley and Cudicini gathered.
The Chelsea defence then backed off and allowed Scott Parker in, but Lampard put in a crucial block.
Careless defending from Kyle Walker then almost gifted Chelsea the lead. He dallied on the ball and Salomon Kalou took advantage, galloping 40 yards towards goal before finding Mata, but his touch let him down.
The Spurs fans thought their team had the breakthrough nine minutes before half-time when Rafael van der Vaart beat Petr Cech, but John Terry cleared off the line.
Emmanuel Adebayor then missed an easy chance. The former Arsenal striker slipped his marker to get in the path of Van der Vaart's looping cross but he failed to connect and the ball struck a post before bouncing to safety.
Tottenham were instantly made to pay for the mistake as Drogba fired Chelsea ahead in the 43rd minute.
The former Marseille man picked up Lampard's long ball and turned Gallas easily before firing a fierce rising shot past Carlo Cudicini.
Chelsea's second came in the 48th minute, but only in very controversial circumstances.
Ledley King's clearance from David Luiz's header fell in to the path of Mata, whose shot hit King on the line and Benoit Assou-Ekotto then cleared while laying on the turf.
The ball had not crossed the line, but referee Atkinson blew his whistle and awarded the goal, much to the fury of the Spurs players and supporters.
Van der Vaart led the vocal protests, shouting at the referee, while another group of Spurs players surrounded assistant Mick McDonough complaining at the decision.
Atkinson waved away their protests, however, and the goal stood.
Tottenham got themselves back in to the game six minutes later.
Scott Parker's brilliant slide-rule pass sent Adebayor free, he was sent tumbling by Petr Cech and Luiz, but the referee played advantage, allowing Bale to tap in to an empty goal from five yards.
Luiz was hurt in the challenge and was carried off on a stretcher to be replaced by Gary Cahill.
Chelsea almost restored their two-goal cushion on the hour mark when Terry climbed to meet Lampard's corner but Assou-Ekotto cleared off the line.
King headed just wide from Van der Vaart's corner as Spurs looked desperately for an equaliser in the final 20 minutes.
Redknapp looked to Jermain Defoe for inspiration, the England striker replacing Van der Vaart with 15 minutes to go, but the game soon fell to pieces for the men in white.
Ramires latched on to Mata's through-ball after being played onside by Walker and he coolly lifted the ball over the advancing Cudicini.
The Tottenham fans fell silent for the first time and they started leaving in their droves with 10 minutes to go thanks to a brilliant 30-yard free-kick from Lampard which dipped and swerved past Cudicini to make it 4-1.
Florent Malouda replaced Ramires and, worryingly for Di Matteo, Drogba hobbled off to be replaced by Fernando Torres.
Malouda robbed Gallas and wandered unchallenged in to the box, but his looping shot just missed the goal, and Torres at the back post.
Tottenham's frustration boiled over in injury-time when Parker lashed out at John Obi Mikel after the Nigerian kicked the England captain while he was on the floor. Both were booked.
The humiliation was complete moments later when Malouda got on the end of Mata's pass and slid past Cudicini for Chelsea's fifth.


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Guardian:

Florent Malouda seals Chelsea's rout over Tottenham Hotspur
Dominic Fifield at Wembley

This ended up feeling like a thrashing, the massed ranks of Chelsea support crowing in giddy celebration as bitter rivals were teased open and torn apart. Yet, while Roberto Di Matteo's side can now thrill at the prospect of a fourth FA Cup final in six years against Liverpool next month, Tottenham Hotspur's departure from this competition came with a snarl.Just as Chelsea's once traumatic season gathers pace on three fronts, so Spurs' previously consistent campaign is unravelling unnervingly. Fate conspired against them here, their endeavours horribly undermined by the award of Juan Mata's goal immediately after half-time despite the reality that the Spaniard's effort had been scrambled from well in front of the goal-line by Benoît Assou-Ekotto in a cluttered goalmouth.The final scoreline suggests that incident should not be considered critical. Besides, Tottenham had mustered a reply of their own within seven minutes courtesy of Gareth Bale's finish. But, in truth, Chelsea's second had changed the complexion. Spurs, a side whose recent form has been brittle to the tune of one win in eight Premier League games, had been forced to chase a contest in which they had, up to then, been the slicker team. Picked off in the latter stages by opponents whose ruthlessness was admirable, they tumbled from the tie.There was conflict before the end, the otherwise excellent Scott Parker livid and confronting Mikel John Obi as tempers frayed after the Nigerian had kicked out while on the turf – an offence that might normally have warranted a red – but Spurs had descended into fury by then, their memories clouded by events just after the break. Mata had been denied by Carlo Cudicini when, from the resultant corner, the near-post header from David Luiz – who injured a hamstring during the match – was saved well by the Italian. John Terry and Ledley King leapt to meet the rebound with the ball squirting away for Mata to volley goalwards from a tight angle into the mass of bodies in the goalmouth.Assou-Ekotto, grounded behind the line, stuck out his boot as the ball flicked from King and Terry to clear only for Martin Atkinson – the same official who had failed to notice Mario Balotelli's horrible lunge at Alex Song at the Emirates a week earlier – to be somehow convinced that the ball had first squeezed through the tangle of bodies and in. The linesman on the far side was unmoved, and the only Chelsea player to celebrate instinctively was Mata himself, whose momentum had carried him beyond the by-line. Spurs will find no delicious irony from the fact that Atkinson will spend his summer as a goal-line assistant at Euro 2012.A sense of injustice did propel them into an immediate riposte, Parker conjuring a fine through-ball between Terry and Luiz on to which Emmanuel Adebayor tore. The Brazilian pulled up as the forward sprinted clear and was prone on the turf as Cech advanced to clatter into the Togolese – he departed on a stretcher and will presumably now miss the Champions League semi-final against Barcelona – though not before Adebayor had slipped a pass to the galloping Bale at his side. The winger slid the ball into the unguarded net with the Tottenham bench already advancing upon the fourth official to demand Cech's dismissal for a professional foul. That much seemed optimistic.Yet, if that suggested Harry Redknapp's team were still in contention, then the adrenalin rush soon fizzled out. Chelsea waltzed through their disrupted back line at will in the latter stages, so stretched and desperate had Spurs become. Ramires, finishing smartly from Mata's pass, re-established a two-goal cushion and Frank Lampard struck a glorious free-kick from 30 yards which swerved beyond Cudicini and into the corner. Tottenham were helpless, furious that goalline technology is unlikely to become a reality until the summer. Florent Malouda's fifth was scored in stoppage time with the Tottenham end rapidly emptying.In the circumstances, it felt odd to acknowledge that a Chelsea lead of any kind had felt somewhat improbable at the interval. Spurs had struck a post through Rafael van der Vaart and had exposed their opponents down both flanks only to be undone by a lack of bite. Terry cleared Van der Vaart's header from the goalline but that was as close to they came to chiseling out a lead and, from a mess of a personal performance, Didier Drogba duly stirred.There were two minutes left in the first half when Lampard lofted a pass through the centre. Drogba, marked tightly by his former team-mate William Gallas, received on his chest with his back to goal, then delicately eked out some space by flicking the ball out of his feet with the instep of his right boot, then turned and crunched a volley that flew high beyond Cudicini at his near-post.To have summoned a goal of such majesty from what, up until then, had been a mess of a performance was staggering. Di Matteo appeared almost startled, wary even of celebrating, by the brutality of the strike.The 34-year-old has scored seven goals in this arena, more than he has managed at any other stadium other than Stamford Bridge. He, and not Spurs, will consider this a home from home.

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Telegraph:
Tottenham Hotspur 1 Chelsea 5
By Henry Winter, at Wembley Stadium

This was more than a game. So much more. This was madness, injustice and beauty all rolled into one compelling evening’s entertainment, a demolition derby dressed up in FA Cup semi-final refinery that will reverberate loud and long.
Tottenham Hotspur left Wembley seething.Chelsea departed smiling, knowing they will return for the final against Liverpool on May 5 at 5.15pm.
A game that sent the phone-ins into meltdown brought a reminder of the enduring influence of John Terry, Frank Lampard and Didier Drogba.
It brought joy for Roberto Di Matteo, twice an FA Cup finalist as a player with Chelsea and now leading the team out. Not bad for an interim head coach.
The Italian has bonded the management staff and dressing-room together since being placed in temporary charge after Andre Villas-Boas’s dismissal. His record reads: won nine, drawn two, lost one.
Di Matteo is highly unlikely to be appointed full time but he’s certainly put the care into caretaker.
The game brought more embarrassment on Harry Redknapp in front of the Football Association hierarchy, who are expected to move for him as England manager soon.
Standing in the home dugout at Wembley, overseeing a team in white being routed, was hardly what Redknapp or the FA wanted. As auditions go, this was one of fluffed lines.
And lines not crossed. The game brought renewed calls for goal-line technology after a calamitous refereeing decision by Martin Atkinson, who inexplicably ruled that Juan Mata’s 49th-minute strike with Chelsea leading through Drogba’s sensational opener had crossed the line.
The installation of a system like Hawk-Eye is imminent; the second phase of Fifa-approved tests will start shortly, continue throughout May with a definitive decision by International Football Association Board at a special meeting in Kiev on July 2.
One of English football’s most experienced officials, Atkinson could not possibly have been sure that Mata’s shot had crossed the line.
Terry had gone in like a wrecking ball, knocking down Benoît Assou-Ekotto and goalkeeper Carlo Cudicini.
All three lay on the line as Mata followed up, turning the ball goalwards and then turning away, celebrating. Assou-Ekotto stretched out a leg to clear before it crossed. Over, signalled Atkinson.
Spurs were enraged. Poor old Atkinson has endured a torrid season. He dismissed Jack Rodwell for a legitimate challenge on Luis Suárez, the decision swiftly rescinded.
He failed to realise that Clint Hill’s header for QPR had crossed the Bolton goal-line. He allowed Mario Balotelli’s awful challenge on Alex Song to go unpunished.
Atkinson could have done with better help from his assistants but with Mata’s goal it was his call, his gaffe. Spurs rallied briefly, scoring through Gareth Bale, allowing brief hope, but they seemed distracted and drained.
Chelsea flew through them again and again in the final 15 minutes, goals from Ramires, Lampard and Florent Malouda humiliating them and setting up that date with Liverpool.
The FA Cup final promises fireworks. The early-evening kick-off will allow a full day’s drinking. The Liverpool fans will not forget that a minority of Chelsea supporters jeered during yesterday’s minute’s silence to the Hillsborough, which Atkinson had to end abruptly after 25 seconds.
Spurs fans instantly turned on their Chelsea counterparts, signalling their anger at such lack of respect. Chelsea apologised afterwards.
Chelsea’s rivalry with Liverpool is a relatively new reality, stirred during frequent skirmishes in the Champions League, containing Luis Garcia’s infamous “ghost goal” at Anfield that still rankles Jose Mourinho’s old players.
There will be the sight of Fernando Torres lining up against his former Liverpool team-mates, and Steven Gerrard taking on the club he so nearly joined.
One of the FA’s least favourite players, Terry or Suárez, will be climbing those famous steps to collect a winner’s medal off the FA chairman, David Bernstein.
Judging from the weekend’s evidence, Liverpool will have to raise their game to live with Chelsea. Yesterday’s semi had been a faster, sharper affair than the Liverpool-Everton semi. The tempo was higher, the physicality more evident.
Scott Parker fouled Ramires, giving Drogba an opportunity to send a huge free kick way over a Spurs goal tended by Cudicini, once of the Bridge.
Ramires nicked the ball off Gareth Bale, who responded, running fast at Jose Bosingwa.
Then it was Aaron Lennon’s turn, the little England winger lively for periods, soon making a chance for Rafael van der Vaart, who shot over.
Drogba then caught Lennon and went into the book. It was classic derby fare, all energy and little composure. Parker and Lampard dived in at one point on each other as if the England armband was at stake, not just a loose ball.
Chelsea were enjoying the better chances. Salomon Kalou raced down the left and angled a pass to Mata, who failed to make significant contact. Spurs hit back.
Lennon lifted the ball back into Van der Vaart, whose header beat Petr Cech. But not Terry. Not Chelsea’s captain. Not the man so often their defensive saviour.
Terry had anticipated the danger, dropped back on to the line and cleared. Back came Spurs again, Van der Vaart swerving in a ball on to the far post.
But then came Drogba two minutes before the break. Racing on to Lampard’s long ball, Drogba muscled William Gallas out of the way and thundered a left-footed strike past Cudicini. So far, so straightforward.
The second half was pure carnage. Four minutes in, Mata swooped, Atkinson erred and Chelsea were 2-0 up. Then Parker slid Emmanuel Adebayor through the middle.
On he ran, until clearly brought down by Cech. As Spurs fans screamed for a penalty, Bale rolled the loose ball in.
Bale’s instinct was correct, finishing the move off. But if he had stopped, Atkinson would have had to send Cech off for his blatant foul on Adebayor.
Spurs would then have had a penalty and 34 minutes facing 10 men.
Chelsea did lose a player, David Luiz departing on a stretcher with a hamstring injury that surely precludes his presence against Barcelona at the Bridge on Wednesday. Gary Cahill replaced him.
The life seemed to go out of Spurs. Lampard and Mata combined to send Ramires through and he lifted ball over Cudicini to make it 3-1.
Then Gallas fouled Drogba 30 yards out and Lampard drilled in a majestic free kick. Adding insult to injury-time, Malouda dribbled through to make it 5-1.
This was more than a game; this was joy for Chelsea and despair for Spurs and Atkinson.

The FA Cup final
Chelsea v Liverpool: Wembley, Sat May 5, 5.15pm
FA Cup head-to-head
Played 9 Chelsea lead 5-4
1931-32 6th rd: Liverpool 0-2 Chelsea1961-62 3rd rd: Liverpool 4-3 Chelsea1964-65 semi-final: Chelsea 0-2 Liverpool1965-66 3rd rd: Liverpool 1-2 Chelsea1977-78 3rd rd: Chelsea 4-2 Liverpool1981-82 5th rd: Chelsea 2-0 Liverpool1985-86 4th rd: Chelsea 1-2 Liverpool1996-97 4th rd: Chelsea 4-2 Liverpool2005-06 semi-final: Chelsea 1-2 LiverpoolOverall FA Cup record
Chelsea: 10 finals, 6 winsLiverpool: 13 finals, 7 wins

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Mail:

Tottenham 1 Chelsea 5: Blues take advantage of officials' blunder to run riot
By MATT LAWTON

When it comes to sending a written request to Tottenham for a chance to talk to Harry Redknapp, the Football Association might want to start it with an apology.
Sunday night was not the time to be offering Redknapp a tour of what could soon be his new office, given how embarrassing an encounter this proved for the governing body thanks to the circumstances surrounding a goal Tottenham’s manager is sure to consider the most significant.
The FA might try to point to the four other goals Chelsea scored; to what the scoreline would suggest was a convincing win for Roberto Di Matteo’s side and one that will do them no harm 72 hours before they meet Barcelona in the Champions League.
But the focus at White Hart Lane will remain on referee Martin Atkinson and how on earth he awarded Chelsea’s second goal when Juan Mata’s 49th-minute shot was not close to crossing the line.
Atkinson is having a dreadful season. He sent off Jack Rodwell, only for the red card to be rescinded; he failed to award QPR’s Clint Hill a goal against Bolton when that one had crossed the line; and only this week he was at the centre of the Mario Balotelli controversy, the FA failing to discipline the Manchester City striker further because a member of Atkinson’s team had apparently seen his unpunished studs-up challenge on Alex Song at the time.
This, however, takes some beating, Atkinson somehow awarding a goal when the ball never travelled beyond the three bodies sprawled across the Tottenham goalline after a Chelsea corner had initially been cleared by Ledley King. Mata’s effort struck John Terry then bounced off Benoit Assou-Ekotto’s studs, Atkinson seemingly responding to a premature celebration by Chelsea’s No 10.
Tottenham’s players were quick to complain. Carlo Cudicini, Kyle Walker and Rafael van der Vaart all rushed towards Atkinson and Scott Parker soon followed. But Atkinson stood firm, the only man inside Wembley who thought it a goal but the only one who mattered.
It adds to the calls for goal-line technology but that will not ease Tottenham’s frustration. They responded by scoring a goal of their own within seven minutes, only to get caught again in their pursuit of an equaliser.
Take nothing away from Chelsea. They played well, surviving a difficult first half and securing an FA Cup final against Liverpool with awesome finishing, not least by Didier Drogba in the 43rd minute.
But Redknapp will be left feeling his side enjoyed long periods when they were the better team, even if they finished looking as shattered physically as they were emotionally. In the end, they suffered the kind of collapse that sums up their form.
It was poor form on the part of some moronic Chelsea fans who failed to observe a minute’s silence for the 96 who perished at Hillsborough and Piermario Morosini, the Italian footballer who died on Saturday.
Fortunately the players conducted themselves with a touch more class, producing what remained a terrific spectacle.
With so much at stake, both sides were cagey at first but it was not long before Gareth Bale was terrorising Jose Bosingwa, selected in place of the suspended Branislav Ivanovic.
Tottenham enjoyed the better of the first-half chances, even if a super ball from Salomon Kalou almost ended in a goal for Mata. Parker and Luka Modric were dominating midfield, with Van der Vaart seeing a header cleared off the line by Terry and a ball intended for Emmanuel Adebayor bouncing against a post.
It made Drogba’s opener all the more painful for Tottenham, the Chelsea striker holding off William Gallas brilliantly to collect a ball from Terry before turning the French centre half and scoring with a stunning left-foot strike.
Shortly after the break Mata forced a great save from Cudicini but the phantom goal changed everything, leaving Tottenham in desperate trouble.
Bale halved the deficit, but even that came with a slice of fortune for Chelsea. If Bale had not scored, Petr Cech would have been sent off for bringing down Adebayor as the striker ran on to a marvellous pass from Parker. It would have been a penalty for sure. As it was, Bale struck and Chelsea retained their goalkeeper.
In chasing Adebayor, David Luiz suffered a hamstring injury that looks likely to force him out of the Barcelona game. But Gary Cahill did well as Luiz’s deputy and Chelsea’s success in protecting their lead forced Redknapp to take risks, not least deploying four forwards.
The goal Ramires scored in the 77th minute amounted to a classic counter attack, the Brazilian cutting inside Assou-Ekotto to take a wonderful ball from Mata before lifting his finish over the advancing Cudicini.
After that came a thumping free-kick from Frank Lampard and a fifth Chelsea goal, from Florent Malouda, four minutes into second-half stoppage time, the France winger slipping his shot through the legs of Tottenham’s goalkeeper.
In fairness to Atkinson, he did apologise afterwards, telling Redknapp he felt wretched. As Redknapp was quick to point out, he was not alone.


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Mirror:
Tottenham 1-5 Chelsea: Goal that never was causes Wembley storm
By Martin Lipton

They might have won it anyhow.
But we will never know.
After all, the scoreline ended emphatically, the clinical edge that Spurs lacked ruthlessly demonstrated as Chelsea proved, once again, they have what it takes to win big matches.
But we will never know.
What we do know, as much as confirmation that Didier Drogba remains a beast of a player, Frank Lampard is not past his sell-by date, Juan Mata is a matador and John Terry epitomises this Chelsea side, is that this game was decided, determined, by one decision.
A decision that, surely, could not be made. Not with the certainty demanded on this stage above all others. A decision that killed Spurs stone-dead.
Martin Atkinson, remember, is the man who didn’t see Clint Hill’s header for QPR at Bolton which was a foot over the line.
The man who didn’t see Mario Balotelli plant his studs in Alex Song’s knee last week, yet also the man who sent off Jack Rodwell for winning the ball in the Merseyside derby in October.
And yet, somehow, even though everybody else inside Wembley, including, to add insult to Tottenham injury, John Terry, knew Mata’s shot had not crossed the line five minutes after the break, the man who ruled it had.
Without consulting his assistant. Without any hesitation, even though, with Terry on the line when the ball hit him, he was also, by the letter of the law offside.
No retrospective action, no apologies, can undo the damage to broken Spurs hearts.
Nothing, now, can prevent Chelsea taking their place against Liverpool back under the Arch next month.
By the end, it was a monstering, three clinical strikes in the final quarter, from Ramires, Lampard and Florent Malouda, nailing the coffin shut.
Drogba was at his relentless best, scoring a goal that would have been the talking point in normal circumstances.
Mata orchestrated in the hole, with Spurs always teetering on the defensive brink after failing to take their first half opportunities and Roberto Di Matteo’s men head for their Barcelona showdown with belief starting to run through their veins.
Yet it did not, does not feel right, just.
After Wigan last week, and now this, Chelsea must believe they have more than used up their share of fortune for the season.
Di Matteo, though, deserves real credit for the way he has transformed a side that was on the verge of implosion just a few weeks ago and now stands on the edge of glory.
He has consistently made big selection calls, too, which have paid off nearly every time.
Yesterday, it was going with Drogba and Lampard rather than Fernando Torres and Raul Meireles, trusting Jose Bosingwa against Gareth Bale on the right.
The latter choice looked dangerous throughout the first period and had Terry not got back on the line to block Rafael Van Der Vaart’s header on the line, or Emmanuel Adebayor made any contact with the Dutchman’s cross which pinged back off the post, it may have finished very differently.
Enter, just before the break, Drogba. Lampard played up from the back, brilliantly shielding from William Gallas, spinning into space and unleashing a stunning left-footer that flew past Carlo Cudicini.
Tottenham were rocking. Cudicini thwarted Mata and, from the resulting corner, David Luiz, but in the aftermath Mata’s strike was deemed by Atkinson alone to have crossed the line.
It was deja-vu for Spurs, done in similar circumstances when Frank Lampard was awarded a ghost goal against them at Stamford Bridge last season.
Spurs channeled their fury. Scott Parker released Adebayor, up-ended by Petr Cech after Luiz pulled up with a hamstring injury set to rule him out against Barcelona, before Bale found the empty net, the Chelsea keeper getting the benefit of the eventual outcome.
But Spurs had run out of puff, Harry Redknapp’s gamble in sending on Jermain Defoe leaving them exposed and opened up.
Mata teased through for Ramires to clip home, Lampard smashed in a stunner and at the death - after John Obi Mikel escaped with a yellow for a blatant kick on Parker - Malouda capitalised on more Mata magic.

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Sun:
Tottenham 1 Chelsea 5
By SHAUN CUSTIS

ROBERTO DI MATTEO must pack a rabbit’s foot and a four leaf clover for work.
Because, while Chelsea’s interim manager is doing a cracking job, he is also getting all the breaks going.
Last weekend, against Wigan, Chelsea won a crucial league game thanks to two offside goals.
And here in the FA Cup semi-final, Di Matteo’s number came up again as referee Martin Atkinson awarded Juan Mata a goal that did not even cross the line.
If Di Matteo’s good fortune carries on like this, who knows what may happen against Barcelona in the Champions League semis.
Mind you, Di Matteo had better take along a few lucky horse shoes as well, such is Barca’s superiority.
His predecessor Andre Villas-Boas never got this sort of help but you make your own luck too.
Di Matteo had the good sense to nurture the senior citizens in this squad and make them feel wanted.
Villas-Boas made it clear he would be moving them on and lost their support.
Two of the vets were in supreme form yesterday with Didier Drogba firing in a screamer after turning William Gallas for the opener and Frank Lampard despatching a magnificent free-kick from 35 yards.
The pair are not stupid. They know their Chelsea days will not go on for ever. But equally they are not prepared to be thrown on football’s scrapheap.
Despite the fact Spurs fans belted out Ossie’s Dream, their 1981 FA Cup final song, with great gusto, the competition has not been kind to them recently.
This was their sixth successive semi-final defeat.
And the way their league form is falling apart the season is heading for a car crash of a finish.
What a good job the FA did not approach Spurs about Harry Redknapp becoming England boss — they might have upset things.
As Redknapp came out of the home dressing room for this game and stood in the dugout he must have cast his thoughts forward to what it would be like being in charge of the national team in front of a Wembley full house.
But if he is going to take over he does not want to leave Spurs with a whimper.
Chelsea will now face Liverpool in what is likely to be a bitter final after a section of Blues fans jeered during the minute’s silence for those who died at Hillsborough and Mr Atkinson was forced to cut it down to 15 seconds.
When the match got going it was Spurs who looked the more likely winners and but for Blues skipper John Terry they would have been ahead on 36 minutes.
Emmanuel Adebayor cut a ball back and, though Rafael van der Vaart’s header was poor, it dropped to Aaron Lennon.
The England winger returned it into the area and Van der Vaart climed to head goalwards only for the ball to strike Terry’s right knee on the line.
Four minutes later Van der Vaart hit an inswinging ball from about 40 yards, Adebayor failed to connect with his outstretched left leg but Chelsea keeper Petr Cech was caught in no-man’s land and watched it hit a post.
Luka Modric had another go and the ball smacked into Terry but Chelsea went up the other end and Drogba scored an absolute stunner.
The Ivorian loves it at Wembley and his seventh goal in seven cup appearances on the hallowed turf was extra special.
Lampard sent a long ball down the middle — Drogba controlled it, turned and hit a rocket which flew into the top corner.
Mata added the controversial second four minutes after the break. It was a scramble as the Spaniard fired into a crowd which included Ledley King, his own man Terry and Benoit Assou-Ekotto.
There was no way Atkinson could have judged it was a goal and it is hard to argue with the clamour for goalline technology when officials make bad decisions.
Stung by the injustice, Spurs went hard at it for a while and pulled one back in the 56th minute when Scott Parker set up Adebayor. The Togo striker nipped round Cech and was brought down before Gareth Bale slotted into an empty net.
Had Bale not scored Cech would have to be sent off and a penalty awarded. You wonder whether Spurs lost out by Bale finishing it off.
The bad news for Chelsea was that David Luiz pulled up with a hamstring injury as he chased Adebayor and is highly unlikely to feature against Barcelona.
Spurs were back in it and Assou-Ekotto hacked off the line from Terry’s header. But, once Ramires got a third as he chipped over Cudicini from Mata’s pass, Spurs realised it was not to be their day.
There was nothing Cudicini could do about the free-kick from his manager’s nephew Lampard with nine minutes left.
Mikel was naughty kicking out at Parker which sparked a scuffle and got both players a booking.
There was a fifth goal in added time when sub Florent Malouda broke clear and slotted in.
Di Matteo has had 12 games in charge and his record reads won nine, drawn two, lost one. Good so far but bigger tests are to come.

DREAM TEAM
STAR MAN — DIDIER DROGBA (CHELSEA)

TOTTENHAM: Cudicini 6, Walker 6, Gallas 5, King 7, Assou-Ekotto 6, Lennon 5, Modric 5, Parker 7 (Sandro 5), Bale 7, Adebayor 7, Van der Vaart 6 (Defoe 5). Subs not used: Friedel, Giovani, Rose, Livermore, Nelsen. Booked: Gallas, Parker, Adebayor.
CHELSEA: Cech 5, Bosingwa 5, Terry 8, Luiz 6 (Cahill 6), Cole 7, Ramires 7 (Malouda 5), Lampard 7, Mikel 6, Kalou 6, Drogba 9 (Torres 5), Mata 8. Subs not used: Turnbull, Essien, Meireles, Sturridge. Booked: Drogba, Mikel.
REF: M Atkinson 4

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Express:

TOTTENHAM 1 - CHELSEA 5: MARTIN ATKINSON FAILS HIS LINES
By Matt Law

WHEN Roberto Di Matteo sits down to assess his impact as caretaker Chelsea manager at the end of the season, he may just raise a glass to Martin Atkinson.
Di Matteo’s case to be given a chance as the next permanent boss was strengthened as he came through the first of his four big tests over the course of 10 season-defining days.
But referee Atkinson’s intervention proved crucial to reaching the FA Cup final and may well have given the Blues the momentum they need ahead of a Champions League semi-final against Barcelona and a key Premier League clash with Arsenal.
Chelsea eventually strolled to victory over Tottenham, but it always helps to be given a phantom second goal. Didier Drogba had opened the scoring with a quite brilliant strike, but Juan Mata celebrated more in hope than expectation when his shot hit both John Terry and Benoit Assou-Ekotto.
The rest of the Chelsea players looked as surprised as everybody else when Atkinson gave a goal.
He, of course, has previous. He did not award a perfectly good Clint Hill goal that did cross the line for QPR and, just seven days ago, he decided Mario Balotelli’s studs-upchallenge on Alex Song did not warrant a red card.
Spurs feel sense of injustice as they crash out of the FA Cup
It seems Atkinson always views things differently to the rest of us.
Di Matteo, though, will not particularly care about renewed calls for goal-line technology this morning.
Ramires, Frank Lampard and Florent Malouda added goals that will help the confidence levels ahead of Wednesday night’s visit of Barca to Stamford Bridge.
The obvious temptation for Di Matteo was to rest players for the first leg against the best club side in the world, but there was nothing in his starting line-up to face Spurs that suggested he has set any priorities for his squad.
Di Matteo arrived at Wembley in the knowledge the stadium had been kind to him in the past. He scored the fastest FA Cup final goal at the stadium, against Middlesbrough, and netted the last FA Cup final goal at the old Wembley against Aston Villa.
Drogba also has a happy knack of doing well at Wembley and he scored his seventh goal in seven games there to blast what had been a dreary game into life.
He may be getting on a bit, but Drogba retains the raw power that has made him such a force and he showed all his strength to fire Chelsea ahead two minutes before the break.
Terry launched a high ball over the top that looked to be heading nowhere in particular, but Drogba controlled on his chest, held off William Gallas, and turned to fire an unstoppable shot into the net.
Half-an-hour earlier, Drogba had wasted the first real chance of the game after again getting the better of Gallas. This time it was David Luiz who pumped the ball upfield, Gallas slipped, but Drogba scuffed his shot into the grateful arms of Carlo Cudicini.
Tottenham were causing many of their own problems and a Kyle Walker mistake allowed Salomon Kalou to play through Mata, but his control let him down.
While Chelsea and Drogba were able to call on happy Wembley memories, Spurs went into the game on the back of five successive FA Cup semi-final defeats.
Their terrible record got even worse, thanks in no small part to lady luck.
Terry cleared a Rafael van der Vaart effort off the line. And just three minutes before Drogba put Chelsea ahead, Emmanuel Adebayor had been even more unfortunate.
This time Van der Vaart turned creator with a wonderfully weighted pass over the Chelsea defence. But with time and space, Adebayor diverted the ball against the post instead of into the net.
If Tottenham thought luck had deserted them in the first half, worse was to follow as Chelsea went further ahead via their phantom goal just four minutes after the break.
Cudicini did brilliantly to push a Mata shot out for a corner. But from the resulting delivery, a Luiz header was diverted back to Mata and his shot hit Terry and then Assou-Ekotto.
Mata appealed for the goal and, unbelievably, Atkinson awarded it. Cudicini and Gareth Bale led the protests, but Chelsea were somehow two to the good.
Spurs picked themselves up and responded with over half-an-hour remaining. Scott Parker sent Adebayorracing through on goal. He outpaced Luiz and took a tumble over Petr Cech, but Bale was on hand to prod the loose ball over the line.
Luiz went off injured – he will miss the Barca game – and at that stage, Tottenham fancied their chances of drawing level and started to throw bodies forward.
But Harry Redknapp’s men were caught out with 13 minutes remaining and then fell apart.
Mata sent a delicious pass through the middle and Ramires lifted the ball over Cudicini to restore Chelsea’s two-goal lead. To rub salt into the Tottenham wounds, Lampard smashed in a 35-yard free-kick that swerved past Cudicini. Then substitute Malouda added a fifth.
The Spurs fans had seen enough – and Atkinson had seen too much.

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Star:

TOTTENHAM 1 - CHELSEA 5: SPURS LEFT S-MARTING AT ERRORS
By David Woods

NORMAL FA Cup semi-final service was resumed at ­Wembley as Chelsea trounced ­Tottenham.
The Blues have never lost in the last four of the Cup at the new stadium. Poor Spurs have been defeated in six in a row now.
But that tells only half the story of a pulsating clash.
Spurs were the victims of a shocking decision by referee Martin Atkinson, the ref who ‘saw’ last Sunday’s horror tackle by Manchester City’s Mario Balotelli on Alex Song of Arsenal but did nothing about it.
This time he awarded a goal that never was for Chelsea to put them 2-0 up and he also failed to punish keeper Petr Cech for what arguably was a red-card challenge soon after.
John Obi Mikel should also have been sent off late on for kicking Scott Parker, but escaped with just a caution.
It was all so tough on Tottenham, whose season is in danger of crumbling.
How much that is down to boss Harry Redknapp being linked so strongly with taking charge of England cannot be proven. But just three wins out of the last 12 suggest all is not right at the club.
In contrast, Chelsea caretaker boss Roberto Di Matteo, is having a wonderful time and this victory was the perfect preparation for the visit of Barcelona in the Champions League semi-finals on Wednesday.
There was no hint of the goalfest to come at the start, which was far from compelling.
In the 37th minute Spurs came close to scoring. Emmanuel Adebayor’s cross was flicked on by Rafael van der Vaart to Aaron Lennon.
He played it straight back to the Dutchman, whose close-range header was kept out by the knee of a perfectly-placed John Terry on the line.
Three minutes later the Blues were even more fortunate. Van der Vaart’s floated ball looked perfect for Adebayor to flick in, but he missed it and it struck Cech’s right-hand post.
It was to prove costly as three minutes later Didier Drogba scored a stunning opener.
Frank Lampard sent a high ball straight down the middle and Drogba collected it with his back to ex-Chelsea star William Gallas.
Using his powerful physique, he turned the Frenchman and then lashed a wonderful left-foot half- volley past Carlo Cudicini.
It was Drogba’s seventh goal in seven games at Wembley and by far the most magnificent.
Chelsea, not surprisingly, started brightly after the break and in the 48th minute Juan Mata’s left-foot drive was kept out by Cudicini.
From Lampard’s corner came the controversial goal, which will be shown over and over again like Geoff Hurst’s one for England at the other end in the 1966 World Cup Final against Germany.
Cudicini did well to push away a David Luiz header, but then Mata followed up.
With a bundle of players on the line, including Ledley King, Assou-Ekotto and Terry, Mata’s shot could not have crossed the line.
Replays showed it hit Terry’s foot and then bounced off Assou-Ekotto.
But referee Atkinson awarded the goal in the 49th minute, much to the disbelief and disgust of Tottenham.
Spurs hit back in the 56th minute. Parker’s ball straight through the heart of the Chelsea defence saw Adebayor outstrip Luiz, who pulled up injured.
The Togo star went round Cech, but was brought down by the keeper diving across him.
Bale was on the overlap, though, and tapped in, although, bizarrely, Atkinson did not even book Cech, with the fourth official telling the Spurs bench that could only happen if the keeper was guilty of violent conduct.
Drobga might have poked home when Cudicini was slow off his line, but failed to get a strong enough contact, much to his despair.
Having hit winners in three Cup Finals at Wembley, he must be eagerly looking forward to taking on Liverpool. But in the 77th minute Chelsea did get their third.
Mata’s marvellous ball with the outside of his right boot was perfect for Ramires to run on to, getting in behind Assou- Ekotto.
The Brazilian was coolness personified, simply flicking the ball over the onrushing Cudicini.
In the 81st minute Lampard scored a spectacular fourth. For once, he was allowed to take a long-range free-kick, instead of Drogba, and from fully 30 yards he sent it swerving away to the left of Cudicini and into the corner.
Brad Friedel, surprisingly omitted by Redknapp, must have been thinking he might have done better with it than the former Chelsea keeper.
Florent Malouda scored in stoppage-time with Mata again the provider with another class flicked pass which allowed the Frenchman time to stroke home.
Parker, another former Chelsea player, had to be restrained in stoppage-time, with Terry and then Gary Cahill grabbing him after he was kicked on the back of his legs by Mikel.
Both Parker and Mikel were booked. It was another mistake by Atkinson, who can forget about getting the nod for the final on May 5.