Petr Cech tonight admitted it felt like Groundhog Day as the Chelsea goalkeeper once again stood on the brink of reaching the UEFA Champions League final.

Cech and his Blues team-mates arrived in Barcelona this afternoon just 90 minutes away from one of the most famous victories in their history. The 29-year-old acknowledged that had been little more than a pipe dream when caretaker manager Roberto Di Matteo was first charged with picking up the pieces of Andre Villas-Boas' doomed reign.

But an astonishing seven weeks later and that dream is close to becoming a reality for a man who has played in five of Chelsea's six semi-finals, and their only previous final, since Roman Abramovich bought the club.

"I've been hoping for the last eight years that it would be the year I'd have a chance to win the Champions League," Cech said ahead of tomorrow's second leg at the Nou Camp. "Here we are again, in the semi-final.

"We always try to reach the final and go as far as we can, to try and win the competition. Many times we were close and haven't managed to do so. If we have a fantastic game tomorrow, we'll have a chance to reach the final. But we need to play the 90 minutes tomorrow - then we might be able to think about a final."

A first Champions League final since 2008 looked impossible two months ago when Chelsea slumped to a 3-1 defeat in their last-16 first leg at Napoli in the death throes of Villas-Boas' tenure. "I can imagine a lot of things, but it's true there were moments when everything looked more complicated," Cech said.


Barcelona are the favourites for this game because they play at home.
Petr Cech, Chelsea goalkeeper

"Thankfully, we've done this and now we want to carry on. But you have things happening in football quite fast. It can go from bad to great, and great to bad, in a split second. After the Napoli game, everybody was writing us off. Yet, here we are, in Camp Nou, with 90 minutes to reach the final."

Tactics and a little luck
The odds are that Wednesday night's statistics-defying 1-0 first-leg victory remains the high water mark of Chelsea's season, with Barça favourites to put them to the sword tomorrow. Cech said: "Chelsea were yes, okay, very lucky in the first game, but I still think we played a very good game.

"It was a very tactical contest, and we played a good game. We had a good result in that first game but, on the other hand, we are playing at Camp Nou. Barcelona are the favourites for this game because they play at home."

Yet history is on Chelsea's side. They have not lost in their last six meetings with Barcelona, three of those at the Nou Camp. "We always try our best to find a way to play well against them," Cech said. "Of course, we've put ourselves in a very good position by winning that first leg."

Chelsea did so despite having just one shot on target and watching their opponents squander five gilt-edged chances after enjoying 72 per cent possession. "I think it'll be the same as the first leg, really. A goal will make a big difference for us for the whole tie."

An away goal would also further dent the confidence of a Barça side whose defeat in Saturday's top-of-the-table La Liga clash with Real Madrid was their first in 54 home games. "Although Barcelona lost the Clasico on Saturday, it won't have a big impact on the game tomorrow. They're a great team. They have a lot of experience, they know how to handle defeats."