Terry is in Blue heaven

Chelsea 4 Barcelona 2

Barcelona coach Frank Rijkaard was involved in an angry touchline confrontation with Chelsea scout Andre Villas after the final whistle was blown on a pulsating 4-2 win for the home side, enough for a 5-4 aggregate triumph.

As Jose Mourinho ran on to celebrate the victory, which he admitted enjoying even more than last season's triumph with Porto, Barcelona's players were still bemoaning their fate in angry scuffles.

Indeed, Barcelona striker Samuel Eto'o told Spanish television that a Chelsea steward had called him a "monkey". A bottle was later thrown in the direction of Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich as he walked in front of the visiting fans to celebrate in the Blues' dressing room.

Tensions certainly remained high last night, with Rijkaard admitting his "bitterness" in defeat after John Terry's late headed winner had completed Chelsea's remarkable 5-4 victory on aggregate.

Barcelona were particularly upset at referee Pierluigi Collina failing to spot an alleged foul by Ricardo Carvalho on goalkeeper Victor Valdes just before Terry headed the 76th-minute winner.

"That's something which my players felt, although we didn't see it from the bench," insisted Rijkaard.

Mourinho insisted he had "no idea" about the touchline scuffle at the final whistle as he had been racing on to celebrate with his players.

"I enjoyed that even more than previous games which were more important for me. I have played in finals and I didn't run like I did tonight," he revealed.

"It was the reaction of a big team, I saw players, substitutes, coaching staff and medical people all out there. The reason I didn't celebrate after last season's final was that it was a 3-0 victory and so you keep calm as you know that you're on your way to victory.

"With a game like this, it was changing faces every five minutes. I was just about to put on Robert Huth to play centre-forward when we scored the winner, so I put him on at centre-back instead! I want to win, I'm paid to do my job to get results for Chelsea. That's the only thing that's personal."

Terry capped an unforgettable night by heading Chelsea into the quarter-finals as Jose Mourinho's side showed their indestructible character.

Chelsea, who were 2-1 down from the first leg, had been in serious danger of naively throwing away a seemingly assured win despite having struck three times in the opening 19 minutes of the rematch.

Even though the Blues led 4-2 on aggregate at one stage, Ronaldinho inspired Barcelona back into the game with a penalty and then a magical strike which took the Spanish side ahead on away goals before half-time.

However, after a second half of unrelenting thrills and spills, with Petr Cech performing heroics to hold Barcelona at bay and luck on their side, the inspirational Terry had the final say.

The Chelsea skipper's fourth goal in the competition this season came with just 14 minutes left, but it was enough to keep his side's treble dreams very much alive.

Mourinho flung himself into an ecstatic sea of players at the final whistle, while Barcelona were shepherded down the tunnel amid angry recriminations, scuffles and, seemingly, even spitting.

Amid an aggressive start by the home side, Kezman made an immediate impact, surging down the right flank after Lampard had won possession before producing an inviting cross for his strike partner.

Gudjohnsen's first touch took himpast Gerard, before then lunging forwards to power his shot past goalkeeper Victor Valdes with just eight minutes gone.

That was, in itself, enough to take Chelsea through but their tails were up and Lampard shot over the bar on the turn from just eight yards out.

No matter. At this stage, Chelsea were rampantly pouring forward and when Joe Cole's shot was deflected, Valdes could only parry the ball and Lampard was onto it in a flash to finish.

"Boring, boring Chelsea" rang out ironically around Stamford Bridge, but the home side were not finished there.

Next it was Cole producing the midfield inspiration, driving a through-ball for Duff to scamper onto and roll underneath the body of the stranded Valdes.

That should have been game over. The time to regroup, refocus and recharge the batteries. Instead, Chelsea continued to attack and quickly paid the price.

Not even two warning signals, when Cech denied Samuel Eto'o at full stretch and Ronaldinho directed a header just inches wide were enough.

For when Paulo Ferreira, with his back to the ball, unnecessarily handled, Ronaldinho converted the ensuing penalty and the tie was transformed.

Now Barcelona only needed one goal to go through and even though Cech again performed acrobatics to deny Deco, Ronaldinho duly obliged.

Not that there seemed much danger when the Brazilian was confronted by an imposing wall of defenders on the edge of the penalty area.

But with a minimal back-lift, he still conjured a moment of pure inspiration as he crafted a shot that curled into the far corner, leaving Cech motionless.

Chelsea left themselves open to the counter-attack and when Cech tipped Andres Iniesta's shot onto the post, Eto'o should have punished Johnson's hesitation. That was the escape they needed. For when Terry headed home Duff's corner, Barcelona's desperate pleas for an imagined flag from the linesman came to nothing.

Stamford Bridge erupted at the final whistle. It had, indeed, been a truly incredible night.