For Chelsea, the only disappointment will be that it did not finish the job. The Blues dominated Tuesday's Champions League semifinal first leg at Real Madrid for long periods and took an early lead, and while a 1-1 draw leaves the tie in the balance, the sense from the flow of the game is that Chelsea is the better of the two sides. Structure, system and organization largely thwarted the individual excellence preferred by Real Madrid president Florentino Pérez.
That added to what, if Pérez were capable of being chastened, would have been a chastening week.