KALOU: CHANCES TAKEN

After netting twice in last night's 4-0 win over Atletico Madrid, Salomon Kalou admitted he was just pleased to be on the pitch.
The 24-year-old has had to be patient in recent weeks with Didier Drogba and Nicolas Anelka both contributing goals on a regular basis, but with Drogba suspended from Champions League football, he was given the nod to start at Stamford Bridge, and repaid manager Carlo Ancelotti with two important goals.
'It was a very good opportunity for me, I haven't been playing lately and I scored two goals which is very good,' he smiled.
'It is very important to win at home, today we were pleased to win and for me it was a very good team performance.'
It looked like it might be one of those evenings for Kalou after he missed an early opportunity, but he explained afterwards he never lost belief due to the quality of his team-mates.
'I knew that we would have a lot of chances, playing with players like Deco, Ballack, Lampard shows we will always have a lot of opportunities, so even after missing the first one I wasn't worried because I knew I would have a lot more,' he said.
He might have had a hat-trick had he stayed on for the full 90 minutes, but was instead replaced by Yury Zhirkov 18 minutes from time.
'The manager said to keep it for next week, so I'll keep one for Saturday!' the Ivorian joked. 'It's very important for a player to get on the pitch and show what he can do.
'[Ancelotti] has great experience and brings that to Chelsea. The players are settling well and we have to keep working together.'
It is partly the unity of the squad, as well as its quality, that makes Chelsea serious Champions League contenders.
'Of course we are good enough, last year we were in the semi-finals and now the goal is to go all the way to Madrid, we have the players and staff and everyone is doing his best to get there,' Kalou said.
'It is an important competition and we want to do better than last year, to be in Madrid.'