A late equalizer from Andres Iniesta in stoppage-time saw Barcelona squeak out a dramatic 1-1 draw with Chelsea in the second leg of their semifinal of the UEFA Champions League.
THe victory booked a date with Manchester United in Rome on May 27th for the UEFA Champions League title match.
A wonderful volley from Michael Essien had the hosts on course for a second consecutive final during an eventful night at Stamford Bridge. Barcelona even went down to 10 men after 66 minutes as Eric Abidal saw red for hauling down Nicolas Anelka.
With all of the chips against them, Barcelona manager Pep Guardiola saw his team battle adversity - coming back from being a goal down and a man down. The 1-1 draw saw them progress to the final courtesy of the away goals rule.
"I have a lot of faith in my team and we kept going and we were persistent to the end," said Guardiola.
"Don't forget we played 25 minutes 10 against 11 and Chelsea stayed back. It was difficult enough 11 against 11 so we are so happy to have scored."
"You have to give us credit. We tried to win the game, we tried to take the ball and create chances. We did not create so much but I expected Chelsea to create a little bit more pressure."
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