Six Chelsea players declined to travel to Israel for the first leg of this tie and the entire team left the field last night looking as if they wish they had not turned up. For the second consecutive season Claudio Ranieri has suffered an embarrassing early exit from the UEFA Cup.
Last year it was Switzerland's St Gallen, this time the minnows of Hapoel Tel-Aviv, who became the first Israeli side to reach the third round of this competition.
The visitors were helped by fine goalkeeping but Chelsea have only themselves to blame. Ranieri's side wasted several chances before and after Milan Osterc made it 3-0 on aggregate before half-time. And although Gianfranco Zola salvaged a draw on the night, Ken Bates surely expects more for a £31 million sterling summer investment.
Chelsea had left themselves a mountain to climb by losing 2-0 to two late goals in Tel Aviv, yet the players who went to Israel had refused to castigate their non-travelling team-mates?
"No one's held anything against the lads who didn't go," said John Terry. Some supporters, however, were less impressed with the six's attitude. Five of those who stayed behind were given a chance to turn things round by starting.
Emmanuel Petit, one of the absentees a fortnight ago, came close to setting up a goal inside four minutes, his free-kick being headed wide by Mario Stanic, as Chelsea set about trying to rescue matters in controlled fashion.
It was still one-way traffic as Chelsea poured forward against a side who pulled eight bodies behind the ball but, in playing two strikers, had come with more in mind than simply defending. Urged on by an estimated 3,000 fans, they knew an away goal would make life all the more difficult for Chelsea. Chelsea could have turned the tie inside 20 minutes. Three chances fell to Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink, who saw two efforts saved by the goalkeeper Shavit Elimelech and put a header wide.
So little had been seen of Hapoel as an attacking force that Mark Bosnich might have been on the bench. There was the occasional nervous moment for Chelsea fans but Hapoel's breaks initially came to nothing.
More worrying for Chelsea was that their early opportunities began to dry up as the half wore on. When Chelsea built from the back they found a bank of players blocking their path near the edge of the area, and having survived the early onslaught the Israeli side were steadily coming forward with more menace.
Hapoel scored in the 36th minute from their first chance. A poor pass by William Gallas was intercepted by Istavan Pishont, who enabled Osterc to beat the onrushing Bosnich and leave Chelsea needing to score four.
Elimelech was forced into three saves before half-time and Stanic again headed wide, but Chelsea were pumping balls into the area rather than building with skill and it was no surprise that Ranieri made a triple change at the interval to play with four forwards.
One of the new arrivals, Mikael Forssell, hit the post not long after Hasselbaink headed wide as Chelsea streamed forward. Yet it needed a good stop by Bosnich to deny Osterc just before the hour and retain at least some hope for Chelsea. Zola, responded with a 20-yard goal from Hasselbaink's pass but the damage was done.
CHELSEA: Bosnich, Le Saux, Desailly, Terry, Gallas, Lampard, Zenden (Dalla Bona 46), Stanic (Zola 46), Petit (Forssell 46), Hasselbaink, Gudjohnsen. Subs Not Used: Cudicini, Jokanovic, Ferrer, Keenan. Booked: Terry, Hasselbaink. Goals: Zola 64.
HAPOEL TEL-AVIV: Elimelech, Gershon, Halmai, Antebi, Domb, Bakhar, Luz (Balili 17), Abuksis (Toema 53), Onishenko, Klaschenko, . Osterc (Hillel 69). Subs Not Used: Rahamin, Knafo, Pishont, Benny Hadad. Booked: Gershon, Antebi, Elimelech. Goals: . Osterc 36.
Referee: Laurent Duhamel (France).
Hapoel win 3-1 on aggreagte
