Uefa charge Chelsea, Drogba and Bosingwa

Uefa have begun disciplinary proceedings against Chelsea, Didier Drogba and Jose Bosingwa in relation to incidents following the Champions League semi-final second leg against Barcelona at Stamford Bridge.

There were angry scenes at the end of the game on May 6th, with Blues players confronting Norwegian referee Tom Henning Ovrebo at the final whistle.

Barcelona went through to the final after drawing the match 1-1 but Chelsea claimed they should have had up to four penalties.

A UEFA statement read: "The club are charged with the improper conduct of their players and the throwing of missiles by their supporters, while Drogba and Bosingwa are accused of being in breach of the principles of sportsmanship by insulting the referee by making offensive comments.

"The club and the individuals concerned have been requested to file a statement by Friday, May 29th. The Uefa control & disciplinary body will deal with the case on June 17th."

Notable omissions from Uefa’s statement are captain John Terry and midfielder Michael Ballack.

The England captain was sharply critical of Uefa's decision to appoint Ovrebo to such a high profile game, while the Germany captain angrily chased the referee almost half the length of the field after the his penalty appeal in the second half was waved away.

He was eventually yellow-carded but maintained his protests after final whistle but before Drogba took over.

The Ivorian, who had been substituted in the second half, appeared from the tunnel to confront the Norwegian official.

The following day, wing-back Jose Bosingwa laid the blame for the Blues’ failure to reach their second successive final squarely at Henning’s feet.

“I don’t know if he’s a referee or a thief,” he told Portuguese televisionstation RTP. ”I don’t have any words to describe that man that was on the pitch.

“We have nothing against Barcelona’s goal but the penalties that he didn’t give us and his way of managing the game weren’t right at all.

“This referee should never referee a game again. What happened was a disgrace.

“It was a well contested game but the referee came to spoil our game.”

He later retracted the comments in a statement issued on behalf of the player to the Portuguese media, saying: “We were all very disappointed and frustrated after the game, but I regret describing the referee as a thief. Having had some time to reflect I would like to withdraw those comments.”