Inspired by Didier Drogba's double, Chelsea rediscovered its attacking flair to sweep aside Valencia 3-0 and reach the Champions League knockout round Tuesday. Woeful away form had left a place among Europe's elite in jeopardy, but the London club exploited Valencia's defensive shortcomings to progress as Group E winner. Drogba netted after just three minutes, set up Ramires' 22nd-minute goal and rounded off the ruthless victory in the second half. It should ease the pressure on Andre Villas-Boas, who turned on the media after the match, complaining about the “persecution” of Chelsea during his first season in charge. “We finished top of the group against all odds,” Villas-Boas said. “There has been a lot of criticism of our players and they gave everyone a slap in the face.” Bayer Leverkusen clinched second place in Group E with a 1-1 draw at Racing Genk. The drama of the night came at Borussia Dortmund, with Marseille scoring twice in the closing minutes to win 3-2 and advance as Group F runner-up. Olympiakos was denied second place despite beating group winner Arsenal 3-1. Zenit St. Petersburg reached the last 16 with Group G winner APOEL at the expense of FC Porto after drawing 0-0 in Portugal. The final knockout phase places will be determined when the group stage concludes Wednesday, with Manchester rivals United and City the highest-profile clubs with qualification on the line. For the ninth successive season, Chelsea is in the knockout phase of the competition. Daniel Sturridge, who has displaced record-signing Fernando Torres from the side, switched the ball from the right to left flank. Former Valencia winger Juan Mata then squared to Drogba, who turned Antonio Barragan and fired beyond goalkeeper Diego Alves. Then Drogba picked up possession inside his own half and charged forward before sending the ball through to Ramires, who swept past Victor Ruiz before striking home. Drogba's 36th Champions League goal came in the 76th, racing onto Mata's throughball and slotting a low finish into the corner. Group H had already been settled with Barcelona and AC Milan advancing. But holder Barcelona was able to show the depth of talent in its squad as a second-string team without Lionel Messi, Xavi Hernandez and Andres Iniesta easily disposed of BATE Borisov. A 4-0 victory extended Barcelona's unbeaten run at home in the competition to 13 matches, with 19-year-old midfielder Sergi Roberto opening the scoring and 20-year-old defender Martin Montoya adding another on the hour. Pedro Rodriguez completed the rout with goals in the 63rd and from the penalty spot in the 89th. Early second-half goals from Brazilian forwards Pato and Robinho put AC Milan 2-0 up against Plzen but David Bystron and Michal Duris salvaged a 2-2 draw.
