As the rain relentlessly tumbled to the Stamford Bridge turf, Emma Hayes and her Chelsea players trudged forlornly around the ground, the pain etched on their faces knowing how close they had come. A matter of inches the wrong side of the post, a series of questionable refereeing decisions and a key injury to Mayra Ramírez who had caused Barcelona so many issues at the Estadi Olímpic just a week earlier. Millimetres, a series of moments … so close but so far once again.
The Champions League is the one trophy that has eluded Emma Hayes in her 12-year tenure. The one that, despite her protestations, she so desperately wanted to complete her haul of winning every available trophy at a club she had built from the ground up.
