Chelsea are not set up to play the way Manchester United play. John Terry and Ricardo Carvalho rarely push high up the pitch, the full-backs will only attack one at a time and, with Petr Cech such a dominant figure in the 18-yard area, they're not vulnerable to the counter-attack.

With Didier Drogba in magnificent form, and with their expertise at setpieces, Chelsea are well capable of scoring at Anfield, and if they do manage to get the first goal that should be enough to see them through.

Drogba's performance was terrific, but it was also accompanied by a large question mark. Why does he need to dive and feign injury? Perhaps the occasion got to him, because I thought he hadn't been play-acting as much recently but, football-wise, he was Wednesday's outstanding player by some distance, and he has proved me completely wrong.

A year to 18 months ago, his finishing was hit and miss, he was showing little or no composure in front of goal, but now, he is aware of other players, his touch is excellent, and he is without doubt one of the premier goalscorers in the world.

I'm not a fan of Jose Mourinho (right), particularly when he starts pontificating about other managers, and when he blows his own trumpet, but I do admire how he is coping with the pressure at Chelsea. Before him the club were prepared to hang Claudio Ranieri out to dry, and to an extent they have been doing the same with Mourinho. It was as if Roman Abramovich and Peter Kenyon were waiting for him to fail.

Yet, he's still going strong on all fronts.

Because of his vanity, part of me hopes Mourinho fails to win the Champions League, but I believe that Chelsea are better-placed now that at any time since he took over to reach their holy grail.

Admittedly, on Wednesday they were by no means perfect, but think back to how brilliantly they performed in Valencia. What they lack in artistry, they more than make up for with their mental and physical strength. In fairness to them, they have debunked the theory that players are only interested in money. I mean some of these guys are on �100,000 a week, and they're still prepared to run through a brick wall.

As for Liverpool, they would have been delighted to have come away with a draw and I think, from what we saw, that's what Rafael Benitez was playing for. The fact that Boudewijn Zenden started, and then stayed on when Craig Bellamy was substituted, was hard to fathom. Manchester United have a clearly defined way of playing, so do Chelsea, but it's hard to see what exactly Benitez wants from his team.

In the second leg, Chelsea might be vulnerable because of the immense pressure they're under, and Liverpool will obviously give it everything at Anfield.

Chelsea have a significant advantage, but the first goal will be critical.

United have taken more out of their first leg than Milan.

The Italians will be kicking themselves, not so much about losing the equaliser, but about losing the decisive goal. They had a throw in, Ryan Giggs was allowed to dispossess the sub, Dida's positioning was dreadful, and Wayne Rooney did the rest. Unacceptable for a top Italian side to defend as poorly as that.

Not unlike Chelsea, Milan will be thinking they let an opportunity slip.

Now they'll have to come out and attack, they're going to have to find a goal from somewhere and, notwithstanding the threat posed by Kaka, that's not going to be easy.

Milan don't have wingers, neither Filippo Inzaghi nor Alberto Gilardino are anything special and, if United were playing Chelsea, they would be worried about Drogba, about Joe Cole, about Lampard breaking, and about defending set pieces, but Milan don't possess that sort of threat.

Whatever happens, it will be strength and power versus footballing flair in the final and, in the end, it could well be United and Chelsea going after the main European and domestic trophies. I have this feeling that if Chelsea reach the Champions League final, they're going to be exceptionally hard to beat.

Meanwhile, I can't finish this column without mentioning Alan Ball. We were very good friends, on and off the pitch.

He was a big influence in the early stages of my career and, even though there was a 10-year age gap between us, we often went racing together and had a few drinks after games.

I was in the side with him at Arsenal for four or five years, and while it was a transition period, with a lot of young players coming in, he was always very generous with his time and advice. He spoke his mind, and he upset a few people with his honesty, but he was always passionate about the game, and such a competitive trainer. I consider him a great player.

Recently, I was watching a DVD of the 1966 World Cup final, and I'd forgotten how incredible his own performance was. He'll be sadly missed by everyone who knew him.