Chelsea given painful reminder of declining European status by Barcelona | Dominic Fifield

Antonio Conte had reason to curse the absence of a ruthless streak but the grimmer reality is Chelsea have won two games in the knockout stages of this competition since 2012

Chelsea could at least seek to console themselves in the immediate aftermath of elimination. They had reason to curse profligacy, and the absence of a ruthless streak which saw the Premier League team strike the woodwork four times over the two legs but succeed in scoring only once. They could always point, too, to Lionel Messi’s brilliance. Antonio Conte described the tie’s decisive performer as “not a top player, but a super, super, super top player”, the kind who crops up once or twice a century. He was the difference.

Yet, over that short flight back to London, a grimmer reality will surely have set in. Chelsea, a team who have failed to build domestically on a title success for the second time in three seasons, had actually endured a painful reminder of just how far they have slipped down the pecking order in a European context. They have won only two games in the knockout stage of this competition – against Galatasaray and Paris Saint‑Germain – since hoisting the trophy in 2012 and Barça, in truth, had not needed all in their number to be at their best to jettison the English club from the last 16.

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