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Several experts thought Chelsea's first European Cup victory was fated, such was the nature of their route to the Champions League final and their penalty shoot-out win over Bayern Munich.

But it also owed much to Didier Drogba's finishing and sterling performances by Ashley Cole, Petr Cech, Frank Lampard and Gary Cahill.

One of the biggest battles was down Bayern's right side where Arjen Robben was met by the resolute Cole, who had one of his finest games as he blocked and frustrated his Dutch opponent.

Here, BBC Sport pundits and key statistics shed further light on a dramatic night at the Allianz Arena.

BBC pundit Steve Bruce on BBC Radio 5 live:

"Didier Drogba has been the best centre-forward of his type over the last 10 years. He is a big player for the big occasion.

"Ashley Cole has given an absolutely wonderful performance tonight and he deserves to win the Champions League for the consistency of his performances over the years. And I have to say that Jose Bosingwa has been much maligned but he played well too."

BBC pundit Mark Lawrenson on BBC Radio 5 live:

"As Roberto Di Matteo slowly took over, the formation and the shape of the team has changed. Tactically, he has got everything spot on.

"Chelsea have won this competition away from home. The performances in Lisbon and the Nou Camp have set them up for this night. Drogba's equaliser and the time that he got it has made such a difference to this game."

The game's key statistics

Bayern had 35 shots to Chelsea's nine, but they were wasteful with only 23% on target compared to Chelsea's 33%.

Arjen Robben was the game's leading shooter with 15 shots, but he, too, was inaccurate with only six on target.

Didier Drogba had five shots and two chances, scoring from one of them.

Four out of the top five passers in the game were from Bayern Munich, with Toni Kroos the leader with 111.

Bayern passed the ball 790 times compared to 633 for Chelsea.

Chelsea statistics

Petr Cech went the right way on six Bayern penalties and saved three of them.

Chelsea blocked more shots than in any other game in the Champions League this season.

Only Frank Lampard, John Obi Mikel and Juan Mata made more passes than goalkeeper Petr Cech.

Juan Mata covered the most ground on the pitch with 16,123 metres.

Didier Drogba has now scored nine goals in nine cup finals.

Bayern Munich statistics

Robben and Philipp Lahm were the most frequent passers behind Kroos, showing how much Bayern played down the right-hand side.

Half of Bayern's eight crosses from the left were successful, whereas none of 15 reached their target from the right.

Seven of Robben's shots were from outside the area, showing that Chelsea defended the 18-yard line well.

Bastian Schweinsteiger covered the most ground of any Bayern player with 15,464 metres.

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