It is going to be a nervous few days for the people who run the Uefa Pro Licence. What will it say about that coaching course if a manager without the right badges ends up with the two biggest club trophies that he could win?

Manchester United against Chelsea is a worthy Champions League final and it should be a very close one. Do not be surprised if it goes to extra time, as well. Chelsea have not been fancied all season, but they may be the favourites in Moscow because their powerhouse players have stepped up their game.

Far more desirable to managers than a Pro Licence is a team with a tough spine and, yesterday, Didier Drogba was in man-of-steel mode, a setting we have not seen enough this season. Rafael BenÍtez should add more footage to his Drogba video dossier - images showing the Ivory Coast striker’s brilliance to add to the clips of his diving. He was almost unplayable last night and the Liverpool manager’s criticism certainly motivated him.

Drogba may not have Lionel Messi’s technique, but he can impose his personality on a game and influence it just as much as the Barcelona man, bullying with strength where Messi teases with flair. His teammates were strong, too, in the way that they came back from the brink of physical exhaustion and somehow found new energy as the match entered extra time.

The game was hanging in the balance because, after half-time, Chelsea appeared to be paying the price for their dramatic victory over Manchester United last weekend - that desperate effort. How else to explain the way the team’s performance dipped in the second half last night?

It was as if Grant’s side started playing in slow motion. They could not sustain the momentum after an excellent first half and the wet conditions were their worst enemy. The Stamford Bridge pitch quickly cut up and became heavy. Of course it was the same for both sides, but when you have a lead to hang on to, your legs feel that bit more leaden than when you are chasing the game.

From late in the second period, it was like we were watching a match from the 1970s: terrible pitch and desperate players who were so shattered that they were virtually out on their feet.

Grant, so often criticised, did a good job against BenÍtez, the master tactician in Europe. It did not require a masterstroke from the Israeli, just common sense. Chelsea sat deep, as you might expect an away side to do. It was a justified sign of confidence in the defence.

Sitting back snuffed out the threat from Fernando Torres for a long while. It negated his pace and meant that Liverpool had space only farther back down the pitch, where they could not hurt Chelsea. In the first half, the visiting team had plenty of possession but did nothing with it.

There was no room for Steven Gerrard to make his dangerous runs. With Frank Lampard available, Grant put Michael Essien at right back and it worked a treat because Yossi Benayoun was anonymous for the first half and Dirk Kuyt hardly touched the ball.

It bred frustration in the Liverpool ranks and that led to misplaced passes. Still, Liverpool found their equaliser. It is as if BenÍtez sets up his side to win the game in the second half, they score late goals so often. Liverpool will not need reminding that a brace from Filippo Inzaghi won the Champions League for AC Milan last year and Torres possesses the same opportunism as the Italian, the ability to strike even when he has been quiet.

As for Lampard, he could score a hat-trick in the final yet last night will remain his finest hour. After such a traumatic few days, it might have been so easy to let Michael Ballack take that crucial kick. The bravery, the composure, the confidence -Lampard put away a penalty and he put in a performance.