ANDRE VILLAS-BOAS breathed a huge sigh of relief as Didier Drogba inspired Chelsea to victory and a place in the Champions League last 16.
Needing a win to guarantee their place in the knockout stages, Drogba got the Blues off to a dream start, slotting home the opener after just three minutes.
And after Jordi Alba had rattled Petr Cech's post, Ramires fired in Chelsea's second from a Drogba pass to ease the nerves around Stamford Bridge.
The Ivorian coolly finished off Juan Mata's through-ball for the home side's third in the second-half as Villas-Boas' side secured the three points needed to qualify from Group E.
And with Bayer Leverkusen slipping to a surprise 1-1 draw in Genk, Chelsea topped the group to go into next Friday's second round draw as top seeds.