Ballack Sets Tone In Chelsea's 3-0 Romp Over Olympiakos; Blues Make Last 8

London, England (AHN) - Chelsea counted on an early goal from Michael Ballack before the rest of the Blues responded with timely shots of their own to eliminate Olympiakos 3-0 on Wednesday and reach the quarterfinals round of the Champions League.

Turning the Stamford Bridge into a huge party venue early on, Ballack found the post at the fifth minute thanks to a perfect cross from Frank Lampard. The two again joined forces in the 25th minute when Lampard drilled in a rebound of Ballack's miss to give the Blues a 2-0 lead.

Chelsea secured a March 14 quarterfinal draw when Salomon Kalou found goalkeeper Antonis Nikopolidis an easy target with a close finish in the 48th minute.

Blues goalkeeper Carlo Cudicini kept Olympiakos at bay with two pivotal saves in the second half from Fernando Belluschi, who both misfired on a free-kick try in the 60th and a long attempt in the 82nd.

Chelsea, which won on the same aggregate score, took Group B of the group stage with a 12-point finish, four better than second-placer Schalke 04. Incidentally, the Royal Blues are also through the last eight, beating Porto 4-1 on penalties.

Olympiakos, meanwhile, finished tied with Real Madrid with 11 points in Group C group stage, although Real had two more goals than the Greek football club.