Chelsea  Basel, easily passed for the Amsterdam  final  David Luis  shining in the night, even spectacular goal the spirit of Mourinho was Stamford Bridge.

The Chelsea defender’s brilliant long-range goal in the second half helped secure a 3-1 win on the night against Swiss club Basel and a 5-2 aggregate victory overall, to earn a Europa League final meeting with Benfica in Holland in a fortnight’s time.

But with the crowd regularly chanting the Special One’s name during the match, the best that Benitez can hope for as a result of his achievement is a little respect.

“We are doing our job,” he said. “Hopefully a lot of them, they will appreciate that.

“We’re doing our jobs as professionals. I think we’ve won 11 of our last 13 games at home, which is quite good.”

It is clear that Jose Mourinho’s shadow will continue to haunt the Spaniard’s “interim” tenure every step of the way after the Real Madrid boss made no secret of his desire to return to Stamford Bridge – a possibility clearly welcomed by the fans.

Basel winger Mohamed Salah spooked Chelsea with a goal before half-time but Fernando Torres’ strike after the break settled nerves.

“In the first half we didn’t perform in the best way,” said Torres. “At half-time we talked about that and it’s about concentration, mentality and showing that. We did it in the first 10 minutes of the second half.”

Indeed, Victor Moses scored soon after to ensure that Benitez got a last chance to land at least one of the five trophies he targeted on his arrival at the club in November.

Defeat in the World Club Championship final, semi-final failures in both domestic cup competitions and a failure to contend for the Premier League now puts all the focus on Amsterdam on May 15. Luiz said: “We lost three finals this season, so now is the time to win a title.”

Chelsea vs FC Basel Match facts and details

But the Blues’ European marksmen delivered again, as Fernando Torres and Victor Moses overturned Mohamed Salah’s first-half opener.

David Luiz added to his goal from the first leg with another superb strike to the relief of all but the noisy Swiss contingent.

This leaves Chelsea on course for a unique record of following up their Champions League triumph of last season with a Europa League crown this time. They will hold both trophies for 10 days if they beat Benfica in a football first.

It will offer some comfort for manager Rafa Benitez, who has had to endure the supporters’ animosity to his appointment and a faltering campaign. And, of course, Jose Mourinho.

The Special One loomed over Stamford Bridge as he talked this week of a return to the club where he feels loved.

Benitez has handled it all with a quiet dignity. But he looked anything but calm on the touchline until that 10-minute spell early in the second half.

He had left Juan Mata on the bench, with matches against both Manchester United and Tottenham in the next six days and with his club’s quest for Champions League football next season another massive priority.

The immediate objective was to reach a final after semi-final failures in both domestic cups. This time, though, history was on their side as Chelsea have never slipped up in a home European semi-final while Basle have never won on English soil.

The Swiss side have, though, seen off Manchester United and Tottenham in the past year and nearly got a dream start inside 60 seconds when Marco Streller found himself unmarked in the area but shot wide of Petr Cech’s far post. Basel’s intent was clear, close down Chelsea quickly with Serey Die the spearhead.

In an open first half Eden Hazard was always pulling the strings. And Frank Lampard came close to goal No202 when Torres sent him clear with a flicked pass. But, eight yards out, he rolled his shot against the far post.

Ramires wasted the Blues’ best chance of the half after another penetrating run from Hazard and a superb backheel had opened up the defence. Moses crossed for Ramires, six yards out. But he shot too close to Yann Sommer and the keeper pushed the ball away.

Basle looked dangerous on the break, Streller smacking a wonderful volley from the edge of the area. A helpless Cech watched that arrow past him and, luckily, a post. Warning signs were there but Chelsea did not read them. Valentin Stocker was given too much space on the edge of the area and he clipped the ball through for Salah to dart past Branislav Ivanovic and curl home a shot during first-half injury-time.

If that was a great time to score, then Chelsea matched it, hitting back within five minutes of the restart. Torres, with his eighth goal in seven home European games, poached perfectly from five yards as Sommer spilled Lampard’s shot after Hazard had run past three defenders in another impressive 50-yard burst.

Moses pounced as Torres’s shot was stopped. His first effort was blocked but he tucked in the rebound to score for a fourth successive time in a European game.

Luiz saved the best for last, curling in a beauty from 25 yards with perfect technique. He celebrated, knowing he had set up a date in Amsterdam on May 15. Fabian Frei did hit the bar from 25 yards in the 65th minute but the tie was gone.

Benitez made changes ready for the final push in the league, with Mata replacing Hazard and Luiz taken off because a booking would have ruled him out of the final.

A year ago Chelsea were crowned champions of Europe. To win the Europa League could be viewed as walking home from the funfair with a coconut when you really wanted the giant teddy bear.

But Benitez will not mind that one bit if he can bow out with silverware.

CHELSEA (4-2-3-1): Cech; Azpilicueta, Ivanovic, Cahill, Bertrand;. Luiz (Ake 81), Lampard; Moses, Ramires (Oscar 66), Hazard (Mata 75); Torres. Booked: Azpilicueta. Goals: Torres 50, Moses 52, Luiz 59.

FC BASEL (4-1-4-1): Sommer; Voser, Schar, Sauro, Steinhofer; F Frei (Marcelo Diaz 75); Serey Die, Elneny; Salah, Stocker (Degen 62); Streller (Jacques Zoua 62). Booked: Schar, Steinhofer, Die. Goal: Salah 45.

Referee: J Eriksson (Sweden).

Stadium:Stamford Bridge

Attendance: 39,403.

Chelsea 3 FC Basel 1 UEFA Europe League Semi-Final Match Video

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