Associated Press

London, April 7:

Chelsea stayed on course to win its first Champions Cup despite the absence of manager Jose Mourinho, and AC Milan moved closer to its seventh European title in the first leg of the Champions League quarter-finals on Wednesday.

Frank Lampard scored two goals, and Joe Cole and Didier Drogba added one each to help Chelsea beat Bayern Munich 4-2. Jaap Stam and Andriy Shevchenko scored a goal each for Milan in a 2-0 win over crosstown rival Inter Milan.

In London, Lampard got his first goal in the 60th minute with a low drive after Drogba headed down a long ball from midfield. He made it 3-1 in the 70th after chesting down a cross from Claude Makelele and firing past Bayern goalkeeper Oliver Kahn. Cole gave Chelsea a fourth-minute lead with a shot from 20 yards that deflected off the heel of Bayern defender Lucio, but Bastian Schweinsteiger briefly equalised in the 52nd, putting home a rebound after teammate Michael Ballack’s free kick hit the wall and Ze Roberto’s follow was saved by Chelsea keeper Petr Cech.

Drogba scored the fourth goal in the 81st minute, kicking in a shot from close range following a scramble in the box off a corner. Ballack scored a penalty in injury time to give Bayern some hope for the return leg.

In Milan, Stam headed in a cross from Andrea Pirlo in first-half injury time, and Shevchenko doubled the lead with his in the 74th minute, also from a Pirlo feed. Milan goalkeeper Dida also played a role in the win. The Brazil international saved a curling free kick from Sinisa Mihajlovic and a diagonal shot by Julio Ricardo Cruz.