Blackburn are into the semi-finals of the Carling Cup after a dramatic penalty shootout success over Chelsea.

Nikola Kalinic fired the hosts in front early on at Ewood Park, but Didier Drogba and Salomon Kalou completed a quick-fire comeback for Chelsea after the break.

Extra-time then appeared to have found a winner, with Benni McCarthy's penalty seemingly set to separate the two sides.

Paulo Ferreira had other ides, though, and rifled into the roof of the net with the last kick of the game to send the contest all the way.

Paul Robinson then established himself as the hero of the hour, saving two penalties to help Rovers to a 4-3 success.

Carlo Ancelotti made sweeping changes to his starting XI following the weekend win at Arsenal and the Blues appeared edgy from the off.

Rovers sensed an opportunity and were able to get themselves in front inside the opening 10 minutes.

Pascal Chimbonda, at his buccaneering best, broke down the left with just nine minutes on the clock and his low cross was turned in by Kalinic.

Chelsea offered little in terms of a response, with the hosts able to restrict the Premier League leaders to long-range efforts.

A triple substitution at the interval paid immediate dividends, though, as the visitors quickly turned the tie on its head.

Drogba nodded home a Florent Malouda cross with virtually his first touch on 48 minutes and Kalou calmly slotted Chelsea in front four minutes later after racing away from the Rovers backline.

Blackburn were not to be denied, though, and grabbed an equaliser after 64 minutes when a hopeful cross from Emerton evaded everyone and slipped past Hilario at his near post.

A topsy-turvy tie then tipped in favour of Rovers once three minutes into extra-time when Yuri Zhirkov hacked David Hoilett to the ground and McCarthy made no mistake from the spot.

That should have been that, but a mistake from Robinson allowed Ferreira to smash home the most dramatic of equalisers.

However, the Rovers keeper made amends in the shootout, saving from Michael Ballack and Gael Kakuta, to see Blackburn into the last four.

Determined

Although Chelsea started well, with Deco prompting from midfield, a determined Rovers found themselves ahead after only nine minutes.

Seconds earlier Kalinic had shot wide after taking a return pass from Jason Roberts. But his next opportunity was far more successful.

Morten Gamst Pedersen and Chimbonda combined well down the left and, when the full-back's low cross arrowed into the six-yard box, Kalinic finished in style.

Brett Emerton flashed a 20-yarder wide as Rovers kept coming forward and the nearest Chelsea got in the opening exchanges was a diving header from Kalou, following Ferreira's cross, that skidded wide of the far post.

Chelsea's response took a long time to get up any steam, with Joe Cole shooting wide and then Ballack crashing a volley into the side-netting from Malouda's right-wing cross.

But it was Blackburn who continued to look dangerous, and Chris Samba saw a header pulled down by Hilario, the keeper being clattered to the ground by the big defender for his troubles.

The hosts could see their opportunity against a weakened side, with Chelsea boss Carlo Ancelotti only having Drogba from his front-line troops on the bench.

Ancelotti could hardly have been impressed with Chelsea's first-half efforts and he made three substitutions for the second period.

Not surprisingly, on came Drogba as well as Gael Kakuta and Jeffery Bruma, with Cole, Juliano Belletti and Deco making way.

Punished

And Chelsea were level within two minutes of the restart. Malouda's cross came in from the left and Drogba rose above Ryan Nelsen to head powerfully past Robinson.

It did not take Chelsea long to go in front, with Blackburn punished for some dreadful defending.

Zhirkov found all the time in the world to send Kalou racing into Blackburn's half, without a defender within 20 yards of him, and the striker coolly rolled his shot wide of Robinson after 52 minutes.

Rovers sent on Grella for Pedersen after 61 minutes and were level three minutes later.

Emerton's swirling cross came in from the right and, although Kalinic went for it and claimed the goal, the ball looked to sail straight in and past a bemused Hilario.

Roberts was replaced by youngster David Hoilett with 20 minutes left. But Chelsea were left with only 10 men for the last 19 minutes, having used all their substitutes at the break, when Kalou limped away with a groin injury.

Elrio Van Heerden replaced Steven Nzonzi at the start of the extra half-hour, and Rovers were ahead a minute later.

Zhirkov brought down the nippy Hoilett and McCarthy rammed home the penalty.

But, in the second minute of injury-time at the end of 120 minutes, Chelsea were level when Ferreira lashed home after Robinson had fumbled a Malouda free-kick to send the game to penalties.

Team Name	Blackburn Rovers	Chelsea
Possession	49%	51%
Goals	3	3
Shots On Target	5	9
Shots Off Target	6	9
Blocked Shots	3	1
Corners	5	10
Fouls Conceded	15	14
Offsides	7	0
Yellow Cards	1	1
Red Cards	0	0

Teams

Blackburn Rovers  Robinson, Salgado, Samba, Nelsen, Chimbonda, Emerton, Nzonzi (Heerden 91), Pedersen (Grella 62), McCarthy, Roberts (Hoilett 70), Kalinic
Subs Not Used Brown, Givet, Diouf, Jones
Booked 
Goals  Kalinic 9, Emerton 64, McCarthy (pen) 93

Chelsea  Hilario, Ivanovic, Belletti (Bruma 46), Ferreira, Zhirkov, Mikel, Ballack, Deco (Drogba 46), J. Cole (Kakuta 46), Kalou, Malouda
Subs Not Used  Turnbull, Matic, Hutchinson, Borini
Booked  Bruma
Goals  Drogba 48, Klaou 52, Ferreira 120

Attendance 18,136

Referee A. Wiley