Servette 2-1 Chelsea: Blues Secure Europa Conference League Spot Despite Swiss Challenge
Chelsea vs Servette: How the Blues Survived Swiss Scare to Qualify for Europa Conference League.
Chelsea lost their playoff match against Servette 2-1 in the second leg, but they still managed to qualify for the Europa Conference League group stage. With a 3-2 aggregate win, the Blues moved on to the next round of the newly formed competition.
Jeremy Guillemenot and Enzo Crivelli goals that evening negate Christopher Nkunku’s first-half penalty, but Chelsea overcomes Servette to secure a spot in the Europa Conference League draw on Friday.
Chelsea played its 299th match in the European football league. With the exception of this, the newest competition, they have won everything there is to win on the continent.
They’ll be hoping that this is the beginning of their finishing the set once more. Within fifteen minutes, they increased their lead in Switzerland when Mykhailo Mudryk was pulled down inside the box by Keigo Tsunemoto, setting up Christopher Nkunku for a penalty kick.
This was Chelsea’s first trip to Servette since the post-World War II era. Chelsea was controlling the game, but Jeremy Guillemenot, a former member of Barcelona’s academy, grabbed Dereck Kutesa’s ball and steered his effort past Filip Jorgensen and into the far corner in minute thirty-two, giving the hosts a chance to tie the score.
After a brilliant start to the season, Noni Madueke earned a call-up to the England national team. When Marc Guiu put him through for his fifth goal in three games, he should have scored, but Joel Mall denied him.
With another knifing run from left to right, Jorgensen denied Kutesa’s shot, and the player continued to cause trouble.
At first, there were no significant incidents throughout the second half, as Chelsea managed the proceedings. Tyrique George, who is eighteen years old, had a memorable occasion when he made his professional debut by coming off the bench.
However, that all changed in an instant as two Servette replacements combined, with Enzo Crivelli heading in a cross from Miroslav Stevanovic after Benoit Badiashile and Jorgensen both lost their footing on minute 72.
The last fifteen minutes were tense, but they could have been much more peaceful had Cole Palmer not hit the crossbar with his shot after Nkunku found him with a pass.
There was still time for one last attempt at a Servette. Timothe Cognat was set up by Julian von Moos, but there was not enough bend in his shot, thus Gael Ondoua won the ball in front of Palmer.
Chelsea had the chance to end the tie, but it didn’t end up being expensive. While Friday may prove to be another hectic day at the team, Enzo Maresca’s efforts to sell several first-team players are still ongoing. However, securing a berth in the Europa Conference League draw marks the first significant accomplishment of his tenure.
Manager of Chelsea Enzo Maresca Stated:
“I believe that in the first 30 minutes, we scored a goal and had three or four more opportunities. If we had scored, the game would have over because the score would have been 2-0. After that, we gave up a goal, so it’s normal to feel a little hurt.
“As I mentioned to you yesterday, they are tricky games, so I was quite concerned about this one. It’s most likely the game of the season for them. The pitch is not ideal for us, the weather is 30 degrees, and I was rather concerned about how the game would go.
“The team played with a lot of aggression both on and off the ball. We had four or five good opportunities in the first half, and the game is over if we score. Then comes football; when they score, it gives them a boost. However, we are glad because, in the end, we deserved it.
We’re going to try to give it our all in this tournament. I believe that the squad demonstrated their presence tonight once more in the way we got going. After that, we give up the game; they had a few opportunities, and we started to lose some confidence.
“But altogether, even in the second half, I’m starting to think that there were three one-on-one situations with the goalie. Ultimately, the game is over if we can take the chances and score the second goal, particularly in the first half when we lead 1-0.
“There is still one competition. We’re going to do our hardest in the Conference League, Premier League, FA Cup, and Carabao Cup competitions, and we’ll see where we end up.”
