Chelsea earned their first win under new coach Enzo Maresca with a 2-0 triumph over Servette in the first leg of their Conference League play-off round on Thursday.
The home side struggled to break down their opponents in the first half at Stamford Bridge until Christopher Nkunku converted a penalty in the 50th minute, marking his fourth goal for the club.
Marc Guiu missed an open goal shortly after, but Noni Madueke increased Chelsea’s chances of reaching the group stage by scoring from an Enzo Fernandez pass.
Servette nearly pulled one back late in the match when Tiemoko Ouattara’s deflected shot hit the crossbar.
This victory was a much-needed boost for Chelsea after their 2-0 defeat to Manchester City in Maresca’s debut match last weekend.
The Blues are back in European competition after finishing sixth in the Premier League last season under Mauricio Pochettino.
“We are learning how to manage the game,” said Maresca, who guided Leicester to promotion to the Premier League last season.
“It was important to win the game with nine changes. There were many positive aspects.”
However, there was a moment of concern for Chelsea when key player Cole Palmer appeared to be in discomfort, holding the back of his leg as he headed down the tunnel after coming on as a second-half substitute.
“Cole felt something, but he seemed fine. Hopefully, it’s nothing serious, and he’ll be available for Sunday’s game against Wolves,” Maresca commented.
Meanwhile, Greek side Panathinaikos suffered a 2-1 loss to 10-man Lens in their first leg, with Wesley Said scoring the decisive goal for the Ligue 1 team.
Former Spain and Manchester United goalkeeper David de Gea had a challenging debut as Fiorentina were held to a 3-3 draw at home by Hungary’s Puskas Akademia.
Irish club St Patrick’s kept their dream of qualifying for the group stage of a European competition alive, securing a 0-0 draw with Istanbul Basaksehir.
In the Europa League play-offs, Dutch giants Ajax cruised to a 4-1 victory over Jagiellonia in Poland, with English forward Chuba Akpom netting a hat-trick.
Besiktas squandered a 3-1 lead to end up drawing 3-3 with Lugano in Switzerland, while Scottish side Hearts fell 1-0 to Viktoria Plzen.
AFP
