Chelsea v Djurgarden Conference League Tips: Big 7/1 Sancho shout as Blues finish job | OneFootball

Sancho can complete the job early at the Bridge

Ste Tudor is backing Chelsea to see out a job mostly completed in Sweden, but still finds four bets to be had as Marcesca turns to the kids.

Chelsea v DjurgardenThursday May 8 20:00Live on TNT Sports

Chelsea were expected to comfortably navigate Djurgarden's dodgy artificial pitch last week but even so, the comprehensive scoreline surprised. Indeed they were backed on these very pages to win out by a couple of goals margin, happy enough to take daylight back to London.

In the event, the Swedes froze on their big night and by the time they thawed out the visitors were four goals to the good. A consolation goal scored halfway through the second half was - and is - all-but-redundant.

With such a huge mountain to climb at the Bridge it means the Iron Stoves are a huge 200/1 to advance to the Conference League final but even if there's no jeopardy as to who takes on Real Betis or Fiorentina in Wroclaw in three weeks' time there are plenty of uncertainties ahead of this second leg 'dead rubber'. Namely, who Enzo Maresca picks to finish the job.

Sancho to open proceedings again

Nearly a month on and Maresca's team selection for Chelsea's second leg against Legia Warsaw still perplexes.

As with their semi-final this week, the Blues took a three-goal lead to the Bridge in the quarters and while everybody was expecting the Italian to deploy the kids he instead picked one of his strongest sides in the tournament to date. There will be no repeat of that here, not with Newcastle lying in wait on Sunday and a top five spot to attain.

We can expect Maresca's Conference League regulars to feature - they being Adarabioyo and Badiashile at the back, Dewsbury-Hall and Reece James in midfield and Sancho as part of the attacking three - but elsewhere it will be a team populated by potential. Tyrique George could very well be on the left with Shumaira Mheuka up front. Teenager Mathis Amougou in in line to make his full debut.Of these, it is Sancho who stands out, scorer of Chelsea's opener last week. The 25-year-old is 8/11 to score or assist on Thursday and if this is on the slender side more generous odds concern him breaking the deadlock. This he has done on five occasions in 2024/25.

Early advantage for hosts

Djurgarden may have taken on 16 attempts in Stockholm, forcing Jorgensen into making four saves, with Tokmac Nguen racking up three shots on target, but frankly the stats flatter the Swedish underdogs whose finishing was too often rushed and erratic.

This regrettably has been a pattern of their season to date, with only three goals converted in their opening six Allsvenskan fixtures contributing to them struggling in mid-table. A meagre eight points accrued and a minus goal difference is testament to their woes.

Chelsea to win to nil therefore at 4/6 is a handy addition to any bet builder but instead we're focusing on the hosts' propensity to make their mark early. 27.5% of the Blues' goal-haul in this competition have been scored inside 25 minutes.

Doubling down on SOT

In the first-leg preview Maresca's men were tipped to have 8 or more SOT. Annoyingly, they finished the evening on seven. It seemed like a bet too good to pass up because a recent spike in SOT from the Blues was too glaring to ignore, a trend that has continued since.

Last Sunday, Chelsea racked up seven SOT against a Liverpool side that had conceded just 2.6 per 90 in their previous five outings. In their last eight contests, they have troubled the oppo keeper eight times per 90 on average.

With home advantage let's take a second bite at the cherry.

Fouling duo offers up 13/10 bet

Ravaged by injuries and absences, Djurgarden aren't anticipated to offer up much in the capital but Nguen is a threat while Tobias Fjeld Gulliksen impressed as a number 10, spraying three key passes.

They will need to be shackled regardless of the overall disparity in quality.This brings us to Benoit Badiashile whose no-nonsense defending does tend to stray into grey areas. The centre-back has fouled once per 90 across his 10 Conference League appearances.

Kieran Dewsbury-Hall meanwhile committed five fouls in five earlier in the tournament before cleaning up his act. He fouled once last week however as well as once in the home leg vs Legia.

Chelsea are fancied to win this one without overly having to exert themselves. On the occasions they have to though, they have the players who won't think twice about taking man and ball.

Now read Paul Higham's Premier League Player Statsheet ahead of this weekend's action

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