Chelsea v Copenhagen Conference League Tips: Pragmatic Blues to get job done | OneFootball

Maresca has been criticised by Chelsea fan-base

Ste Tudor is backing the hosts to extend on their goal advantage this Thursday and progress to the quarter finals. But expect a minor hiccup along the way.

Chelsea went a sizable way to securing a quarter-final spot by defeating Copenhagen 2-1 in the Danish capital last week. Any suggestion, however, that their work is done will be given shirt shrift by Enzo Maresca and rightly so. That's because in their play-off to reach this tie, the Danes similarly lost by a single-goal margin at home in the first leg. They then stunned Heidenheim with a strong second-half showing in Germany, the Lions progressing after extra-time.

Can a similar fate befall the Blues this Thursday? All is not right at Stamford Bridge at present for sure but they come into this on the back of consecutive home wins in the Premier League, both to nil.

Furthermore, given the circumstances, there will be no resting of key players on this occasion, though that's not saying a huge deal given the injury problems they have up front.

Let's start with the opposition though, to first gauge whether they have the chops to subvert their 7/1 odds.

Copenhagen fancied to score

In short, they do, although there is a caveat attached.

That caveat concerns the fitness of Mohamed Elyounoussi, the former Southampton winger who has 13 goal involvements in Superliga this term.

Unavailable for the first leg due to a muscle complaint, Elyounoussi came off the bench at the weekend and should feature. This in turn will allow Viktor Claesson to switch back to his favoured centre-forward role and ominously for Chelsea, the 33-year-old notched on Sunday, ending a 14-game goal drought.

Across the competition, Copenhagen have only failed to score twice in 15 fixtures, and though that includes some qualifying rounds against minnows it does highlight their consistency as an attacking threat. They are, however, anything but prolific, averaging just 1.6 goals per 90. Again, this includes a thrashing of a minnow.

The Lions' strength lies in its defence, their five-man rearguard limiting Chelsea to just five attempts on goal last week. Should Jacob Neestrup's men stay in the game who's to say a chance doesn't fall the way of Elyounoussi or Claesson?Both teams to score tempts at 20/23 and it's pertinent that 79% of their goals in this tournament have been converted after the break.

Palmer to end barren spell twice-over at 5/1

With Jackson, Madueke, and Guiu all out, Maresca threw a curveball for the first leg, giving 17-year-old Shumaira Mheuka his first professional start. In hindsight, you can see the logic. Just about.

Alas the teen was largely ineffective and he won't get a look-in this time, this tie now being decisive.

Up front Neto will start, with Nkunku to his left. The third element of Chelsea's attack is a coin-flip between Jadon Sancho and Tyrique George though the former did his cause no harm with a very decent outing versus Leicester (three key passes and five duels won).

It is though the player deployed just behind this trio that is of main interest, as Cole Palmer's goal involvement drought continues to accrue column inches.

It's now nine games and counting since Chelsea's leading goal-scorer converted or assisted, in that time racking up 4.2 shots per 90 and 5.2 touches per 90 in the opposition box.

Against Leicester he even missed a spot-kick, ending his perfect record from 12 yards.

It all feels like a dam ready to burst, especially as his shot-tally has actually gone up - from 3.6 per 90 - since his barren period.

Palmer is backed here to put things right, as we go against the general consensus that places his confidence on the floor. That seriously under-estimates the 22-year-old's ice-cold veins and mindset.

Pragmatic Blues

Chelsea's conservative approach has angered the Stamford Bridge faithful in recent months with chants demanding for the more adventurous fare witnessed earlier in the campaign.

Yet Maresca is right to point out that his team's more cautious build-up in possession is still paying dividends in chances created, all while minimising the individual errors and defensive sloppiness that has previously proven costly.

The Blues' 1-0 victory over Leicester at the weekend is a perfect case in point, it being a scrappy contest that saw an opponent that has hemorrhaged multiple goals on a weekly basis eventually breached by a full-back from range. That amounts to a frustrating afternoon but Chelsea still accrued 20 shots, with Mads Hermansen called upon to make seven saves.

It may not be pretty but Maresca's new way is certainly pragmatic, designed to get results. It is also worth noting that a supposedly struggling side have only failed to score once in 12 outings in 2025.

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