Chelsea defeats Djurgården 1-0, advances to UECL final against Real Betis

Chelsea easily reached the final stage.

On the 9th (Korean time), Chelsea defeated Djurgården IF (Sweden) 1-0 in the second leg of the semifinals of the 2024-2025 UEFA Europa Conference League (UECL) held at Stamford Bridge in London, England.

With this, Chelsea advanced to the final, defeating Djurgården with a total score of 5-1. The final opponent is Real Betis (Spain). Betis, in the second leg held at the same time, defeating Fiorentina (Italy) after a long extra time thanks to Anthony's goal and assist, will compete at the final stage of a European competition for the first time in the club's history.

Chelsea, who won the first leg away 4-1, conducted a major rotation for this match. With a three-goal lead and playing at home, it was a choice to rest key players for the Premier League schedule. Currently, Chelsea (63 points) is in fifth place in the league, competing fiercely for UEFA Champions League (UCL) qualification. The gap from second-place Arsenal (67 points) to seventh-place Aston Villa (60 points) is very tight.

Chelsea, led by coach Enzo Maresca, started with a 4-2-3-1 formation. Tyrique George, Jadon Sancho, Reggie Walsh, Kieran Dewsbury-Hall, Marc Cucurella, Reece James, Joshi Acheampong, Benoît Badiashile, Tosin Adarabioyo, Malo Gusto, and Filip Jørgensen were the starters. George and Acheampong are 2006-born promising players, while Walsh is a promising player born in 2008.

Nevertheless, Chelsea showcased an overwhelming difference in strength against Djurgården. They aggressively pressed from the beginning, seeking a goal. Although a goal was necessary for Djurgården, they could hardly exert their strength.

Chelsea finally scored the opening goal. In the 38th minute of the first half, Dewsbury-Hall evaded a defender with a smooth dribble and found the net with an accurate left-footed shot. Chelsea continued to knock on Djurgården's goal afterward but ended the first half with a score of 1-0 without an additional goal.

There was no reversal in the second half either. Chelsea focused on managing their stamina by bringing in youth players such as 2007-born duo Sim Meuka and Genesis Antwi. The match concluded with Chelsea's victory without conceding a goal.

Now Chelsea is set to clash with Betis in the final. Whichever team wins will mark the first victory in club history, creating a new milestone. In particular, Chelsea would become the first club to dominate all three European competitions organized by UEFA: the UEFA Champions League (UCL), the UEFA Europa League (UEL), and the UEFA Europa Conference League (UECL). Chelsea has previously won the UCL in the 2011-2012 and 2020-2021 seasons and the UEL in the 2012-2013 and 2018-2019 seasons.

Meanwhile, with Chelsea reaching the UECL final, a total of three teams from the Premier League have made it to the UEFA-organized club competition finals. On the same day, Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester United secured their spots in the UEL final, leading to an internal rivalry.

However, there are no Premier League teams in the UCL final, the top-tier competition known as 'the battle of the stars.' The last surviving team, Arsenal, was eliminated by Paris Saint-Germain (France) in the semifinals. The UCL final will feature Paris Saint-Germain against Inter Milan (Italy).

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