Well, it wasn’t pretty for Chelsea but they are through to the next round of the Conference League following a 1-0 win on the night and a 3-1 win on aggregate over FC Copenhagen.
The second leg was a game of two halves for the Blues, failing to record a single shot in the first half with their 53% possession, whereas, in the second half, the Blues held 54% of the ball, taking 11 shots, creating two big chances and generating 1.13 xG.
The first half saw Enzo Maresca’s side struggling to connect passes, often looking to force it through gaps that weren’t there, leading to regular turnovers and a back-and-forth nature to the first half.
But the introduction of Marc Cucurella and Cole Palmer at half-time changed the game, allowing Chelsea to take control of the game, score the goal and secure their fourth consecutive win in all competitions.
Cole Palmer’s performance vs Copenhagen
When Palmer came from the bench at half-time, Chelsea were able to move through the lines with far more ease, which was largely due to two key changes.
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The first of which was the ball speed when Cucurella and Palmer entered the pitch, slowing it down at the right times and allowing Chelsea to creep forwards, get into good counter-pressing positions and sustain pressure.
The second change was to move into a diamond-shaped build-up, leaving Moises Caicedo as the lone pivot, having Cucurella and Dewsbury-Hall as the outside central midfielders and Palmer as the central number ten, able to find space in either pocket.
The 23-year-old managed 39 touches in his 45-minute cameo, completing 24/26 of his passes, one of which being a key pass and taking four shots in the game, only one of which was on target.
One thing Palmer was not able to do, was re-open his goal-scoring account, something which seems to be coming incredibly hard to him at the moment.
Palmer will need to be at his very best for Sunday’s game against Arsenal if Chelsea want to make it five wins from their last five games, but he perhaps isn’t their most important player right now, with a another star continuing to show his value at the heart of Maresca’s system.
Chelsea’s new key man shines in Europe
The aforementioned Caicedo put in an excellent display against FC Copenhagen, being given a 7/10 match rating by The Standard and being praised for his crunching tackles in the middle of the park.
The 23-year-old was alongside Josh Acheampong for the first half, before playing as a lone defensive midfielder. In both roles, he flourished.
|
Caicedo vs Copenhagen |
|
|---|---|
|
Minutes |
79 |
|
Touches |
90 |
|
Accurate Passes |
68/73 (93%) |
|
Key Passes |
1 |
|
Long Balls |
3/4 |
|
Ground Duels Won |
8/9 |
|
Aerial Duels Won |
1/1 |
|
Interceptions |
1 |
|
Tackles |
4 |
|
Stats taken from Sofascore |
|
Incredibly, Caicedo won eight of his nine ground duels and won his only aerial duel in the match, giving him a 90% duel success rate. His ability to sweep things up, help Chelsea sustain pressure in the FC Copenhagen half, and halt any counter-attacking chances was key to the Blues’ second-half improvement.
The Ecuadorian has made 33 appearances this season, scoring one goal and providing two assists but it is the overall work of the midfielder that helps the entire team to function, winning duels, keeping things ticking and protecting the team in transition.
Whilst Palmer is clearly incredibly important, and finding his best form again would undoubtedly make a huge difference in Chelsea’s final stretch of the season, Caicedo feels like the most irreplaceable member of the team right now, with no one capable of doing his job to the same level.
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