Chelsea put themselves firmly in control of their UEFA Conference League quarter-final tie with a convincing 3-0 victory over Legia Warsaw on Thursday night.
Enzo Maresca’s men now head into the second leg at Stamford Bridge next week in a strong position to seal their place in the semi-finals, thanks to a vastly improved second-half display at the Marshall Józef Piłsudski’s Municipal Stadium.
After a goalless and largely uneventful first half, the visitors came to life after the break. Tyrique George broke the deadlock with his first senior goal for Chelsea, and Noni Madueke netted twice, either side of a missed Christopher Nkunku penalty — to give the Blues a commanding lead to take back to London.
The opening 45 minutes were high on atmosphere but short on action. The home fans lit up the night with tifos and pyrotechnics, but neither side could ignite the match on the pitch.
Chelsea’s best opportunity came on 34 minutes when Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall’s curling left-footer was kept out by Legia goalkeeper Kacper Tobiasz, after a blocked Cole Palmer effort fell into his path.
Legia looked dangerous in the early stages, winning a flurry of corners, but they failed to truly test Chelsea’s defence.
Maresca responded at half-time by introducing Levi Colwill and Noni Madueke in place of Tosin Adarabioyo and Palmer, searching for greater attacking impetus.
It paid off almost instantly. Just four minutes into the second half, Reece James saw his shot from the edge of the box parried by Tobiasz, and George was quickest to react, slotting home the rebound.
Chelsea wasted little time in doubling their lead. In the 57th minute, Jadon Sancho — another bright spark, teed up Madueke, who confidently sent the keeper the wrong way to reward Maresca’s tactical switch.
As Chelsea grew in confidence, Sancho himself nearly added to the tally, drawing a sharp save from Tobiasz. Dewsbury-Hall also went close with a well-hit volley that whistled just over the bar.
The Blues earned a penalty in the 73rd minute, but Nkunku’s spot-kick was saved — another frustrating moment in what’s been a stop-start return from injury.
However, Chelsea made up for it almost immediately. Within 25 seconds, Sancho created yet another goal, setting up Madueke for a simple close-range finish to make it 3-0.
Maresca made further changes late on, introducing academy prospects Mathis Amougou and Shim Mheuka for the final stretch, replacing Malo Gusto and George.
The visitors professionally managed the closing stages to preserve their clean sheet and see out an important victory on the road.
Though Chelsea were favourites heading into the fixture, this result was a timely boost for a side that’s building momentum.
It extends their unbeaten run to three matches across all competitions, and with games coming thick and fast, they’ll need to keep that form going if they’re to push for a top-four finish and European silverware.
