Chelsea will play in the Conference League final on May 28 after they beat Djurgarden 1-0 at Stamford Bridge to round off a 5-1 aggregate victory.
It was a measure of this most unusual European season, in which Enzo Maresca’s side have coasted to the showpiece in the Polish city of Wroclaw using largely their second string and swatting aside teams from Armenia, Kazakhstan and the Republic of Ireland, that 10 players were left out from Sunday’s win over Liverpool and a full debut was handed to 16-year-old midfielder Reggie Walsh.
The academy graduate, who became Chelsea’s third youngest-ever player in Stockholm a week ago, is yet to sit his GCSEs but starting in Cole Palmer’s usual number 10 role he gave a schooling to Djurgarden with some lovely touches of the ball that hinted at what might lie ahead.
A European final awaits! ✊#CFC | #UECL pic.twitter.com/GRl6AqVJU0
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) May 8, 2025
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, a relative veteran at 26, got the only goal of the second leg, pinging the ball in off the post in the 38th minute after an incisive pass from Tyrique George, another academy graduate who looked every bit at home on the European stage.
Rafael Benitez, who delivered the Europa League in 2013 during his interim spell at Stamford Bridge, was in attendance. Maresca may shortly join him in delivering European silverware at the end of his first season in west London.
The Italian could afford the luxury of leaving out most of his first-choice XI, no doubt with Sunday’s crunch meeting with Newcastle at St. James’ Park in mind. Qualification for the Champions League remains his principal goal and given the roughly 3,000 empty seats at Stamford Bridge and that plenty had departed before the final whistle, that sentiment towards UEFA’s fledgling third competition seemed shared.
There were no chances of note until the 27th minute when Dewsbury-Hall’s shot from the edge of the box was saved after clever footwork from George.
The 18-year-old, already with two Chelsea goals to his name, then linked up via a deft one-two with Walsh down the left and struck low across goal, goalkeeper Jacob Rinne’s outstretched boot deflecting the ball clear of danger.
There was a new role for Marc Cucurella, starting the game in the centre of midfield and bringing measure and calibration to the team, a reminder once more of the pivotal role the once-maligned left-back now plays after a transformative season.
Indeed there has been much change and improvement at Chelsea in recent months, and shortly before the break Dewsbury-Hall gave a glimpse of how far he personally has come since his difficult early weeks after arriving from Leicester.
George played the pass beautifully into Dewsbury-Hall’s path, and after a few assured steps to move past the defence and make space the ball was dispatched coolly against the inside of the post and in.
George might have made it a perfect night in the second half but somehow contrived to miss spectacularly from almost on the goal line from Jadon Sancho’s cross.
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