Chelsea are in a strong position to reach the UEFA Conference League final after a confident 4-1 win away to Djurgårdens. The victory means the Blues have now lost just once in their last 15 European away games.
Despite a rotated line-up from Enzo Maresca, Chelsea controlled the first half. They took the lead when Jadon Sancho’s shot was deflected in by Marcus Danielsson for an own goal. Noni Madueke nearly made it 2-0 soon after but was denied by a top save from Jacob Rinne. He didn’t miss the second time, though, calmly finishing just before half-time. Djurgårdens had little to offer in the first half, although Chelsea keeper Filip Jörgensen did well to save a deflected effort from Tokmac Nguen.
The Swedish side came out stronger after the break and nearly scored through August Priske and Adam Ståhl, but Chelsea stepped things up again. With subs Nicolas Jackson and Cole Palmer on, it took just minutes for Jackson to score twice — first tapping in after a defensive mistake, then smashing a shot into the top corner.
Djurgårdens managed a late goal through Isak Alemayehu’s header, and they pushed for more, but the result was already settled. Chelsea stayed in control and will now take a healthy three-goal lead back to Stamford Bridge. It’ll be a big ask for the Swedish side to turn things around in the second leg.
