Chelsea v Real Betis LIVE: Result and reaction as Blues fight back to triumph in Conference League final
Chelsea 4-1 Real Betis: Cole Palmer inspired a Blues comeback as they overturned a 1-0 half-time deficit to claim Conference League glory in Wroclaw
Chelsea secured their first silverware under Enzo Maresca and a clean sweep of European trophies as they thrashed Real Betis 4-1 in the Conference League final.
Enzo Maresca’s men were sluggish and looked out of ideas for much of the first half, and were blown away early on by the brilliant pairing of Isco and Abde Ezzalzouli, with the Moroccan latching onto a superb pass by Isco to slot home the opener in the ninth minute.
But Betis did not build on their lead and Maresca made some inspired substitutions, bringing on club captain Reece James at the restart to kick-start a Chelsea turnaround.
Cole Palmer was back to his brilliant best, assisting Enzo Fernandez and Nicolas Jackson inside five minutes in the second half to put the Blues in front, and they blew Manuel Pellegrini’s side away as the Spaniards faded.
Two more substitutes combined as Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall squared to Manchester United loanee Jadon Sancho, who curled a lovely finish past Betis keeper Adrian, before Fernandez teed up Caicedo in the final minute of normal time for Chelsea’s fourth. It was a performance of two halves for Chelsea but the second half was all that mattered as they sealed the title.
Relive all the Conference League final action with our live blog below:
How a Cole Palmer masterclass turned Chelsea’s Conference League nightmare into glory
Chelsea’s season ended in glory in Wroclaw as they came from behind to beat Real Betis 4-1 in the Conference League final and deliver the first trophy of the Clearlake Capital ownership era.
Everything for Enzo Maresca’s team hinged around a five-minute spell midway through the second half.
In that window Cole Palmer turned a match the LaLiga side had enjoyed by far the better of into a Chelsea procession, setting up headers first for Enzo Fernandez then for Nicolas Jackson just as the occasion looked to have overwhelmed this young Blues team.
How a Cole Palmer masterclass turned Chelsea’s Conference League nightmare into glory
Failure to 'give fans this title... hurts the most' - Pellegrini
Maresca’s opposite number Manuel Pellegrini has this to say.
“What happened in the second half? We played a great first half; we scored a goal, we had a couple more clear chances, but in the second half we were affected by injuries.
“The fans have been incredible, during the game and even after. This is what hurts us most: not being able to give them this title.
“We have qualified for Europe next season but I have to say injuries today really caused us problems. Against a team as powerful as Chelsea, that's always going to hurt you.
“How do the players feel? They are devastated. We couldn't maintain what we did in the first half.”
'The fans deserve it' - Maresca
“I'm very proud, and very happy,” Maresca adds. “I know the fans deserve it, they've waited for a few years for good moments. The club has invested a lot of money so they've been waiting too.
“Hopefully, this can be a starting point and we can begin to create something important.
“The target for next season? We're going to try again. We'll enjoy it for a week or so, and then start looking ahead.”
This ends a lengthy trophy drought for Chelsea and is a first of the Boehly-Clearlake era.
Sancho's future to be discussed - Maresca
Maresca is asked about the future of goalscorer Jadon Sancho, but won’t be drawn on it.
“From now on is when we sit down with the club and decide about next year.
“Jadon Sancho, if we finished fourth, it's because of Jadon, if we won tonight it's because of Jadon.
“It's also because of Robert Sanchez - during the season, everyone is up and down a little bit, that's part of the game.”
'Top player' Gusto at fault for Betis opener - Maresca
Maresca has a word on Malo Gusto, who was taken off at half-time for Reece James after a night to forget.
“Malo Gusto is one of my favourite players but the goal we conceded was from his pass,” the manager says.
“They are young players, after a mistake it doesn't matter and you have to continue. But after the mistake, he was out of the game.
“He knows that, and he's a top player.”
'We approached the game in the wrong way' - Maresca
Maresca continues: “I am very happy. I was a little bit frustrated in the first half because I think we approached the game in the wrong way. Also I expected a little bit, the happiness was a bit too much after Nottingham Forest because you go all season waiting and waiting [to achieve Champions League]. So we struggled a bit first half, second half we were much better and now we are very happy.
“The message after Nottingham Forest was, 'Guys if we want to be an important team then what we have done is done and we have to win the final.' But it's the happiness, the tiredness because we had 48 hours less than them, they played on Friday for nothing, we played on Sunday for a big, big target. So I expected it a little bit.
“In the second half we played much better.”
'I would always start' James - Maresca
The Chelsea boss is dragged away from the celebrations to be interviewed on TNT Sports.
Asked why he didn’t start captain Reece James, he says, “I promise you, I would always start Reece but I'm trying to protect him. He's played more games this season than in the last two.
“He's happy, he's a top player. He's like Cole Palmer - but we need to manage him.
“When I brought him on, he said not to worry and that we'd win the game."
He adds that “we are going to try again” next season - only two tiers up, in the Champions League.
Chelsea are the 2025 Conference League champions
Sancho's future to be discussed - Maresca
Maresca is asked about the future of goalscorer Jadon Sancho, but won’t be drawn on it.
“From now on is when we sit down with the club and decide about next year.
“Jadon Sancho, if we finished fourth, it's because of Jadon, if we won tonight it's because of Jadon.
“It's also because of Robert Sanchez - during the season, everyone is up and down a little bit, that's part of the game.”
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