A much-changed Chelsea side, featuring 11 new faces, comfortably secured a win over Gent in their opening Conference League match.
Defender Renato Veiga opened the scoring in the 12th minute with a header from Mykhailo Mudryk’s cross.
Just 49 seconds into the second half, winger Pedro Neto doubled Chelsea’s lead with a powerful near-post strike after connecting with a long ball from Axel Disasi.
Gent briefly looked to be back in the match when defender Tsuyoshi Watanabe’s 50th-minute header was allowed to stand following a VAR check for offside.
However, the Belgian side’s hopes were quickly dashed. Thirteen minutes later, forward Christopher Nkunku pounced on a loose ball to score his seventh goal of the season with a low shot that slipped past goalkeeper Davy Roef.
Midfielder Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, who had missed a good chance earlier in the game, made amends by slotting in a finish after Watanabe failed to clear.
Omri Gandelman added a consolation for Gent following some poor defending on Chelsea’s left side.
The performance highlighted Chelsea’s impressive squad depth—fielding an entirely different starting XI from the team that defeated Brighton 4-2 in the Premier League last weekend.
It also showcased the disparity in resources among the teams competing in Europe’s third-tier competition.
This season, the Conference League has introduced a new 36-team league phase, with Chelsea aiming to finish in the top eight to automatically qualify for the knockout rounds.
Ultimately, Chelsea’s goal is to become the first club to win the Conference League, adding to their previous Europa League and Champions League triumphs.
Maresca’s squad shows its depth
While Chelsea and head coach Enzo Maresca can take pride in the fact that their second XI performed like a polished Premier League side, the match itself was largely one-sided.
Mudryk, Neto, Dewsbury-Hall, Nkunku, and Tosin Adarabioyo were among the stars brought in from Chelsea’s deep 29-man squad, as seen in the team photo just two weeks ago.
Notably, key players like Cole Palmer, Romeo Lavia, and Wesley Fofana were rested for this competition, while Ben Chilwell remains out of favor. Additionally, Maresca opted to give Nicolas Jackson and Jadon Sancho the night off, which could have offered Gent some hope.
Despite that, Gent managed to score only twice, through Watanabe and Gandelman, both goals coming against the run of play. Englishman Archie Brown and Andri Gudjohnsen, son of former Chelsea forward Eidur Gudjohnsen, also had chances.
Chelsea, however, could have added more to their tally, with their £400 million team comfortably outclassing Gent, whose record signing, Momodou Sonko, a £6 million purchase, remained on the bench.
A report from the Transferroom website even suggested that Chelsea’s squad, valued at £1.1 billion, is worth as much as the combined value of all the other 35 teams in the Conference League.
With such financial dominance, Chelsea are the clear favorites to win the competition this season. While that squad valuation is nothing for the Blues to be ashamed of, it does underscore how the landscape of European football is shifting, with the English Premier League increasingly dominant, particularly when facing teams from outside Europe’s top five leagues.
Player of the Match: Renato Veiga.