Preview: Chelsea rack up the air miles with long trip to Qarabag
Chelsea will make the 2979-mile journey from London to Azerbaijani capital Baku to face Qarabağ in the Champions League on Wednesday, hoping to win their third consecutive game in Europe’s elite club competition.
By Alex Roberts
A 5-1 win over a truly awful Ajax side in their previous fixture saw Chelsea become the first side in the competition’s history to have three teenagers score in the same game, morale is high among Enzo Maresca’s kids.
Qarabağ aren’t far off them in the league phase, sitting three places off them in 13th with two wins, coming against Benfica and FC København, a 3-1 defeat to Athletic Club last time out will leave a nasty taste in their mouths.
Qarabağ’s biggest threat
Qurban Qurbanov’s side aren’t the Champions League whipping boys many had expected them to be, they have some genuinely talented players that can do serious damage to Europe’s biggest teams, most notably Leandro Andrade.
Playing as a number ten or a right winger, the Cape Verdean in their best performer in the competition so far, scoring two goals in his three games, overperforming his xG by an impressive 1.42.
Andrade was the one good thing that came out of the 3-1 defeat to Athletic Club in the previous round of fixtures, giving his side the lead in the opening minute. Unfortunately for him, his teammates couldn’t match his level of performance.
Tyrique George’s redemption arc
The 19-year-old looked like he was on the way out in the summer when Fulham sent in a £22 million offer as he searched for more consistent first-team football, but it didn’t happen, and George has gotten back to work at Chelsea.
Enzo Maresca has used him to fill in the gap left by an injured Liam Delap at times, but George’s best position remains out on the left. He came off the bench to score Chelsea’s fifth and final goal in the win over Ajax.
George popped up with a goal in Chelsea’s ridiculous 4-3 League Cup win over Wolves too. Maresca will likely rest several of his side’s big names for this one, especially with a Premier League clash with Wolves (again) on Saturday, so this is the perfect opportunity for young George to impress yet again.
Team news
Levi Colwill has been ruled out for the remainder of the season and will play no part for Chelsea on Wednesday barring a genuine miracle. Fellow defender Benoît Badiashile also remains sidelined with a muscle injury.
Talismanic playmaker Cole Palmer has not featured since September 20 as he continues his recovery from a groin issue, with the England international expected to remain out for a few more weeks. Dário Essugo is also still out.
As for Qarabağ, Jonathan Montiel, who missed the recent defeat to Bilbao, made his return over the weekend, though he is unlikely to be named in the starting lineup for this match.
Prediction
The travel will certainly take a lot out of Chelsea, so we’re not expecting many goals. 2-0 to the Premier League side, but it won’t be pretty.
(Cover image from IMAGO)
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