Chelsea, who won a sensational late comeback on Wednesday night, won the European Conference League champion after being hit by a 4-1 runaway against Real Betis.
However, when Abde Esalzouri finished smartly, it was Betis who ruled the big spell in the first half as he seemed to be well placed to win the opening nine minutes, as Los Verdibrancos seemed to be placed well to win the silverware maiden.
Enzo Maresca’s men set up a grandstand finish as skipper Reese James entered the electrical atmosphere at Locrow after a half-time break.
Watching both Enzo Fernandez and Nicholas Jackson return home following a moment of glow from Cole Palmer, Chelsea completed a five-minute turnaround.
Bruce then ramps up in the final 10 minutes, then goes home from outside the box instead of Jason Sancho and Moises Caseco Power in the second half.
Closing their Champions League returns and showing off their troubles by ending the 2024/25 campaign with the European Trophy, Chelsea will be the first team to win all five UEFA club tournaments.
On the night when Maresca’s side wrote another chapter of European success, we have seen the main story points from Vroclaw.
Maresca proves that Chelsea’s support is the correct call
While there may have been speculation last month that the Stamford Bridge hierarchy is assessing potential changes in the dugout, their decision to stick to Maresca has certainly been justified.
Closing the 2024/25 campaign with an essential 1-0 victory at Nottingham Forest, the Bruce headed for the lucrative Championsly Greetre and picked up important momentum and headed out to Poland.
Despite showing some expanded issues when opening 2025, Chelsea certainly hit Top Gear at a critical period of the season.
Malesca’s side, who was very dominated throughout the first half, deserves so many praise for the resolve he showed after returning from the interval, reflecting on his maiden campaign under the former Leicester City boss as a success.
Become the first European team to win all five of UEFA club tournaments, the Blues have won eight of their previous nine appearances, and you’ll be excited by what Maresca had planned for next year.
Palmers return to life in bright light
After completing a permanent switch from Manchester City, Palmer, who enjoyed a record-breaking Maiden campaign at Stamford Bridge last season, quickly solidified his spot as the new poster boy for SW6.
But while England International may have opened the New Year with a Premier League strike, it is safe to say that Chelsea’s offensive talisman has struggled to stoke his appetite over the past few months.
In fact, Palmer even had Wednesday’s showpiece to one goal in every competition since mid-January.
Nevertheless, Palmer, who was included in Thomas Tuschel’s latest England team for this summer’s matchup with Andorra and Senegal, stole all the headlines here.
Producing sublime assists and leading the Chelsea comeback in Poland, the 23-year-old is at the heart of all the positivity that the Blues went on Wednesday night, highlighting his position as a modern icon in West London.
Betis’ infamous collapse
Few people would have expected Manuel Pellegrini’s camp to perform such a bullish performance outside Andalusia after scoring after just nine mini-ouettes and dominated most of the first half.
But while Los Verdiblancos may have caused a string of headlines for the Premier League Giants before their break, the former Manchester City boss saw his team be unable to dramatically replicate similar levels in the second half.
Betis is extremely frustrated that he was torn apart under bright light as he failed to win his final four La Liga appearances when he signed off for the 2024/25 campaign without any significant momentum.
Manchester United lender Antony may have enjoyed an astonishing arrival after completing a January loan switch from Old Trafford, but Brazil International was unable to make any impact on Wednesday night.
Betis may already have booked tickets for the Europa League next season, but Pellegrini’s camp is heartbroken in Warsaw and it will take time to recover from the real collapse here.
Match Report
The Real Bettis: Adrian, Sabbery, Barthra, Nathan, R. Rodrig, Fornal, Cardoso, Antony, Isco, Isco, Vacamb
submarine: Celso, Perraud, J.
Chelsea: Jorgensen, Gusto, Charoba, Badiasir, Kukurera, Kaiseko, Fernandez, Neto, Palmer, Madueke, Jackson
submarine: James, Colwill, Giu, Sancho, Dewsbury Hall
the goal: Real Betis: Ezzalzouli (9′) – Chelsea: Fernandez (65′), Jackson (70′), Sancho (83′), Caicedo (90+1′)
Yellow Card: Real Betis: Antony, Perod – Chelsea: Palmer, Badia Seal, Sancho
Red card: n/a
Judgment: Ilfa’s fear