Legia Warsaw 0-3 Chelsea: Match report & 4 talking points as Blues open healthy aggregate lead

Chelsea have taken a big stride towards the Conference League semi-finals after Thursday night's 3-0 win over Legia Warsaw in the last eight first leg.

Tyrique George’s first senior goal eventually turned the tie in Chelsea's favour after a sluggish start to the game, with Noni Madueke scoring either side of a missed penalty from Christopher Nkunku.

It means Chelsea will head back to Stamford Bridge for the second leg next week with a handsome aggregate lead, on top of their home advantage.

How the game unfolded

After a bright start from the hosts, playing their first European quarter-final since 1996, Chelsea began to dictate possession and control the ball – not that chances were free-flowing.

A plethora of shots, plenty of which were taken outside the penalty area, were either blocked or flew off target. The final ball from a heavily rotated side was also lacking when it mattered most.

A Legia breakaway midway through the first half saw Ryoya Morishiti miss the target, before Chelsea finally registered a shot on target coming up for the half hour mark. Tosin Adarabioyo's header was comfortably saved by Kacper Tobiasz, though.

Chelsea began to stir a little more after that, and Tobiasz made a more challenging save – albeit still at a nice height to parry – when Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall curled an effort goalward. A close-range block soon then denied Christopher Nkunku a potential opener.

After a drab first half, Enzo Maresca's half-time message and changes finally kicked Chelsea into gear. There was suddenly more about them following the restart and a willingness to attack with more purpose paid off when Reece James struck a low shot from the edge of the box. It was parried by Tobiasz, with George quickest to react as he turned the rebound into the net.

Madueke had generally impressed since emerging at the break and doubled the advantage shortly before the hour mark. Tobiasz was guilty of a poor clearance that was picked off in Legia's half, with Jadon Sancho finding Madueke in space in middle of the box, followed by a composed finish.

Tobiasz slightly redeemed himself with a good but routine save to deny Sancho, before Dewsbury-Hall had another effort that narrowly missed after a well-timed volley.

Nkunku had the chance to extend the lead from the penalty spot after VAR intervened and flagged a foul on Dewsbury-Hall missed in real time. Tobiasz dived to his right to push the kick away, but Chelsea ended up recycling the ball and scoring through Madueke around 30 seconds later. Sancho's low cross into the box was a tap-in for the blue No.11.

Player ratings

Check out the player ratings from Legia Warsaw vs Chelsea.

Rotation strikes

Winning a European trophy would be nice, but ultimately there is more at stake for Chelsea by focusing on securing a top five Premier League finish in the remainder of the season – because it would mean Champions League qualification, trumping a Europa League place.

So even in the latter stages of this competition, Enzo Maresca is opting for mass rotation in order to keep the majority of his starters fresh for the weekend.

Just three players who began the crunch 1-0 win over Tottenham Hotspur earlier this month started here, but it’s highly likely that Enzo Fernandez, Moises Caicedo, Marc Cucurella, Levi Colwill and others will be restored to the XI when the Blues face Ipswich Town on Sunday.

Substitutes changed the game

Chelsea weren't giving Enzo Maresca what he wanted in the opening 45 minutes, so Levi Colwill and Noni Madueke were introduced at the break. Cole Palmer, a player very much out of form after a blistering first 18 months at the club, was the man sacrificed for the latter.

Tyrique George shifted into Palmer's role after beginning the match out wide and got the goal that put Chelsea ahead. Then, Madueke netted the second and third, highlighting just how important he can be when fully fit, after missing several weeks in February and March through injury.

Confidence boost for Sancho

Jadon Sancho came away with two assists and probably needed that timely boost in a disappointing season that was supposed to be his rebirth.

Sancho passes created both of Madueke's goals. But how he would love to score one himself after failing to find the net in four months. The player himself has admitted that his lack of a return in that respect has been frustrating and Maresca also said recently those numbers alone aren’t really good enough, challenging the winger to shoot more often.

Ultimately, he’s not really doing that. It was just the one attempt from Sancho. So while he did most other things very well, including creating the most chances of any player, putting himself into the right positions to score and being willing to take shots on still needs work.

Non-league to European knockouts

Legia Warsaw midfielder Maxi Oyedele has had a whirlwind couple of years. The Salford-born talent was in Manchester United’s academy for a decade but left the club without making a senior appearance in 2024. In the second half of 2022/23, he played 12 games on loan at National League club Altrincham, followed by four games for Forest Green Rovers in League Two last season.

But Oyedele was given the opportunity to join Legia last summer – his mother is Polish and he was already a youth international for the country. This was only his tenth start for the club, coming in one of their biggest games in recent memory. He made his senior Poland debut in October.

READ THE LATEST NEWS, TRANSFER RUMOURS AND MATCH REACTION