Chelsea on Thursday rested their regular starters and still comfortably advanced to the UEFA Conference League final by beating Djurgarden 1-0 in the second leg of their semi-final.
The Premier League club advanced 5-1 on aggregate to set up a May 28 title match in Wroclaw, Poland, against Real Betis Balompie, who prevailed in extra-time for a 4-3 aggregate win over ACF Fiorentina to reach their first European final.
At Stamford Bridge, midfielder Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall collected a through pass from Tyrique George before scoring the winner with a low left-footed shot in the 38th minute.
Photo: AP
“Amazing to be in the final,” Dewsbury-Hall told TNT Sports. “We set our sights at the start of the season to get as far as we can in this tournament and it has been a long couple of months, but one more game to go and hopefully we can lift that trophy.”
Chelsea remain on course to become the first club to win all major European competitions. The Blues have claimed the UEFA Champions League (2012, 2021), the Europa League (2013, 2019), the UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup (1971, 1998) and the UEFA Super Cup (1998, 2021).
Photo: EPA-EFE
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