FOOTBALL – Chelsea sparked into life in the second half as they came from behind to claim the Conference League trophy with a 4-1 victory over Real Betis last night, their revival inspired by the creativity of Cole Palmer at the Wroclaw Stadium.
Goals from Enzo Fernandez and Nicolas Jackson – both set up by the excellent Palmer – plus late strikes from Jadon Sancho and Moises Caicedo secured the silverware after Betis went in 1-0 up at halftime thanks to an early Abde Ezzalzouli strike.
The 23-year-old Palmer’s two assists in five minutes during the second half turned the match around for Premier League club Chelsea and his efforts saw him named Player of the Match.
The victory means Chelsea are the first team to have won all three European competitions, having lifted the Champions League twice along with two Europa League trophies in their history.
Betis appeared nervous in the opening minutes but eventually went in front when Isco found the unmarked Ezzalzouli at the edge of the box in the ninth minute, giving him plenty of time to break the deadlock with a powerful low shot.
Chelsea seized control of the second half, dominating the midfield and orchestrating a series of attacks that left Betis scrambling to hold onto their narrow lead.
The pressure bore fruit in the 65th minute when Fernandez slipped between two defenders to head home a cross from Palmer for the equaliser and ignite a roar from the Chelsea fans.
Five minutes later, the match had completely turned around when Palmer cleverly wriggled past his marker near the byline to again deliver a cross that enabled Jackson to bundle the ball into the net off his chest and put Chelsea ahead.
Substitute Sancho made it 3-1 when he cut inside and curled a delightful shot into the far corner that gave goalkeeper Adrian no chance. Moises Caicedo then added the fourth to seal the London club’s seventh major European trophy.
“It’s a great feeling. As the game went on we grew into it and thankfully we scored four goals in the second half,” Chelsea captain Reece James told TNT. “Coming into this competition, it was something we had to win. Next season we go again in the Champions League.”
“I thought in the first half we were flat. The game didn’t go our way early on and it looked like it took a lot out of us. We needed a reaction in the second half and we got it,” James said.
“We knew the game was going to be tough; they made it tough for us in the first half. They got an early goal and it unsettled us.”
“To be the first club to have won everything possible, you can see the fans celebrating now and it shows how much it means to them,” Chelsea defender Levi Colwill said.
“We knew they (Betis) were going to be a good team, especially at the start with their fans pushing them on, but we knew it was going to die off.
“We just had to wait and pick our moments and that is what we did in the second half.”
“I think we took refuge in the scoreboard a bit. We sat too deep. They’re a team with a lot of quality, a lot of power,” said Isco, a five-times Champions League winner with Real Madrid who was outstanding in the opening 45 minutes but like the rest of his teammates looked jaded after the break.
“It’s a very heavy defeat after what we did in the first half. Football is unforgiving,” he said.
“We had a good first half where they barely had any chances. We had it close and we didn’t know how to take advantage of the score, something that has penalised us all season. In a European final, mistakes are very punishing.
“In the second half, they ran over us. It’s painful,” he added.
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