Chelsea booked their place in the final of the UEFA Europa Conference League with a comfortable 1-0 victory over Swedish side Djurgarden at Stamford Bridge on Thursday night, completing a 5-1 win on aggregate.
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall scored the only goal of the match in the 38th minute, ensuring the Blues progressed to their first European final since winning the Champions League in 2021. The win also marked another milestone for the club as 16-year-old Reggie Walsh became the youngest player to start a European game for Chelsea.
Having already won the first leg 4-1 in Stockholm, Chelsea entered the return fixture with a clear advantage. Despite the scoreline, manager Enzo Maresca made sweeping changes to the line-up that beat Liverpool in the Premier League just days earlier, with only defender Marc Cucurella retained in the starting XI.
The Italian coach, who has faced criticism over his defensive style, has quietly guided Chelsea to a fifth-place position in the Premier League and is now on the verge of delivering silverware. A win in the final would make Chelsea the first club in history to win all three of UEFA’s current competitions — the Champions League, Europa League, and Conference League.
Teen sensation Walsh had made his debut off the bench in the first leg and was handed a starting role for the second leg. Despite Chelsea’s dominant first-leg result, around 6,000 Djurgarden fans made the trip to London to support their side in what was a historic semi-final appearance — the first by a Swedish club since Gothenburg won the UEFA Cup in 1987.
Chelsea were in control from the start, with Dewsbury-Hall and Tyrique George testing Djurgarden goalkeeper Jacob Rinne early on. The breakthrough came just before half-time when George slid a clever pass through to Dewsbury-Hall, who raced past two defenders and slotted the ball in off the post.
Djurgarden rarely troubled Chelsea’s defence, with their only notable effort coming from a long-range shot by Daniel Stensson that was pushed over the bar by Chelsea goalkeeper Filip Jorgensen.
Dewsbury-Hall had another opportunity to extend Chelsea’s lead in the second half but headed a cross straight at Rinne. Nevertheless, the result was never in doubt.
With the final set to take place in Wroclaw, Poland on May 28, Chelsea will face either Italy’s Fiorentina or Spain’s Real Betis, who play their second leg later this week. Fiorentina were runners-up in last season’s final.
Chelsea are now strong favourites to lift the trophy — and win their first piece of silverware since American billionaire Todd Boehly’s consortium took over from Roman Abramovich three years ago.
For Chelsea fans, the match also served as a glimpse of the club’s future, with young talents like Walsh and George showing promise.
