Chelsea’s hopes of sealing direct qualification for the Champions League round of 16 took a hit on Tuesday night, as they were held to a disappointing 2-2 draw by Qarabag in Baku, much to the surprise of everyone, even in the pre-game review, Chelsea were expected to enjoy an easy 3-1 victory, but unfortunately for the Blues fans, it wasn’t meant to be.
Softfootball understands that things went downhill for Enzo Maresca’s side after a promising start that saw Chelsea take the lead following some brilliant play from Brazilian youngster Estevao; however, Marko Jankovic’s penalty put the hosts ahead in the first half after cancelling that Estevao lead with Leandro Andrade’s equaliser.
The young Brazilian’s early goal seemed to have set Chelsea on course for a routine win after their long 2,500-mile trip to Azerbaijan. But football, as it often reminds us, doesn’t follow the script; however, his performance was good enough to earn him the man of the match award, as revealed by UEFA via their official X account.
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A second-half strike from substitute Alejandro Garnacho eventually spared Chelsea’s blushes, though it was hard to argue they deserved more. With one defeat already in the group, the margin for error is razor-thin now if the Blues hope to secure a top-eight finish and avoid the dreaded February play-off round.
This wasn’t supposed to be the fixture where points were dropped. Qarabag, ranked among the weakest sides to reach this stage, looked nothing of the sort. The Azerbaijani champions were ambitious, organised, and miles better than the team Chelsea had beaten 4-0 on their last visit eight years ago.
Chelsea’s night started poorly when Romeo Lavia limped off after just four minutes with what looked like a muscle problem. He walked off under his own power but looked understandably frustrated, another setback in his stuttering Blues career.
Moisés Caicedo, who in an earlier interview had emphasised the need for the team to maintain a high quality, replaced him and almost scored soon after, firing just over, before Tyrique George, preferred up front to Liam Delap, teed up Andrey Santos, who somehow missed from three yards. Santos made up for it moments later, feeding Estêvão, who cut in from the right and finished sharply inside the near post.
But defensive lapses undid the early work. Jorrel Hato was bullied off the ball by Camilo Durán, whose effort rebounded off the post for Andrade to smash home. Minutes later, Hato’s handball handed Jankovic the penalty that made it 2-1.
Garnacho came on at halftime and levelled quickly, firing home in the 52nd minute after his initial cross was blocked. Liam Delap, also returning from injury, went close soon after with a low strike just wide.
In stoppage time, Garnacho had a golden chance to win it but was denied by a brilliant save from Mateusz Kochalski. For Chelsea, the long journey home will feel even longer after another night of missed chances and mounting frustration.
