Chelsea v Legia Warszawa – Line-ups, stats and preview

Chelsea take on Legia Warszawa this coming Thursday in the Conference League. Read our in-depth preview here.

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Match preview for Chelsea v Legia Warsaw

Chelsea are in a strong position going into the second leg of their Europa Conference League quarter-final against Legia Warsaw at Stamford Bridge on Thursday.

After a 3-0 win in the Polish capital, Enzo Maresca’s team look certain to reach the final four, where a likely meeting with Rapid Vienna awaits.

The Blues produced a ruthless performance in Warsaw.Β  Noni Madueke struck twice after Tyrique George opened the scoring shortly after the break.

Maresca’s men now take a perfect track record into Thursday’s clash – they’ve advanced in all 15 previous European ties after winning the first leg away.

Legia Warsaw’s long wait for a return to a European semi-final – their last coming in the 1990-91 Cup Winners’ Cup – looks set to continue.

Goncalo Feio’s side have now suffered seven straight away defeats in European knockout fixtures. Their record on English soil isn’t any better either, with no wins and back-to-back defeats in their last two visits.

A 2-1 league defeat at home to Jagiellonia Bialystok at the weekend also damaged their hopes of qualifying for European football next season through their league standing.

Team news for Chelsea v Legia Warsaw

With a three-goal cushion, Maresca is likely to rotate heavily. Fans could see a starting lineup similar to the one fielded in the group stage fixture against Astana.

Youngsters like Josh Acheampong, Mathis Amougou, Shumaira Mheuka, and Samuel Rak-Sakyi are all candidates to feature.

Among senior players, Reece James is set to return after not being used over the weekend. Benoit Badiashile, Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, and Christopher Nkunku are also likely to come into the side.

Legia, meanwhile, could opt to rest key players ahead of their upcoming cup final.

Jan Ziolkowski and Artur Jedrzejczyk are both available again after serving European suspensions.

However, Ilya Shkurin remains unavailable due to being unregistered for the competition.

Forward Marc Gual and midfielder Bartosz Kapustka are also major injury doubts.

Expected line-ups for Chelsea v Legia Warsaw

Chelsea: Jorgensen; Acheampong, Tosin, Badiashile, Rak-Sakyi; James, Dewsbury-Hall, Amougou; George, Nkunku, Mheuka

Legia Warsaw: Tobiasz; Wszolek, Ziolkowski, Jedrzejczyk, Vinagre; Goncalves, Augustyniak, Bichakhchyan; Chodyna, Pekhart, Urbanski

How to watch Chelsea v Legia Warsaw: TV channel, online stream

Chelsea v Legia Warsaw will kick off at 20:00 on Thursday and is available to watch on TNT Sports 4. Fans can also access the match on the discovery+ app.

The stats for Chelsea v Legia Warsaw

  • Chelsea have won 8 of the last 9 matches in the Conference League while scoring more than 1.5 goals
  • In 11 of the last 12 Chelsea matches the number of goals was under 3.5
  • In 14 of the last 15 Legia Warszawa away matches the number of goals was over 2.5
  • In the last 7 Legia Warszawa away matches in the Conference League, the number of goals was over 2.5

Prediction

With the tie effectively settled in Warsaw, Maresca is expected to give his young talents the chance to impress – a move that could still lead to another comfortable win.

As for Legia, their focus may already be shifting to domestic silverware, and it wouldn’t be a surprise if they hold something back with the cup final on the horizon.

Prediction: Chelsea 3-0 Legia Warsaw

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Picture of Mitch Fretton

Mitch Fretton

Mitch is a freelance sports journalist with experience working for LiveScore, GOAL and Colchester United. He has experience working from both his desk at home and in the press box at games covering the Champions League and international football.

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