Chelsea clinch UEFA Conference League title, signaling possible new era under Maresca

Chelsea may not have set out to conquer the UEFA Conference League, but their commanding 4-1 victory over Real Betis in Wednesday’s final could mark the beginning of a turnaround for a club long distanced from silverware.

In a match played in Wroclaw, Poland, Chelsea shrugged off a sluggish first-half performance with a dominant second-half display led by a rejuvenated Cole Palmer, who set up goals for Enzo Fernandez and Nicolas Jackson. Jadon Sancho added a third with a clinical finish, and Moises Caicedo capped the night with a stoppage-time strike.

The win earned Chelsea their first trophy since Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital took over the club from Roman Abramovich in 2022. Despite spending over £1 billion on young talent, the new ownership had yet to see tangible success—until now.

Manager Enzo Maresca, in his debut season at Stamford Bridge, used the Conference League as a platform to blood youth and fringe players, cruising through the group stage against lower-ranked opponents like Noah, Astana, and Shamrock Rovers, reports AFP.

Maresca emphasized the importance of winning to build a “winning mentality” in his young squad.

“Hopefully, it can be a starting point,” he said post-match. “You need to win games. You need to win competitions. This trophy is going to make us better.”

The triumph follows a strong finish in the Premier League, where Chelsea rallied to secure a fourth-place finish and a return to the Champions League. It was a turbulent campaign, with Chelsea briefly challenging for the title in December before a mid-season slump. But a strong finish underlined Maresca’s steady influence and the team’s growing maturity.

“We also started to win games in an ugly way,” Maresca noted. “That is something that’s difficult for a young squad.”

Indeed, Chelsea’s youthful side was the youngest on average in Premier League history, highlighting the long-term vision behind the club’s rebuild.

Under former owner Abramovich, Chelsea were a dominant force in both domestic and European football. While it’s too early to declare a full return to that level, the Conference League win is a step in the right direction.

Next up for Chelsea is the FIFA Club World Cup in the United States, for which they qualified by winning the Champions League in 2021.

“Now we have 10 days off to recover energy,” Maresca said. “The season has been very long. After that, we go game by game.”

For Chelsea, the victory in Wroclaw might not be the peak—but it could be the platform.