Chelsea 1-0 (3-1) FC Copenhagen: Blues crawl into UECL final eight

Chelsea got the job done—whether it was boring or not. A lone second-half goal from Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall secured a 1-0 win on the night and a 3-1 aggregate victory over Copenhagen, sending the Blues into the Europa Conference League quarter-finals.

For much of the match, it felt like Chelsea had made the trip to Denmark all over again. The Copenhagen away end was electric from start to finish, making Stamford Bridge feel more like an away game. On the pitch, their team looked more up for it in the first half, though that wasn’t saying much. Chelsea barely showed any attacking intent and failed to register a single shot—not even testing the goalkeeper. Copenhagen were the better side simply by default, as neither team offered much quality.

The second half brought some improvement, though not by much. Chelsea showed slightly more urgency, and with Copenhagen needing two goals to force extra time, the Blues were in no rush to push forward. Eventually, they found the breakthrough when Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall struck, effectively sealing the tie. It wasn’t a dominant performance, but in a two-legged knockout tie, getting through is all that matters.

With the job done, Chelsea can now look ahead to the quarter-finals, where they will face Legia Warsaw. The first leg will take place at Stamford Bridge on April 10th, with the return fixture in Poland on April 17th. If they advance, a semi-final against either Rapid Wien or Djurgården awaits.

Before focusing on Europe again, Chelsea have a massive test in the Premier League on Sunday against Arsenal at the Emirates. With the Blues making their last few games far more difficult than they should have been, this will be a real challenge. But with English clubs performing well in Europe this season, a fifth Champions League spot is becoming more likely—something Chelsea could benefit from in a tight top-four race.

While this wasn’t a performance to remember, Chelsea are still alive in the competition and one step closer to silverware. The key now is to ensure their performances improve before they face tougher opponents.