Copenhagen vs Chelsea

Parken Stadium forms the backdrop for the first leg of an exciting Europa Conference League last-16 tie between Copenhagen and Chelsea. 

Through to the Conference League round of 16 following a dramatic 4-3 aggregate win against Bundesliga side Heidenheim in the playoff round, Copenhagen will see revenge against Chelsea for past failures. Indeed, the sides have met twice in the last-16 of major European competition, with the Danes bowing out in the 1998/99 Cup Winners’ Cup and the 2010/11 UEFA Champions League ties. Enacting revenge may hinge on taking an all-important first-leg advantage at Parken, where they’ve only lost once across their last nine competitive outings (W6, D2)! However, the lone defeat arrived in this competition against Heidenheim in the previous knockout round. As if that’s not troubling enough, they drew 0-0 at domestic rivals Aalborg over the weekend in the build-up to this meeting. 

On the other hand, Chelsea enjoyed a memorable league-stage campaign, winning all six matches via an aggregate score of 26-5 en route to their first-ever 100% European group/league phase campaign! However, outside their Conference League exploits, Enzo Maresca’s men have stuttered on other fronts and must go above and beyond to secure a top-four finish in the Premier League. A 4-0 rout of Southampton last time out was a step in the right direction, not least because it halted Chelsea’s woeful three-game losing streak. Now, the Blues must end a dreadful run of four consecutive defeats on the road to bolster their chances of quarter-final progression.