Chelsea will be looking to continue their fantastic Conference League campaign when they take on Copenhagen in the Round of 16 later today.
Six wins from six saw Chelsea breeze their way through the Conference League League Phase, with the Blues topping the table to automatically book their spot in the Round of 16. Enzo Maresca's first test in the knockout stages is a trip to Copenhagen, with Chelsea facing the Danish side in the Round of 16 first leg after their 4-3 aggregate win over Heidenheim in the Play-Off round.
Chelsea enter the clash having had over a week's rest, with no FA Cup action on the weekend meaning the Blues' last outing was the 4-0 win against Southampton last Tuesday. So, can Chelsea get off to a winning start in Copenhagen later today? Let's take a look.
Copenhagen vs Chelsea Europa League score predicted
To complete this simulation, we used EA FC 25 and updated the squads with the latest injuries and suspensions.
We predict that the hosts could set up in a 4-2-3-1 formation, with their line-up as follows: Ramaj; Diks, Pereira, Garananga, Meling; Clem, Froholdt; Gocholeishvili, Elyounoussi, Achouri; Chiakha.
We predict that the Blues could line up in a 4-2-3-1 formation, with their starting XI as follows: Sanchez; Acheampong, Tosin, Colwill, Cucurella; Dewsbury-Hall, Fernandez; Palmer, Nkunku, George; Neto.
Chelsea were slow out the gates in the opening stages in Copenhagen, with the hosts seeing more of the ball and creating more chances. 14 minutes in, Copenhagen took the lead when Munsahe Garananga headed home from a corner, but the lead didn't last long, with Cole Palmer drawing Chelsea level minutes later.
Cole Palmer made it 1-1
Cole Palmer made it 1-1 (Image: EA Sports)
Enzo Fernandez fizzed a pass to Palmer on the edge of the box, and with his back to goal, the Englishman spun with the ball to skip past his defender and into a shooting position. On his right foot, Palmer blasted a shot at goal, leaving the 'keeper with no chance to make it 1-1.
Christopher Nkunku should've made it 2-1 after the restart when he was played through one-on-one with the 'keeper, but rather than shooting he dribbled around Diant Ramaj, and the angle became too narrow as he fired into the side netting. Both sides looked dangerous going forward, and in the 90th minute, it was the hosts who scored again to hand Chelsea the loss.
Elias Achouri made it 2-1 to Copenhagen
Elias Achouri made it 2-1 to Copenhagen (Image: EA Sports)
Some nice footwork from Mohamed Elyounoussi saw the midfielder skip past two challenges into the box before flicking the ball out the Elias Achouri on the left. The winger dragged the ball into his path before taking aim, and his sot beat Robert Sanchez with ease to make it 2-1 and send Chelsea into the second leg a goal down on aggregate.
EA FC 25 pre dicted final score: Copenhagen 2-1 Chelsea
What do you think the final score will be? Let us know in the comments!
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Chelsea flag prior the UEFA Champions League Quarter Final Leg One match between Chelsea FC and Real Madrid at Stamford Bridge. (Photo by Jose Breton/Pics Action/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
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