Levi Colwill’s second-half goal guaranteed Chelsea a return to the UEFA Champions League after a two-season absence. The defender was in form as the Blues beat Nottingham Forest 1-0 on the last day of the Premier League campaign. The victory helped Enzo Maresca’s team move up to fourth position in the table, ending the season in relative style.
The City Ground was host to a close match, with the two teams struggling for the European spots. Forest’s Chris Wood had major chances to score for the hosts twice, while Pedro Neto also squandered a good chance in the first half. The stalemate was finally broken in the 50th minute when Colwill took advantage of some sloppy marking. He scored the winner that essentially clinched Chelsea’s Champions League spot.
In the post-match, Colwill responded to the season-long criticism expressed against the team, swearing on live TV:
“Everyone has been talking a lot of s*** about us this season.”
He further spoke about the team’s impressive win over Nottingham Forest:
“When I scored, I stayed calm because we still had more minutes to play but I stayed calm and helped the boys. What I got taught in the academy is you have to fight. We try to get these clean sheets to win and that’s what we did today.
“We had to win. We knew we had to win and that it wasn’t going to be a hard atmosphere but we did it. This club deserves to be in the Champions League.”
Chelsea Have a European Final in Three Days
Chelsea’s move into fourth place was facilitated by Newcastle United’s 1-0 loss to Everton and Aston Villa’s defeat at Manchester United. It left the Blues able to get into fourth with 69 points.
Blues’ boss Enzo Maresca is in his first season in charge, and he will be pleased about meeting his target of reaching the Champions League. However, his focus will have to turn to Europe one final time this season.
Chelsea will next play Real Betis in Wednesday’s UEFA Conference League final in Wroclaw. They will hope to top off their season with a trophy.