Chelsea are into the Conference League’s quarter-finals, though if Enzo Maresca is to be granted his wish of noise, it will take performances much more swashbuckling than this.
The Blues trialled a ‘singing section’ in the Shed Upper at Stamford Bridge for this second leg with Copenhagen – a group of 120 season-ticket holders tasked with solving the absence of atmosphere which had been bugging Maresca. Sing they did, though their resolve was tested as Chelsea reached half-time without mustering a single shot, on or off target.
That had not happened to this club in Europe since a trip to Basel in 2013, but thankfully for Maresca, the introduction of Cole Palmer and Marc Cucurella – two players he would have hoped to save for their Premier League showdown with Arsenal this Sunday – upped the tempo.