Chelsea broke a Conference League record with their demolition of Noah – and left observers wondering what they are even doing in the tournament.
Chelsea has shown remarkable improvement under manager Enzo Maresca, transforming from a team that barely qualified for UEFA’s third tournament at the end of last season. Despite fielding a second-string lineup in the competition—without star player Cole Palmer even registered—they are dominating their opponents.
On Thursday, they achieved an impressive 8-0 victory, which broke the previous record for the largest win in the UEFA Conference League, surpassing it by two goals. After playing three matches, Chelsea has scored 16 goals, which is twice as many as the next-best team.
Former Blues midfielder Joe Cole commented on TNT Sport, “Chelsea shouldn’t be in this competition, but this is where they are. This tournament doesn’t start for Chelsea until the quarter-finals or semi-finals. They are massive favorites to win it, and they should be.”
Former England striker Peter Crouch echoed his sentiments, saying, “Looking at some of the names, I just don’t see how they can lose this tournament.”
If Chelsea goes all the way, they will become the first team to win the Champions League, Europa League, and Conference League. Currently, they are ranked eighth in UEFA’s club rankings, while Armenian side FC Noah, founded just seven years ago, ranks 311th.
Transfermarkt estimates the total value of FC Noah’s squad to be £6.5 million, compared to Chelsea’s squad, which is valued at an astonishing £800 million.
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How did Chelsea end up in the Conference League?
Chelsea are fortunate to be participating in Europe this season. They won their last five Premier League games under Mauricio Pochettino to finish sixth, securing a spot in the Conference League play-offs. For much of the season, it seemed they would finish mid-table.
They narrowly qualified for this stage, defeating Servette 3-2 on aggregate in the play-off round, despite the Swiss side missing several late chances to force extra time.
Already considered favorites to win the tournament before it began, Chelsea kicked off their campaign with a 4-2 home victory over Gent, followed by a 4-1 win at Panathinaikos.
They are now the odds-on favorites to win the entire tournament, which is quite remarkable at this early stage of the competition. Currently, Chelsea sits at the top of the table with nine points, three points clear in the automatic qualification spots and six points above the elimination zone with three games remaining.
Joining them in the top eight are the German side Heidenheim and the Irish side Shamrock Rovers, who are among Chelsea’s remaining three opponents, alongside Astana.
Which other big teams have been in it before?
Chelsea is not the first prominent team in the tournament, but none of the three previous winners have ever won the European Cup. Roma defeated Feyenoord in the inaugural season’s final, while Fiorentina lost in the other two finals—against West Ham in 2023 and Olympiakos last season.
Tottenham, West Ham, and Aston Villa have represented England in the tournament. Roma and Villarreal are the only two clubs currently in UEFA’s top-10 rankings, alongside Chelsea, to participate in it.
Maresca’s team is not the first dominant side in the Conference League. Fiorentina scored 37 goals in the 2022-23 season before losing to West Ham in Prague.
While the tournament format has changed—from multiple four-team groups to a single large league table—each team still plays six games.
Chelsea is only two goals away from the record for goals scored in a group stage, which stands at 18 and was achieved by Jose Mourinho’s winning Roma team in 2021. Additionally, Club Brugge’s record for group stage goal difference of 12 is likely to be surpassed, as Chelsea has already exceeded that by one goal.
‘You have to be serious’ – no record win for Chelsea
Chelsea achieved a record score in the Conference League but still fell short of their club record in Europe, which was a 13-0 victory in the Cup Winners’ Cup against Luxembourg’s Jeunesse Hautcharage in 1971. This 8-0 win is tied as their second-highest victory, alongside three other matches.
With Chelsea leading 6-0 against Noah at halftime, it seemed likely that the Armenians could concede with every attack. The only surprise was that Chelsea scored just two more goals in the second half.
After the match, Maresca was asked if he was disappointed not to break the record. He responded, “You have to be serious. It is never easy. It is most important that we are serious and professional. We needed to show that.”
Noah’s Portuguese manager, Rui Mota, expressed his sentiments about the loss: “An 8-0 score is hard to take. We know Chelsea is at another level as a team, but we still wanted to perform better. If we hadn’t conceded so early in the game—or if we had scored during the very good chance we had after just two minutes—things might have been different. Congratulations to Chelsea; they played very strongly.”
Chelsea defender Tosin Adarabioyo, who scored the first goal for the club, commented, “We’re in the competition to win it. In any competition we enter, we strive for the best, and this competition is one we want to win.”
How fringe players are using competition to impress
Chelsea’s large squad situation allows them to change their entire team while still fielding a high-quality starting lineup. Manager Enzo Maresca has made complete changes to his starting XI for each of Chelsea’s three Conference League matches and two Carabao Cup matches.
Among the players brought in is £52 million signing Christopher Nkunku, who scored twice against Noah, bringing his season total to 10 goals. He currently leads Chelsea in scoring despite having started only one Premier League game. Joao Felix, who also scored twice, is tied for the top scorer in the Conference League, along with Nkunku and Jagiellonia’s Afimico Pululu, each with four goals.
However, to secure a spot in the Premier League starting lineup, they must compete with players like Cole Palmer, England winger Noni Madueke, and Nicolas Jackson, who has scored six goals.
Captain Enzo Fernandez began the season in the Premier League starting team but has been a substitute for the last three games. He started the recent match and assisted on three goals before being substituted at halftime. Maresca described this change as a “technical decision.”
Chelsea, sitting fourth in the Premier League table, will face London rivals Arsenal on Sunday. Will Fernandez be one of the few players to retain his position?
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