Chelsea fans toast Conference League trophy but look forward to bigger challenges
Soccer Football - Conference League - Final - Real Betis v Chelsea - Wroclaw Stadium, Wroclaw, Poland - May 28, 2025 Chelsea's Moises Caicedo celebrates scoring their fourth goal with Chelsea's Enzo Fernandez and Chelsea's Jadon Sancho REUTERS/Kacper Pempel
Soccer Football - Conference League - Final - Real Betis v Chelsea - Wroclaw Stadium, Wroclaw, Poland - May 28, 2025 Chelsea's Reece James lifts the trophy with teammates after winning the Conference League REUTERS/Kacper Pempel
WROCLAW, Poland - Chelsea fans toasted Wednesday's Conference League triumph with varying views on the trophy's prestige, but all were united on at least one front, that the future looks bright for the London club.
After going a goal down, Chelsea quickly asserted themselves and left little doubt by the final whistle that they were the better side, closing the match in Wroclaw with a commanding 4-1 victory over Spanish side Real Betis.
Chelsea are now the first English side to win all four major European trophies, having twice claimed both the UEFA Champions League and the Europa League as well as the now defunct Cup Winners' Cup. They have also won two UEFA Super Cups.
"A trophy always feels good," said lifelong Chelsea fan Martin as he was celebrating in the old town of the Polish city.
"Of course it is a real trophy. We haven't had the best season, but we completed the set, we won everything in Europe there is to win," said another supporter, James.
Still, there were murmurs among the fans about the tournament's lack of prestige and competitiveness.
"During the whole tournament, I did not feel like it was a competition. It was obvious Chelsea was going to win," Chelsea fan Marip said.
"Hopefully next year we will get some stronger teams to play against."
"Not really a big thing. We usually win a major trophy," said a 10-year-old Chelsea supporter from London.
Though there were differing views, all agreed that the club is on an upward trajectory.
"I hope we get more interesting players in the transfer window, but we are in good shape for what comes," Marip added.
"We have come in the top four in the Premier League and are ready for Champions League. It's all good," James said. REUTERS
Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Straits Times
40 minutes ago
- Straits Times
Rybakina through to French Open fourth round as Ostapenko derails
Tennis - French Open - Roland Garros, Paris, France - May 30, 2025 Kazakhstan's Elena Rybakina celebrates winning her third round match against Latvia's Jelena Ostapenko REUTERS/Gonzalo Fuentes Tennis - French Open - Roland Garros, Paris, France - May 30, 2025 Latvia's Jelena Ostapenko in action during her third round match against Kazakhstan's Elena Rybakina REUTERS/Gonzalo Fuentes Tennis - French Open - Roland Garros, Paris, France - May 30, 2025 Kazakhstan's Elena Rybakina in action during her third round match against Latvia's Jelena Ostapenko REUTERS/Gonzalo Fuentes Tennis - French Open - Roland Garros, Paris, France - May 30, 2025 Kazakhstan's Elena Rybakina celebrates winning her third round match against Latvia's Jelena Ostapenko REUTERS/Gonzalo Fuentes PARIS - Kazakh Elena Rybakina's claycourt form showed no sign of dipping as she brushed aside former champion Jelena Ostapenko 6-2 6-2 in a duel of heavy hitters to reach the fourth round of the French Open on Friday. The 12th-seeded Rybakina, who came to Roland Garros fresh from her Strasbourg Open run to the title, was not impressed by Ostapenko's flurry of missiles as she prevailed with a forehand winner down the line on the first match point. "The fast conditions make it difficult to control the ball but it definitely helps for the serve," said Rybakina. "I had some ups and downs but happy with the way it went today." Latvia's Ostapenko, who also had shown good form on clay this season, beating Iga Swiatek and Aryna Sabalenka to win the Stuttgart Open last month, played her usual roll-the-dice tennis but did not get lucky. The 2017 Roland Garros winner served three aces but eight double faults while her 14 winners could not make up for a staggering 22 unforced errors. Rybakina, who also peppered the court with a high number of unforced errors, will next face four-time champion Iga Swiatek of Poland. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Straits Times
40 minutes ago
- Straits Times
Horner 100% committed to Red Bull for the long term
Formula One F1 - Spanish Grand Prix - Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, Barcelona, Spain - May 30, 2025 Red Bull's Max Verstappen and Red Bull team principal Christian Horner before practice REUTERS/Albert Gea FILE PHOTO: Formula One F1 - Monaco Grand Prix - Circuit de Monaco, Monaco - May 25, 2025 Red Bull team principal Christian Horner before the race REUTERS/Jakub Porzycki/File Photo BARCELONA - Christian Horner has shut down speculation of a move to Ferrari by saying he is 100% committed to Red Bull, and for the long term. Germany's Bild newspaper reported this week that Ferrari had recently sounded out the Briton as a possible replacement for Fred Vasseur, but Horner poured cold water on that in a Spanish Grand Prix news conference. "Of course it's always flattering to be associated with other teams. But my commitment, 100%, is with Red Bull. It always has been and certainly will be for the long term," said the Briton. "There's a bunch of speculation -- always is in this business -- people coming here, going there, whatever. I think people in the team know exactly what the situation is." Horner has led Red Bull since they entered the sport in 2005, winning eight drivers' titles with Sebastian Vettel and Max Verstappen and six constructors' crowns, and he is the longest-serving of the 10 team principals. His tenure has also been controversial. Married to former Spice Girl pop star Geri Halliwell, he was last year cleared of accusations of inappropriate behaviour towards a female employee. Red Bull have lost top designer Adrian Newey, now at Aston Martin, while former sporting director Jonathan Wheatley has become principal at Sauber. Max Verstappen's future has also been much discussed, although he has a contract to 2028, while the Dutch driver's father Jos fell out with Horner last year. Ferrari, joined in January by seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton from Mercedes, have yet to win this season and are fourth overall after eight of 24 races. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Straits Times
40 minutes ago
- Straits Times
Boxing-World Boxing to introduce mandatory sex testing for all boxers
FILE PHOTO: Algerian boxer Imane Khelif, who won the gold medal in the women's welterweight boxing at the Olympics, holds her medal upon her arrival at the airport in Algiers, Algeria August 12, 2024. REUTERS/Ramzi Boudina/File Photo World Boxing will introduce mandatory sex testing for all boxers in its competitions, the body said on Friday, adding that Paris Olympics women's welterweight champion Imane Khelif will not be allowed to compete until she undergoes such a test. The governing body, which will run the boxing competitions in the 2028 Olympics after being granted provisional recognition by the IOC, said it aims to deliver a competitive level playing field for men and women. "Imane Khelif may not participate in the female category at the Eindhoven Box Cup, 5-10 June 2025 and any World Boxing event until Imane Khelif undergoes genetic sex screening in accordance with World Boxing's rules and testing procedures," World Boxing said in a statement. All athletes over the age of 18 will have to undertake a PCR (polymerase chain reaction) genetic test, which can be conducted by a nasal or mouth swab, saliva or blood, World Boxing said. "The PCR test is a laboratory technique used to detect specific genetic material, in this case the SRY gene, that reveals the presence of the Y chromosome, which is an indicator of biological sex," the statement added. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
