Latest news with #Ekstraklasa
Yahoo
6 hours ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Werder Bremen among those interested in former Manchester United prospect
Fabrizio Romano reports that Werder Bremen are among the parties interested in former Fulham and Manchester United man Maxi Oyedele. The Bundesliga outfit has plenty of competition for the Legia Warsaw midfielder, who is available via a €6m exit clause in his current contract. Man United sold Oyedele to Legia in August 2024, but were rumored to secure a generous re-sale clause for themselves. Transfermarkt reports that the English Red Devils will receive 40 percent of any sale involving Oyedele. Advertisement The England-born Oyedele has enjoyed success since moving to the country he's opted to represent internationally. The 20-year-old has pumped up his estimated market value from €300,000 to €4m in the Polish Ekstraklasa. Bremen aren't necessarily known for making large purchases, but – thanks to some investor backing – are expected to make some signifiant outlays in the summer transfer market. GGFN | Peter Weis
The Independent
17-04-2025
- Sport
- The Independent
Enzo Maresca is concerned with the ‘easy chances' Chelsea are not taking
Chelsea head coach Enzo Maresca expressed concern at the 'easy chances' his team are missing after they limped into the Conference League semi-final despite a second-leg defeat to Legia Warsaw at Stamford Bridge. The 2-1 loss to the team currently fifth in the Polish Ekstraklasa drew boos from supporters at full-time and was the second home game in a row in which fans had loudly voiced their growing discontent. Things could have been different had Cole Palmer taken a straightforward chance to end his three-month goal drought inside the opening five minutes, skewing his shot wide when through on goal, whist Christopher Nkunku also spurned a good opening. The inclusion of Palmer and striker Nicolas Jackson was a surprise given the first-leg score and that Chelsea are locked in a tight battle to qualify for the Champions League and face a London derby away at Fulham on Sunday. 'The (chances) that we are missing unfortunately are very easy goals,' said Maresca. 'Tonight the first five minutes we had two chances, but it can happen. Hopefully very soon Nico and Cole can start to score goals because they are very important for us. 'The idea was just for them, especially for Nico after more than two months out, the idea was to continue to build the physical condition for him. To give them a bit of tempo to be better for Sunday. 'If they are able to score it could be a good boost for them. But we managed in the wrong way the first leg result, but the good thing is we have six Premier League games that are important for us. Fortunately we can rotate players.' Chelsea face Swedish side Djurgarden in the semi-final but were made to sweat by Legia who went ahead after 10 minutes courtesy of a penalty from former Tottenham player Tomas Pekhart, who slotted home after being fouled by goalkeeper Filip Jorgensen. Marc Cucurella scored his sixth goal of the season to equalise but Chelsea were caught out again from a corner early in the second half, Claude Goncalves was left free on the edge of the box to volley a corner towards goal, and unmarked in front of Jorgensen was Steve Kapaudi who headed in. 'We're not happy with the defeat, but probably after the first leg we tried to manage the result, rotate players and try to avoid injury because have an important game Sunday. Not happy with the result but we're in the semi-final.' Maresca added that he saw no reason for alarm regarding the supporters' reaction. 'For me tonight the environment was good, I didn't see any bad moments from the fans. We need to engage them.' Legia boss Goncalo Feio reflected on how close his side came to staging a shock. 'It's easy to fall into the mistake of people making you believe things are not possible,' he said. 'We played an amazing opponent. The lesson I'd like my players to take for all their careers is that there are no impossible things.'
The Independent
17-04-2025
- Sport
- The Independent
Chelsea reach Conference League semi-finals despite loss to Legia Warsaw at Stamford Bridge
Chelsea progressed to the last four of the Conference League but Enzo Maresca's problems continued to mount as Legia Warsaw won 2-1 at Stamford Bridge in their quarter-final second leg to deepen supporters' frustrations with the head coach. The Blues will be favourites to reach the final in Wroclaw on May 28 but there was little here to strike fear into any opponent, as the hosts were made to rely on their victory a week ago in Poland to go through 4-2 on aggregate. A penalty by Czech forward Tomas Pekhart gave Legia the lead before Marc Cucurella levelled, but Chelsea were soon undone again when Steve Kapuadi scored early in the second half, as the Shed End glowed ominous red in the light of flares lit by the uproarious away fans. The manner in which Chelsea were defeated at home by the team currently fifth in the Polish Ekstraklasa does not bode well for their bid to qualify for the Champions League and could have serious repercussions for the confidence fans place in Maresca, which has been sorely tested in recent months. Cole Palmer was a surprise inclusion, Maresca perhaps sensing the chance for his number 10 finally to break a three-month scoring drought. Legia did their best to oblige in the first five minutes, displaying abject carelessness on the ball and letting in first Palmer, who skewed badly wide when clean through, then Christopher Nkunku whose shot was saved. A former Tottenham man quietened west London after nine minutes. Pekhart never played a first-team game for Spurs but left his mark on this tie, reaching a through-ball ahead of Filip Jorgensen who dived in recklessly and fouled. The stand-in goalkeeper landed his ungainly routine by fumbling Pekhart's weak penalty into the corner. Ryoya Morishita then galloped clear and finished inches past a post as Chelsea tottered at the back, their seemingly unobstructed path to the last four suddenly looking less than straightforward. Order was restored just past the half-hour mark when Cucurella tapped in Jadon Sancho's square-ball. The left-back, who has made a habit this season of bailing out his shot-shy side, has now scored four times since Palmer's last goal on 14 January. The Spain international found the net again before the break but was denied by VAR for offside. Chelsea found themselves with bigger problems when Legia regained the lead at the start of the second half. Claude Goncalves was left free on the edge of the box to volley a corner towards goal, and unmarked in front of Jorgensen was Kapaudi who headed in. There followed a long-awaited burst of urgency from Chelsea. Noni Madueke saw his volleyed effort saved on the line by goalkeeper Vladan Kovacevic who got up smartly to beat away Tyrique George's rebound. George then tapped in Madueke's cross but the goal was ruled out for offside. It was a less than impressive performance but Chelsea clung on to limit the damage and reach the semi-finals.
The Guardian
17-04-2025
- Sport
- The Guardian
Cucurella goal sees Chelsea through despite defeat by inspired Legia Warsaw
Enzo Maresca is still not feeling the love. This was another uneven performance from Chelsea, who at times seemed intent on raising Legia Warsaw's hopes of a comeback for the ages, and few at Stamford Bridge seemed minded to celebrate their side securing a Conference League semi-final. It was not supposed to be this difficult. Legia were 2-1 winners on the night and there were times when Chelsea, who went through 4-2 on aggregate, toyed with humiliation. Filip Jörgensen, Robert Sánchez's understudy, was jittery in goal and the worries for Maresca extended to Palmer failing to take an opportunity to end his barren run against meagre opposition. Palmer, who has gone 15 games without a goal, cut a frustrated figure in the final third. He was not alone. Nobody turned up expecting that they might be about to witness a Polish remontada. The main intrigue revolved around why Enzo Maresca chose to name such a strong side when Chelsea led 3-0 from the first leg. There was no rest for Marc Cucurella at left-back and if there was surprise at Palmer and Nicolas Jackson starting in attack, it was possible to interpret an evening in the company of the Ekstraklasa's fifth best side as an opportunity for both forwards to play themselves back into form before the run-in. That seemed a sound enough theory when Palmer surged through in the second minute, only to send a wonky shot wide. Would his goal drought ever end? The frustration gnawed at Palmer. He spurned another chance moments later, failing to turn in a rebound after Jackson had a shot saved by Vladan Kovacevic, and the gamble was looking decidedly foolish when a nasty challenge from Tomas Pekhart left Chelsea's chief creator hobbling in the 20th minute. Chelsea were behind by that stage, Pekhart squeezing a penalty past Jörgensen after being fouled by the goalkeeper, and were far from secure. The first hint of discontent from the home support came when Ryoya Morishita ran through on the right and shot just wide. The topless travelling fans carried on singing. It was left to Cucurella, Chelsea's top scorer in 2025, to calm the growing unease, equalising from close range when Jadon Sancho delivered a good ball from the right. Jackson, without a goal since December, was replaced by Tyrique George at half-time. But Chelsea's distribution was poor and a mistake from Josh Acheampong almost led to Claude Gonçalves heading past Jorgensen. This will not go down as one of Chelsea's great defensive performances in Europe. Tosin Adarabioyo and Benoît Badiashile were unconvincing in the middle and there was inertia when Legia regained the lead, everyone in blue ball-watching as a corner was recycled and Steve Kapuadi bundled in from six yards out. Sign up to Football Daily Kick off your evenings with the Guardian's take on the world of football after newsletter promotion Chelsea began to panic, Jorgensen nervily pushing another cross away. Now the crowd booed. Maresca responded by taking off Palmer for Noni Madueke. Kovacevic soon had to make a series of eye-catching saves. Jorgensen, meanwhile, came close to conceding another penalty after spilling an effort from Luquinhas. Chelsea, who had not tasted defeat in this competition before, escaped. They will have to better in the next round. There cannot be many teams who have been booed off after reaching the semi-finals of a European competition before.
The Independent
17-04-2025
- Sport
- The Independent
Chelsea progress but fail to impress as Legia Warsaw win on the night
Chelsea progressed to the last four of the Conference League but Enzo Maresca's problems continued to mount as Legia Warsaw won 2-1 at Stamford Bridge in their quarter-final second leg to deepen supporters' frustrations with the head coach. The Italian's side will be favourites to reach the final in Wroclaw on May 28 but there was little here to strike fear into any opponent as the hosts were made to rely on their victory a week ago in Poland to go through 4-2 on aggregate. A penalty by Czech forward Tomas Pekhart gave Legia the lead before Marc Cucurella levelled, but Chelsea were soon undone again when Steve Kapuadi scored early in the second half, as the Shed End glowed ominous red in the light of flares lit by the uproarious away fans. The manner in which Chelsea were defeated at home by the team currently fifth in the Polish Ekstraklasa does not bode well for their bid to qualify for the Champions League and could have serious repercussions for the confidence fans place in Maresca, which has been sorely tested in recent months. Cole Palmer was a surprise inclusion, Maresca perhaps sensing the chance for his number 10 finally to break a three-month scoring drought. Legia did their best to oblige in the first five minutes, displaying abject carelessness on the ball and letting in first Palmer, who skewed badly wide when clean through, then Christopher Nkunku whose shot was saved. A former Tottenham man quietened west London after nine minutes. Pekhart never played a first-team game for Spurs but left his mark on this tie, reaching a through-ball ahead of Filip Jorgensen who dived in recklessly and fouled. The stand-in goalkeeper landed his ungainly routine by fumbling Pekhart's weak penalty into the corner. Ryoya Morishita then galloped clear and finished inches past a post as Chelsea tottered at the back, their seemingly unobstructed path to the last four suddenly looking less than straightforward. Order was restored just past the half-hour mark when Cucurella tapped in Jadon Sancho's square-ball. The left-back, who has made a habit this season of bailing out his shot-shy side, has now scored four times since Palmer's last goal on January 14. The Spain international found the net again before the break but was denied by VAR for offside. Chelsea found themselves with bigger problems when Legia regained the lead at the start of the second half. Claude Goncalves was left free on the edge of the box to volley a corner towards goal, and unmarked in front of Jorgensen was Kapaudi who headed in. There followed a long-awaited burst of urgency from Chelsea. Noni Madueke saw his volleyed effort saved on the line by goalkeeper Vladan Kovacevic who got up smartly to beat away Tyrique George's rebound. George then tapped in Madueke's cross but the goal was ruled out for offside.
