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Chelsea and Legia Warsaw engage in the second leg of their UEFA Conference League quarter-final on Thursday with Chelsea firmly in control. The Blues are 3-0 up after the first leg and already have one eye on the semi-finals.
Chelsea are the bookmakers' favourites to win the whole competition and have exerted their dominance in every round of the competition so far. They have a 100% record so far, scoring 32 goals so far at an average of 3.56 goals per game. They have the best defence having only conceded six goals in their nine games, and are also at the top of the possession and passing accuracy tables too.
Legia know they are up against it on Thursday, having to overcome a big deficit. The record Polish champions have now lost four of their last five Conference League matches and look set to make that six losses in five games when they are welcomed to Stamford Bridge.
Chelsea v Legia key information
• Date: Thursday, April 17
• Kick-off time: 8pm GMT
• Venue: Stamford Bridge, London
• Referee: Alejandro Hernandez
• VAR: Guillermo Cuadra
• TV channels: TNT Sports 4 (UK)
• Odds: CHE (2/9) - DRAW (11/2) - LWA (9/1)
Chelsea team news
Enzo Maresca’s job is safe at the moment despite the unease between him and the fans. Whilst the club are still set to get European football next season, Maresca’s job may hinge on which competition the club qualify for. After the disappointing 2-2 draw on the weekend against Ipswich Chelsea are sixth, just a point off Manchester City and the final Champions League spot in fifth.
With the tie against Legia all but wrapped up, Maresca could stick with fringe and young players to see the blues through to the semis and rest many of his stars for the short trip to Craven Cottage on Sunday to take on west London rivals Fulham.
Chelsea’s top scorer in the Conference League, Mac Guiu, will miss this tie still with the thigh injury that has kept him sidelined since February but do expect to get the young Spaniard back before the end of the season. Romeo Lavia could make the squad against Legia as he was said to be almost back before their previous game. Wesley Fofana is out for the rest of the season.
Chelsea predicted lineup v Legia, (4-2-3-1)
Coach: Enzo Maresca
Jorgensen; Gusto, Badiashile, Adarabioyo, Acheampong; Dewsbury-Hall, James; Sancho, Palmer, George; Nkunku
Legia team news
Legia are massive underdogs and will head into the game on Thursday looking to salvage some pride against the heavyweights of Chelsea. They did not prepare in the best manner, however, losing 1-0 to Jagiellonia Białystok leaving Legia 11 points off European football next season.
Artur Jedrzejczyk and Jan Ziolkowski missed the first leg due to suspension but are both now back in contention to play on Thursday. Gabriel Kobylak and Jan Leszcynski are longer-term injuries and it is yet to be seen if Bartosz Kapustka and Marc Gual will be able for selection having missed the last three games each.
Legia predicted lineup v Chelsea, (4-3-3)
Coach: Goncalo Feio
Tobiasz; Ziolkowski, Pankov, Kapuadi, Vinagre; Elitim, Augustyniak, Morishita; Chodyna, Shkurin, Luquinhas
Where to watch on TV or live stream?
The match between Chelsea and Legia will be available to watch on TNT Sports through Discovery+. The match will be shown on TNT Sports 4 which you can watch on your smart TV, through the website or by downloading the Discovery+ app.
Head-to-Head record
Whilst it has not been the most glamorous results for Chelsea in their last five, they have only lost once to Arsenal. However, the 0-0 against Brentford and the recent draw against Ipswich has left much to be desired from the west London outfit. In the Conference League, though, they have an unblemished record and look set to continue that against Legia.
The first leg of the quarter-final between the two was the first time the two teams have met and that loss for Legia was one of two that they have had in their last five games. They had two wins and a draw in those five games, however, those all came before the visit of Chelsea last week. Losing at the weekend has not installed the Legia team with confidence, twinned with the fact that Legia have also lost their last two away matches in the Conference League, conceding exactly three goals both times.
Odds for Chelsea v Legia
Chelsea are big favourites to win the second leg of the UEFA Conference League quarter-final. You can find them at 2/9 to win at bet365, with a draw at full-time coming in at 11/2. The tough task of winning for Legia is seen in the odds with them at 9/1 to win the game.
Odds correct at time of writing, subject to change.