Chelsea lived up to their billing as heavy, heavy favourites to win this season’s UEFA Conference League with an impressive 4-2 win over Gent on Thursday evening.
Enzo Maresca made 11 changes to his starting lineup and will have been largely delighted with the response of his fringe players, many of whom must be close to forcing their way into his thinking every weekend.
Here are Chelsea’s best and worst players from the game according to 90min‘s player ratings.
Renato Veiga – 8/10
Not for the first time this season, summer signing Renato Veiga stood out from the crowd with a simply sublime display.
The left-back/midfielder/striker was everywhere for Chelsea, picking out a series of excellent passes to keep his side on top, and his smart headed goal was the least he deserved. The 21-year-old was not scared of showing his emotions after opening his account for Chelsea and fans are really taking to this young star-in-the-making.
Honourable mention
Pedro Neto – 7/10
Plenty of players deserve an extra shout-out – Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, Cesare Casadei and Mykhailo Mudryk all impressed – but Pedro Neto earns our honourable mention after firing home Chelsea’s second of the evening.
After a difficult start to life at Chelsea, Neto took the opportunity to flex his quality against Gent, charging down the right wing with indefatigable endeavour and causing real problems for his defender.
Axel Disasi – 5/10
Again playing out in this uncomfortable right-back role, Axel Disasi had a difficult evening at both ends of the field.
Gent’s Archie Brown, who had previously been linked with Chelsea, gave him plenty of problems, while Disasi also somehow managed to miss an open goal from point-blank range after failing to connect at the back post.
Dishonourable mention
Benoit Badiashile – 6/10
Was this a bad performance from Benoit Badiashile? No. Far from it. However, the Frenchman continues to look a shadow of the player who took Stamford Bridge by storm in the six months following his arrival in January 2023.
A handful of nervy moments here won’t help his push to displace Levi Colwill or Wesley Fofana in Maresca’s preferred back-line.
