Qarabag vs Chelsea live: Garnacho comes off the bench and scores equaliser to earn point in Baku
Qarabag 2-2 Chelsea: The Blues earn a point after testing contest in Azerbaijan
Chelsea were fortuitously held to a 2-2 draw against Qarabag on an indifferent night in Azerbaijan to keep their hopes of a top eight finish in the Champions League league phase alive.
The Blues started as the better team and took the lead thanks to a fine finish from Brazilian youngster Estevao. He cut inside from the right wing and rattled the visitors ahead in a fair reflection of their early control.
Qarabag responded brilliantly though. They swung the momentum back in their favour with sustained pressure, especially in the middle of the pitch and were rewarded by two goals before half-time. Leandro Andrade netting the first after a rebound off the post before Marko Jankovic slotted home a penalty.
Enzo Maresca made changes at half-time which brought increased intensity for Chelsea and Alejandro Garnacho drilled in an equaliser to leave the result in the balance. Neither side could take full advantage however and the match ended in a draw with both teams sharing a point apiece.
Relive the action from the Champions League clash with our live blog below:
Disjointed Chelsea held to draw by Qarabag in shock Champions League result
Chelsea were held to a disappointing 2-2 draw by Qarabag in Baku as their hopes of achieving direct passage to the last-16 of the Champions League received a blow.
Things looked desperate for the away side when Marko Jankovic’s penalty saw them fall behind in the first half following a brilliant strike from Leandro Andrade that had levelled the match.
Disjointed Chelsea held to draw by Qarabag in shock Champions League result
Full-time! Qarabag 2-2 Chelsea
90+5 mins: It’s over.
A draw for both teams and a huge result for Qarabag who have more than held their own against the Premier League side.
Both teams take a point and advance to the next fixture. Chelsea will be disappointed but in truth they didn’t really deserve more than this.
Qarabag 2-2 Chelsea
90+3 mins: Save!
Alejandro Garnacho meets an aerial ball with an overhead scissor kick and finds the target.
However, he’s denied by Kochalski witht he goalkeeper making a sharp stop close to the goal.
Qarabag 2-2 Chelsea
87 mins: Time is ticking away and the Qarabag fans are jeering the Blues in an attempt to drum up a hostile atmosphere.
Still time for a winning goal.
Qarabag 2-2 Chelsea
84 mins: Chelsea shoot from outside the box through Enzo Fernandez who tries to curl his effort into the far bottom corner.
There’s not enough swerve on the shot though and it goes wide.
Qarabag 2-2 Chelsea
81 mins: Into the last 10 minutes of this game.
At this point a draw would be a fair result as both teams have had their moments of dominance and skill.
On the whole Chelsea have probably been underpar but there is still time to win this one.
Qarabag 2-2 Chelsea
78 mins: Jankovic fouls Fernandez trying to nip the ball away from the Chelsea midfielder.
The Blues then float a long ball into the box for Cucurella’s darting run.
He collides with the goalkeeper and Qarabag earn a free kick of their own.
Qarabag 2-2 Chelsea
75 mins: Elvin Jafarguliyev can’t continue or else has been taken off as a precaution following his cramp.
Dani Bolt replaces him for Qarabag.
15 minutes to play in Azerbaijan, will there be a winning goal?
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments
Bookmark popover
Removed from bookmarks