Conference League Report: Chelsea 5 - 1 Shamrock Rovers

Shamrock Rovers fell to a 5-1 defeat against Chelsea in the last game of the UEFA Conference League phase at Stamford Bridge on Thursday evening.

A hat-trick from Marc Guiu, along with goals from Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall and Marc Cucurella, were enough to dispatch the Irish side, who levelled the game at 1-1 through a strike from Markus Poom.

Rovers had already secured qualification to the knockout playoff phase and could play with the shackles off in what was a free hit against the two-time European champions.

Over 3,000 fans made the trip to the Bridge for the Hoops’ first game in London since 2011, and the anticipation grew steadily in the west side of the city as kick-off approached.

The Blues made nine changes from their 2-1 victory over Brentford on Sunday, with only Marc Cucurella and Noni Madueke returning to the line-up, while Rovers were unchanged from their 3-0 win over FK Borac Banja Luka last Thursday.

Chelsea predictably dictated the tempo in the early stages but didn’t create any concrete chances despite looking dangerous down the left-hand side.

A buoyant away end did their best to inject some life into proceedings after five minutes by pelting Christopher Nkunku with roll after roll of toilet paper, delaying a corner by almost two minutes.

The Hoops were increasingly penned into their own half after the game restarted as Chelsea turned the screw, but it was the visitors who fashioned the first early opportunity in a rare foray into Chelsea territory. Dylan Watts flashed a ball across the face of goal towards Johnny Kenny, who failed to make a firm connection and saw the linesman’s flag raised in a tight decision.

The Blues responded with a first chance of their own after 15 minutes when Tyrique George, Chelsea’s biggest threat of the first half, clipped a ball across the pitch to Madueke, whose dinked effort landed just over Leon Pohls’ crossbar.

All of Rovers’ resolute defending was undone after 23 minutes in disastrous fashion. Daniel Cleary attempted to head a speculative ball over the top back to Pohls in the Rovers goal, but a mix-up between the two led to Marc Guiu having the easiest of finishes to tap home for his fourth goal of the competition.

However, the Hoops responded in a manner typical of their Conference League campaign so far. Johnny Kenny latched onto a sweeping pass over the Chelsea defence and forced Filip Jorgensen into a strong save to his left side.

From the resulting corner, the ball dropped to Markus Poom, who made no mistake in rifling the ball home to send the Rovers’ travelling faithful into dreamland just three minutes after falling behind, as they returned chants of “Who are ya?” to a stunned and silenced Bridge.

But once again, Rovers were the architects of their own downfall, as another defensive mix-up cost them dearly. A stray back-pass from Cleary to Pohls was pounced upon by Marc Guiu, who rounded the keeper to poach his second of the night on 34 minutes.

It was fast becoming a difficult evening for the German keeper as he attempted to take the ball around Guiu moments later, but was dispossessed by the Chelsea striker, who was only denied a rapid hat-trick by a last-ditch block on the line by Lee Grace.

The Rovers’ keeper got himself back on track in the next Chelsea attack, getting down well to palm a low shot from Cesare Casadei out of harm’s way, but there was nothing he could do to stop Chelsea extending their lead shortly after.

A fantastic sliding challenge from Roberto Lopes stopped a goal-bound effort from Nkunku, but the rebound fell to Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, who calmly slotted his shot into the bottom corner to make it 3-1 to the Blues.

The chances kept coming for the home side as this time Madueke called Pohls into action, saving with his feet to deny the England international.

The wind was truly knocked out of the Hoops’ sails seconds before the half-time whistle, as Guiu secured his hat-trick, deftly flicking a header from a Madueke cross into the bottom corner to net his third in a 25-minute spell.

The much-needed half-time whistle finally came for Rovers, who will have been kicking themselves for giving up two gift-wrapped goals to their opponents either side of their equaliser.

With the result all but determined, the tempo dropped off from both sides after the restart. Nkunku drew a routine stop from Pohls with an effort from outside the box in the only shot on goal in the half’s opening minutes.

It didn’t take much longer for the Blues to pick up where they left off, however, as Cucurella latched onto a through ball from Nkunku and produced a composed finish across Pohls to make it 5-1 after 58 minutes.

Substitute Joao Felix almost made an instant impact after his introduction by dribbling his way into the box and flashing a shot just wide of the Rovers’ goal.

It was damage limitation for Rovers by now, who were increasingly camped in their own half but stifling the Chelsea threat as the game moved into the final 20 minutes.

The Hoops pushed for a consolation in the closing stages and had a penalty shout after Graham Burke appeared to have been bundled over following a marauding run into the box, but the French referee remained unmoved.

Chelsea did their best to score a sixth late on as Tyrique George, whose performance was worthy of a goal, danced his way into the box but saw his shot blocked by Lopes, who saved the Hoops on several occasions throughout proceedings.

There were to be no more goals, however, as the game came to an end at 5-1 to the home side.

It was a disappointing result for Rovers, especially after coming from behind in the first half, but the Tallaght side can be proud of their historic campaign as they became the first Irish side to qualify from a UEFA competition group/league phase.

Despite the end result, the fantastic scenes in the wake of Poom’s equaliser will live long in the memory of the travelling fans, who scarcely stopped singing throughout the 90 minutes.

The Hoops finish 10th in the table, just missing out on automatic qualification to the last 16 on goal difference, while Chelsea top the league with six wins out of six.

The Blues will have a chance to go top of the Premier League, at least temporarily, as they travel to Everton on Sunday, and Rovers will have to wait for the playoff draw to discover the identity of their next Conference League opponents.

Chelsea: Filip Jørgensen; Joshua Acheampong, Axel Disasi Mhakinis Belho (Harrison Murray-Campbell 59), Renato da Palma Veiga, Marc Cucurella Saseta; Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall (Samuel Rak-Sakyi 82), Cesare Casadei, Chukwunonso Madueke (Harvey Vale 46), Christopher Nkunku, Tyrique George; Marc Guiu Paz (Joao Felix 59).
Subs not used: Lucas Bergström, Robert Lynch Sánchez, Abdul-Nasir Oluwadoyinsolami Adarabioyo, Jadon Sancho, Pedro Neto, Shumaira Mheuka, Kiano Dyer.
Booked: None.
Sent off: None.

Shamrock Rovers: Léon-Maurice Pöhls; Daniel Cleary, Pico, Lee Grace; Darragh Burns, Dylan Watts (Jack Byrne 68), Gary O'Neill (Darragh Nugent 78), Markus Poom (Daniel Mandroiu 68), Joshua Honohan; Johnny Kenny (Aaron Greene 73), Neil Farrugia (Graham Burke 73).
Subs not used: Lee Steacy, Cory O'Sullivan, Seán Kavanagh, Aaron McEneff, Trevor Clarke, Conan Noonan, Alex Noonan.
Booked: Markus Poom (30), Pico (62).
Sent off: None.

Referee: Willy Delajod (France)
Attendance: None
extratime.com Player of the Match: Marc Guiu (Chelsea)