It was not easy, but Chelsea were able to defeat Pafos in the end, beating the Cypriot team 1-0.
Chelsea fielded an attack of Liam Delap, Enzo Fernandez, Pedro Neto and Alejandro Garnacho. However, it was Moises Caicedo who went on to score the winning goal for Liam Rosenior’s side.
Former Blue Joe Cole spoke about Caicedo after the game, claiming that he is now the team’s “most important” player.
Who was your Man of the Match vs Pafos?
While Pafos failed to score, they went toe-to-toe with Chelsea and worried Rosenior at times.
- READ MORE: Liam Rosenior admits he did something very unusual with Reece James during Chelsea’s win vs Pafos
Liam Rosenior wanted Wesley Fofana, Malo Gusto and Pedro Neto to contain Pafos wing-back
According to Sky Sports reporter Peter Smith, just minutes into the Champions League fixture, Rosenior was already on the edge of his technical area.
The 41-year-old was trying to co-ordinate a plan to contain Pafos wing-back Jaja involving Wesley Fofana, Malo Gusto and Pedro Neto.
Jaja and his teammates did manage to create a few opportunities against Chelsea, but the Blues were able to keep a clean sheet and get the job done.
Fofana and Gusto, who both started in defence, will be happy with that. As for Neto, it was quite a frustrating game.
Rosenior thought Neto was “outstanding” in Chelsea’s recent 3-2 defeat to Arsenal in the Carabao Cup, but he did not make the same kind of impact against Pafos.
Pedro Neto’s shocking stat
Chelsea fans all know that Neto likes to cross the ball. In the victory over Pafos, though, he may have done that a little too often.
Neto attempted 15 crosses while on the pitch, with none of them being successful. That is quite a damning statistic.
Pedro Neto really needs to mix up his game 🤦♂️
What did you make of his performance against Pafos?
Going forward, he has to do better, especially with Estevao Willian pushing for a starting spot. The Brazilian was excellent when he came on, adding a bit more spark to Chelsea’s attack.
With the Conference League holders match versus Napoli next week a must-win, Estevao has to start it.
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