Chelsea Crumble in Azerbaijan: Blues Suffer Shocking Defeat After Epic 5,000-Mile Journey to Face Qarabag

Chelsea were unable to claim all three points from their lengthy 5,000-mile journey to Azerbaijan on Wednesday, settling for a frustrating 2–2 stalemate against Qarabağ in Champions League action.

The Blues found themselves behind at the interval in Baku after being outplayed by their determined opponents. While Estêvão had given Chelsea an early lead in the opening period, strikes from Leandro Andrade and Marko Janković orchestrated a stunning comeback before halftime.

Manager Enzo Maresca made changes from the bench during the break which yielded instant results as Alejandro Garnacho fired home a leveler soon after the second half began, though Chelsea couldn't locate the decisive goal and surrendered additional points in the group stage.

The London club has now claimed victory in only two of their four continental fixtures this campaign, positioning them two spots below the automatic qualification places and tied on points with Qarabağ.

Chelsea Player Ratings vs. Qarabağ (4-2-3-1)

*Ratings provided by FotMob*

GK: Robert Sánchez—6.5: Faced minimal work aside from retrieving the ball from his goal. Powerless to stop Andrade's instinctive strike and dove incorrectly for Janković's penalty kick.

RB: Reece James—7.1: Struggled as part of Chelsea's shaky defensive unit in the opening half, though his attacking contributions became more apparent after the interval as he began dictating play from deeper positions. Still below his usual standards in a Chelsea jersey.

CB: Tosin Adarabioyo—7.5: Similar to his defensive colleague, Adarabioyo looked uncertain at times in Azerbaijan. Regained some composure in the second period as he found his rhythm.

CB: Jorrel Hato—6.2: A nightmare outing for the summer signing. At fault for Qarabağ's first goal after carelessly losing possession and equally responsible for the second, surrendering the ball before committing a penalty-worthy offense. His only positive was an improved second-half showing.

LB: Marc Cucurella—6.9: Relentless along the left flank with his forward surges and combative defending—the latter occasionally landing him in difficulty. Made one crucial interception to block a dangerous delivery early on.

DM: Andrey Santos—7.2: Set up his Brazilian teammate for the match's opening strike and performed admirably during the first period. Nevertheless, he was withdrawn at halftime as Enzo Fernández was introduced.

DM: Roméo Lavia—N/A: The unlucky Belgian endured another fitness blow after merely five minutes in Baku and was substituted by Moisés Caicedo. Appeared understandably distraught as he left the field and headed straight to the dressing room.

RW: Estêvão—8.4: Netted his fourth strike of the campaign as he smoothly drifted inward and slotted his shot past the near post. Displayed additional flashes of brilliance as he utilized his skill and pace to trouble Qarabag's defensive line.

AM: João Pedro—6.3: Initially effective in the playmaker role as he dropped back to link up play, including a superb pass that created space for Estêvão's early attempt. His impact diminished as the game wore on, however.

LW: Jamie Gittens—5.8: Given numerous chances to make an impact, yet repeatedly failed to deliver quality in the final third. Dominated Matheus Silva in individual battles, but disappointed with his delivery and finishing.

ST: Tyrique George—6.1: Invisible during the opening half, registering only 13 touches as he battled against Qarabag's physical defense. Predictably substituted at the break.

Subs not used: Filip Jörgensen (GK), Max Merrick (GK), Josh Acheampong, Malo Gusto, Trevoh Chalobah, Wesley Fofana, Marc Guiu.

Qarabag (4-2-3-1)

Starting XI: Mateusz Kochalski; Matheus Silva, Behlul Mustafazade, Kevin Medina, Elvin Jafarquliyev; Marko Janković, Pedro Bicalho; Leandro Andrade, Kady Malinowski, Abdellah Zoubir; Camilo Durán.

Subs used: Emmanuel Addai, Toral Bayramov, Nariman Akhundzade, Oleksiy Kashchuk, Dani Bolt.

Player of the Match: Estêvão

Qarabağ 2–2 Chelsea—How It Developed at the Tofiq Bahramov Republican Stadium

Maresca fulfilled his commitment to rotate his squad from the weekend triumph over Tottenham Hotspur, implementing seven alterations for the demanding trip to Baku. Among those brought into the team was Roméo Lavia, but the injury-susceptible midfielder endured barely any time before limping off with another physical problem.

Chelsea's spirits were boosted in the 17th minute as a slick attacking sequence concluded with the club's youngest ever Champions League scorer Estêvão extending his European goal tally. A move crafted by Chelsea's Brazilian contingent saw João Pedro supply Andrey Santos, who subsequently located Estêvão in the box. The 18-year-old shifted inside and struck into the near corner to provide the Blues with a valuable lead.

Chelsea's advantage proved short-lived, however. Careless defending permitted Qarabağ's Camilo Durán to weave into the penalty area and strike the frame, with the ball bouncing favorably for Andrade. The Cape Verde striker, who had already found the net twice in this Champions League campaign, calmly finished the rebound to restore parity.

The leveler energized Qarabağ and ten minutes later they had taken the lead. Jorrel Hato, who bore responsibility for the hosts' equalizer, carelessly surrendered possession to Andrade before conceding a spot kick for handball, with Marko Janković converting the penalty to completely reverse the match dynamics and shock the Blues.

Maresca implemented a triple change at the interval in a bid to regain match control. Fernández, Liam Delap and Garnacho were charged with steadying the Blues and the latter accomplished precisely that just eight minutes into the second half as he unleashed a powerful left-footed drive into the bottom corner to level the score.

Chelsea's replacements completely shifted the momentum back in their direction and a link-up between Delap and Fernández nearly restored their lead, with the Argentine forcing an excellent stop from Mateusz Kochalski in the Qarabağ goal.

Chelsea desperately searched for a crucial fifth goal and came close through Fernández and Estêvão, but they found it difficult to manufacture clear opportunities as Qarabağ naturally retreated deeper. The hosts remained dangerous on counter-attacks, with Caicedo and Reece James making vital blocks to deny a third goal for Gurban Gurbanov's team in the final ten minutes.

Both teams created excellent opportunities in the closing moments, with Oleksiy Kashchuk shooting directly at Robert Sánchez from close range and Kochalski preventing Garnacho from scoring a second with a diving save.

Ultimately, Chelsea had to settle for a disappointing draw and could not claim they merited more.

Qarabağ vs. Chelsea Half Time Statistics

Qarabağ vs. Chelsea Full Time Statistics