Estevao Steals the Show as Chelsea Crush Barcelona, Completely Overshadowing Rising Star Yamal

Chelsea delivered an outstanding team display to defeat Barcelona 3–0 on Tuesday evening, with the Blues controlling proceedings before the Spanish side was reduced to ten players.

Enzo Maresca's team had two strikes disallowed before they finally opened the scoring through a lucky own goal, and Ronald Araújo's fifth red card in his Barcelona career meant the La Liga titleholders couldn't mount a comeback.

Brazilian wonderkid Estêvão overshadowed Lamine Yamal and netted a brilliant second for the hosts, who secured their most important Champions League victory since Kai Havertz scored the winner in the 2021 final.

Liam Delap's first goal in the tournament completed a fantastic evening for Maresca and his squad, with Chelsea, who climbed to fourth in the league phase standings, now well-positioned to secure a top eight spot and earn automatic qualification for the round of 16.

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

*Ratings provided by FotMob*

GK: Robert Sánchez—8.2: Likely expected a challenging evening, but Burnley posed more problems at the weekend. The dismissal just before halftime helped ensure the visitors were restricted in attack.

RB: Malo Gusto—6.7: Substituted at the break, but he was instrumental in helping Chelsea dominate Barcelona's left flank, while providing excellent intensity off the ball.

CB: Wesley Fofana—6.8: The French defender is the finest centre-back available to Maresca, and Chelsea are nearly always stronger when he starts. This was demonstrated once more.

CB: Trevoh Chalobah—7.1: Chalobah was outstanding when needed, with his positioning exemplary.

LB: Marc Cucurella—7.5: Unconventional at moments, but Yamal was neutralized. Cucurella also made his mark in attack.

DM: Reece James—8.3: Experienced a couple of nervous moments early, but found his groove and helped Chelsea dominate the midfield battle.

DM: Moisés Caicedo—7.6: The Ecuadorian anchored Chelsea's midfield and prevented Barcelona from playing through. Caicedo tackled aggressively in his characteristic style and was intelligent in possession.

RW: Estêvão—8.0: It's safe to say the Brazilian international was the outstanding teenager at Stamford Bridge on Tuesday evening.

AM: Enzo Fernández—7.4: This was a comprehensive display from the Argentine, who was unfortunate not to find the net. Nevertheless, he set up Delap's goal with an unselfish square ball.

LW: Alejandro Garnacho—7.0: Direct and threatening when confronting Jules Koundé in one-on-one situations.

ST: Pedro Neto—6.9: Chelsea's main threat behind the Barcelona defense. Maresca's deployment of him was astute. His pace in straight lines caused problems out wide in the second period.

Subs not used: Filip Jörgensen (GK), Jorrel Hato, Benoît Badiashile, Tosin Adarabioyo, Facundo Buonanotte, João Pedro, Marc Guiu

Barcelona (4-2-3-1)

Starting XI: Joan García; Jules Koundé, Ronald Araújo, Pau Cubarsí, Alejandro Balde; Frenkie de Jong, Eric García; Lamine Yamal, Fermín López, Ferran Torres; Robert Lewandowski

Subs used: Marcus Rashford, Raphinha, Andreas Christensen, Gerard Martín, Dani Olmo

Player of the Match: Reece James (Chelsea)

Chelsea 3–0 Barcelona—How It Unfolded at Stamford Bridge

Stamford Bridge welcomed Barcelona for the first time since 2018, with bitterness still lingering in SW6 from the 2009 Champions League semifinal.

There was certainly a major match atmosphere for Tuesday's encounter—despite both teams lacking the superstars who characterized their previous meetings.

Goals are always close when Hansi Flick's team is playing. Both sides nearly opened the scoring in the early moments. Wesley Fofana's handball canceled out Enzo Fernández's early effort, then a defensive mistake from the home team was somehow not capitalized on by Ferran Torres who shot wide.

From that point, the Blues were the better team. Central to their success was their pressing and work rate without the ball, with the visitors finding it difficult to break through Chelsea's setup. Moisés Caicedo was again commanding in defensive midfield, Malo Gusto raced up and down the right wing, while Fernández channeled his inner Frank Lampard.

Maresca's players worked in excellent coordination to frustrate Barcelona, who found it hard to create opportunities after Torres's miss. Fernández had another goal ruled out, this time for offside, from a set piece before Chelsea finally took a well-deserved lead via a Jules Koundé own goal. A clever short corner move resulted in Pedro Neto deflecting a Marc Cucurella delivery toward goal, and Koundé, along with Torres, bungled an attempted clearance on the line.

That was fitting reward for Chelsea's efforts, and they received a significant advantage before the break, as Cucurella enticed the already cautioned Ronald Araújo into a reckless challenge that earned a second yellow card.

The situation must have reminded some of the memorable victory over Tottenham Hotspur in November 2023, when Ange Postecoglou refused to sit deeper despite his team, facing Chelsea, being down to nine players. There was similar inflexibility shown by Hansi Flick here and the Blues capitalized on it.

A third ruled-out goal, which prevented Andrey Santos from scoring his first in the tournament, was quickly followed by the highlight of the match from Chelsea's emerging Brazilian on the right. Estêvão weaved his way through Barcelona's defense and fired a powerful left-footed shot past Joan García.

The Bridge exploded, with the youngster delivering his first big moment of what will surely be many on the grand stage in west London.

There was little Barcelona could muster in reply, with Chelsea adding a third through substitute Liam Delap after Fernández finally beat the offside trap. An ecstatic home crowd might have expected Maresca's team to pile on more goals against their former European rivals, but Chelsea instead concluded the match with an extended passing sequence that symbolized their control.

Chelsea vs. Barcelona Half-Time Stats

Chelsea vs. Barcelona Full Time Stats