Chelsea keep Champions League top-eight hopes alive with narrow win over Pafos
Chelsea beat Champions League minnows Pafos to keep their hopes alive of finishing in the top eight – but it took 77 minutes to break down the Cypriot side through Moises Caicedo’s diving header.
The £115m midfielder reacted quickest to Pedro Neto’s corner after it flicked off Pafos substitute Nany Dimata, pouncing to head home from close range.
It had threatened to be an embarrassing evening for Chelsea against the competition debutants.
In boss Liam Rosenior’s first Champions League match – and his fourth in charge of Chelsea – his side were left frustrated when Enzo Fernandez thought he had put them in front in the 17th minute, only for his header to be harshly ruled out for a push on Derrick Luckassen.
Yet moments earlier, Pafos had launched an incisive counter‑attack that ended with Jaja hitting the post after the ball deflected off Reece James’ hand inside the box, sparking shouts for a penalty.
Just before half-time, Chelsea defender Jorrel Hato failed to beat inspired Pafos goalkeeper Jay Gorter from close range.
Exciting teenage attacker Estevao Willian replaced James at the break, and seven minutes later volleyed a sensational first‑time effort that lifted the crowd before Caicedo eventually found the breakthrough.
Chelsea likely need to beat Napoli away on the final day to finish in the top eight and avoid two play‑off matches in the 36‑team league phase.
Such is the gap between the two sides that only a win would do for Chelsea and new head coach Rosenior.
This was a David‑versus‑Goliath encounter – Pafos are undertaking their first Champions League campaign and had not faced an English team in this season’s competition.
The Cypriot champions are valued at just £26.2m, compared with Chelsea’s squad worth more than £1bn, according to football data website Transfermarkt.
However, a classic low‑block approach from the side with the competition’s oldest average age proved effective. They shut out Chelsea – by contrast the youngest – and rode their luck when Luckassen was judged to have been pushed by Fernandez in the build‑up to the disallowed early header.
But Chelsea were also too ponderous in possession, creating only a handful of further clear‑cut chances until Caicedo eventually won the match.
Victory in such circumstances will do little to build a positive narrative, but Rosenior avoided the banana skin feared before kick-off – praising Pafos’ ongoing push to reach the play‑off round, which the Blues are desperate to avoid.
Missing those two matches in February would give Chelsea two midweeks off and provide Rosenior – appointed a fortnight ago – with more time to train the squad and impose his identity on the group.
It will be an exciting finale at Napoli’s Diego Armando Maradona Stadium next week, with Antonio Conte’s Italian champions also needing a win to stay in the competition.
When asked about next week, Rosenior replied: “I am not daunted by the prospect. Antonio [Conte] is an incredible coach. They need to win which changes the dynamic a bit but we focus on Crystal Palace now.”
Rosenior’s former side Strasbourg were exciting to watch and played with intensity and flair, but that style has not been evident since his appointment.
For now, it is a case of building momentum and taking things one step at a time to reach the level the Englishman wants from his Chelsea team.
What’s next for these sides?
Chelsea travel to Crystal Palace in the Premier League on Sunday, 25 January (14:00 GMT), before finishing their Champions League campaign at Napoli next Wednesday (20:00).
Pafos welcome AEK Larnica in the Cypriot First Division on Sunday (17:00), before their maiden Champions League campaign concludes when Slavia Prague visit their 9,000-capacity stadium on Wednesday (20:00).
