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Krasnodar (Russia) (AFP)
Hakim Ziyech scored in his first start for Chelsea when Frank Lampard’s side managed a 4-0 win over Champions League rookie Krasnodar in Russia on Wednesday.
Jorginho missed a penalty for Chelsea, but Callum Hudson-Odoi put the Blues ahead before half-time after a mistake by Krasnodar goalkeeper Matvei Safonov.
Timo Werner scored a penalty in the 76th minute to double Chelsea’s lead, with Moroccan international Ziyech and Christian Pulisic scoring goals at the end.
Chelsea rise to four points at the top of Group E after two games. Sevilla host Rennes later on Wednesday in the other pool match.
Thiago Silva stayed in London to rest when Antonio Rudiger made his first appearance of the season for Chelsea, lining up alongside Kurt Zouma in central defense.
Ziyech arrived from Ajax for 37 million pounds ($ 48 million) in the summer, but missed the start of the season with a knee problem.
The 27-year-old had made three cameos as a substitute before landing his first outing in Krasnodar, a journey of some 3,500 kilometers from London.
Krasnodar drew their first group match in Rennes last week, and Daniil Utkin forced Edouard Mendy to launch long to lean behind his curling shot in five minutes.
Chelsea received a penalty when Werner was attacked by Brazilian defender Kaio, but Jorginho’s effort hit the post and bounced off Safonov before Krasnodar cleared.
Hudson-Odoi seized his opportunity playing behind Werner and profited from a goalkeeper error to break the deadlock in the 37th minute.
The England international’s low shot seemed routine for Safonov, who was excellent in Krasnodar’s first game, but the Russia Under-21 goalkeeper let the ball slip away.
Yuri Gazinski hit the crossbar for Krasnodar when he flew to the ground in a corner in the 10th minute of the second half.
Chelsea then got a second penalty when Aleksandr Martynovich was severely penalized for one hand while trying to block an attempt from Pulisic.
After the replacement of Jorginho, Werner took over the penalty shooting duties and threw the ball past Safonov.
Krasnodar could only name five outfield players on the bench, Magomed Suleymanov the oldest of them at just 20.
The visitors took advantage of their opponents’ fatigue when some tricks from Pulisic allowed Werner to fire Ziyech, who finished in an orderly fashion past a crowd of defenders.
Pulisic surrendered a quarter in the last minute when she combined with Tammy Abraham before shooting through Safonov’s legs.
© 2020 AFP
