Chelsea were made to cling on to confirm their place in this season’s Conference League, with Enzo Maresca relieved this defeat by Servette did not blow up in their faces like the fireworks which forced play to be suspended at the Stade de Genève.
The Blues lost 2-1 to the side sitting seventh in the Swiss Super League but sneaked through 3-2 on aggregate, Christopher Nkunku’s penalty opener helping them over the line here.
Maresca was merely glad they made it through to guarantee European football for the season, their 2-0 lead from the first leg at Stamford Bridge proving vital.
‘I was very worried about this game,’ Maresca said. ‘For them, it was probably their biggest game of the season. It’s a competition that we are going to try and do our best.’
Chelsea showcased their Premier League superiority early on, only a spectacular one-handed save from Joel Mall denying Enzo Fernandez from scoring from 25 yards.
Chelsea were made to cling on to secure their place in the Conference League’s main draw
Enzo Maresca (left) had hoped for a chaos-free evening but it was anything but that in Geneva
The visitors took the lead in the 14th minute when Mykhailo Mudryk was hacked down in the box by Keigo Tsunemoto, who still had the temerity to protest.
A clear foul, Nkunku stepped up to blast the ball into the bottom-left corner for 1-0 on the night, 3-0 on aggregate.
Considering they were competing on a cabbage patch of the pitch, Chelsea had played some pretty football, with one passing move ending with Noni Madueke’s attempt being blocked.
However, Servette made it 1-1 when Derek Kutesa was allowed to skip through Chelsea’s midfield as neither Fernandez nor Axel Disasi brought him down when they had the chance.
Kutesa set up Jeremy Guillemenot, whose strike across goal beat Filip Jorgensen.
Nkunku went for the spectacular after half time – an overhead kick from 18 yards – but the ball bounced wide. Mudryk then blasted over from the same distance.
The Ukrainian can be a frustrating watch but occasionally brilliant, sprinting from one box to the other with the ball in the 53rd minute. Unfortunately for him, Mall made the save.
When Servette took a 2-1 lead in the 72nd minute – Enzo Crivelli heading home from in between Tosin Adarabioyo and Benoit Badiashile – Maresca replaced Mudryk with Cole Palmer.
Jeremy Guillemenot’s strike across goal beat Filip Jorgensen to put Servette level on the night
Enzo Crivelli headed home from in between Tosin Adarabioyo and Benoit Badiashile to take the lead
Another substitute in Nicolas Jackson was celebrating scoring until he realised he had been flagged offside, before Palmer then sent a shot crashing into the crossbar.
With a firework display forcing the game’s temporary suspension, Chelsea managed to hold on to their slender lead on aggregate, leaving them in the league phase of this year’s Conference League.
