Djurgården 1-4 Chelsea: Nicolas Jackson double secures emphatic first-leg advantage

Two Chelsea goals in each half have put the Premier League side in control of this Conference League last-four tie ahead of the return fixture in London on 8 May.

Match in brief: Chelsea cruise to convincing victory

With the Allsvenskan outfit appearing in their first European semi-final, they looked to make a lot of the early running and put Chelsea's defence under sustained pressure, with the lively Tokmac Nguen curling wide after collecting Tobias Gulliksen's lay-off in the area.

But it was Chelsea who made the breakthrough following a superb piece of vision from Enzo Fernández. After finding space out near the right flank, the Argentinian international spotted Jadon Sancho racing into the home penalty area from the left wing unmarked, and picked the 25-year-old out with a pinpoint delivery.

Jadon Sancho is congratulated after opening the scoring for ChelseaAFP via Getty Images

This afforded Sancho the time to compose himself before curling the ball out of the reach of goalkeeper Jacob Rinne.

Rinne had to be at his best to deny Noni Madueke from adding a second, pushing the attacker's shot out for a corner with a strong left wrist after a Reece James pass had split the home back line.

And it was Madueke who eventually made the increasing Chelsea spell of possession tell, with the English international feinting Rinne into thinking he would sweep Fernández's pass into the bottom left of goal before elegantly placing it into the other corner to cap a flowing move.

Noni Madueke added a second after a crisp passing display from ChelseaGetty Images

With the first half drawing to an end, Djurgården displayed their threat on the counter with a quick break via the lively Nguen, but Filip Jørgensen adjusted well to pull off a flying save to deny the hosts' No20 following a deflection.

Jani Honkavaara's men began the second period in equally attacking fashion, with both August Priske and Hampus Finndell going close with emphatic efforts before Adam Ståhl's glancing header forced Jørgensen into another acrobatic stop.

Enzo Fernández was at the heart of Chelsea's attacking endeavours in the first halfChelsea FC via Getty Images

However it was the introduction of four half-time substitutes for the visitors that had the desired effect after the interval. Just before the hour mark, Cole Palmer's pass for fellow replacement Nicolas Jackson was just too far ahead of the Senegalese forward, but his persistence paid off and he would eventually tap in from close range after preventing Rinne from staking a claim to the ball courtesy of some quick thinking.

Five minutes later and Jackson had his second of the evening, rolling Moises Caicedo's interception from one foot to the other before powering a delicious finish high into the roof of the net.

Chelsea sub Nicolas Jackson hit two goals in the space of six minutesGetty Images

The home crowd did have a first semi-final goal to cheer when 18-year-old sub Isak Alemayehu Mulugeta sent a downward header from Gulliksen's centre over Jørgensen, but Chelsea were able to see out the contest and take a three-goal lead back to London.

Sixteen-year-old sub Reggie Walsh almost marked his Blues debut with the Londoners' fifth of the game late on, but his rasping drive was clawed away from danger by Rinne.

Jasmin Nur, reporting from Stockholm Arena

Chelsea were decisive when it mattered. Djurgården competed well but couldn't create many clear-cut openings, and when they did, found Jørgensen in inspired form. The Blues have been absolutely elite: in mentality, work ethic, tactics – everything, and it will be a tough ask for another Djurgården second-leg turnaround in this knockout stage.

Reaction

Jani Honkavaara, Djurgården coach: "It was a tough game; I think we did reasonably well. I’m quite happy with the performance and proud of the players. We had a good moment at the beginning of the second half but then Chelsea immediately showed their quality."

Isak Alemayehu Mulugeta, Djurgården midfielder: "It was amazing to score my first goal for Djurgården and in a semi-final against Chelsea; I can’t wish for a better goal. We have to prepare for our next game first, then we will see – we will analyse this one and talk about what we can do better."

Enzo Maresca, Chelsea head coach, speaking to TNT Sports: "It's a good result, but we have the experience from the Legia Warszawa game, where we won 3-0 there and we struggled a little bit, so we need to be focused on the second leg. We cannot drop; we cannot relax, otherwise it gets complicated. We have done a good job, now we need to finish the job at home."

Nicolas Jackson, Chelsea goalscorer: "I’m very happy we won and now we are a step closer to the final. I’m very confident and especially pleased with my second goal, but the most important thing is that we won. A very good performance; we attacked very well and now we are looking forward to the next one."

Key stats

• Djurgården are the first Swedish team to reach the last four of a major men’s UEFA competition since IFK Göteborg in the 1986/87 UEFA Cup.
• This was Djurgården’s 17th outing in UEFA club competitions this season – a record for a Swedish club.
• The Blues have been beaten in just one of their last 15 matches in UEFA competition semi-finals (W6 D8).
• Chelsea have emerged victorious in their last six fixtures away from home in this competition.
• The Premier League side have now scored four goals in a Conference League match for the fifth time this term.

Line-ups

Djurgården: Rinne; Ståhl, Une, Danielson (Tenho 63), Kosugi (Bergh 80); Finndell, Stensson, Gulliksen; Haarala (Alemayehu Mulugeta 63), Nguen, Priske.

Chelsea: Jørgensen; Acheampong, Badiashile, Adarabioyo, Cucurella (Caicedo 46); James (Chalobah 46), Dewsbury-Hall; Sancho, Fernández (Palmer 46), George (Walsh 88); Madueke (Jackson 46).