Chelsea have effectively booked their spot in the UEFA Conference League Round of 16 after a fifth successive win in the competition.
The Blues made it five wins out of five with a routine 3-1 victory away in freezing surroundings in Kazakhstan as they overcame Astana in Almaty.
The Blues will likely have their automatic place in the knockout stages confirmed by the weekend, ahead of a final European game of 2024, at home to Shamrock Rovers on December 19.
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Enzo Maresca continued his policy of squad rotation in European competition as a much-changed line-up emerged victorious in the sub-zero temperatures.
Amongst those players to seize the chance given by the manager was Marc Guiu who slotted home a composed opening goal on the night.
The Spanish striker has not featured regularly in the Premier League since his summer move from Barcelona with his debut campaign primarily featuring European and domestic cup games.
He played a key role in forcing Aleksandr Marochkin into an own goal, for Chelsea’s second, and he produced a battling overall display as the Blues lone central attacker.
Chelsea brave the cold to breeze past FC Astana 3-1 in the UEFA Conference League, thanks to a Marc Guiu brace and a strike from Renato Veiga 🥶 pic.twitter.com/d3oBEn7qwt
— Premier League (@premierleague) December 12, 2024
Despite finding himself behind Nicolas Jackson in the pecking order, former Blues star Joe Cole was impressed with the 18-year-old, who saw flashes of former Liverpool and Barcelona Luis Suarez forward in his performance.
“He must have watched Luis Suarez as a young man at Barcelona,” he told TNT Sports.
“He has great movement. He was a thorn in the side throughout the game for Astana.
“I love him. He gives you energy and aggression. This kid is 18 – how big and strong he will be when he gets older? H’s a real gem.”
Guiu is expected to drop back to the bench for the weekend EPL derby with Brentford but he will be hoping for an increased chance from Maresca in 2025.
