Chelsea make the long trip to Kazakhstan on Thursday when they face Astana in the League Conference.
The Blues will make significant changes to their starting line-up in midweek as they travel over 6,000km and aim to maintain their perfect record in the league stage of the League Conference. Four games have produced four wins and 18 goals as Enzo Maresca’s side make a mockery of Europe’s third most prestigious cup competition.
Chelsea’s confidence is high ahead of Thursday’s game. They have won all five outings since the international break in November and closed the gap on Premier League leaders Liverpool to four points at the weekend by ousting Tottenham Hotspur. Comeback victory by 4-3 inspired by Cole Palmer, who will ensure a well-deserved midweek rest.
Astana are currently playing their home games in Almaty – 1,200km from the Kazakh capital – and have picked up just four points from their opening games. Without a win in three European games, he should cause Chelsea few problems on Thursday.
here it is 90 minutes astana guide vs Chelsea.
Astana vs Chelsea H2H Record
This is the first competitive match between Astana and Chelsea.
Current form (all competitions)
|
Astana |
Chelsea |
|---|---|
|
Astana 1-1 Victory of Guimaraes – 28/11/24 |
Tottenham 3-4 Chelsea – 08/12/24 |
|
Astana 5-0 Zhetysu Taldykorgan – 11/10/24 |
Southampton 1-5 Chelsea – 04/12/24 |
|
Paphos 1-0 Astana – 07/11/24 |
Chelsea 3-0 Aston Villa – 01/12/24 |
|
Tobol Kostanai 1-0 Astana – 03/11/24 |
Heidenheim – Chelsea 0-2 – 28/11/24 |
|
Astana 3-2 Atyrau – 30/10/24 |
Leicester 1-2 Chelsea – 23/11/24 |
|
country |
TV channel/live broadcast |
|---|---|
|
united kingdom |
Application TNT Sports 2, discovery+, discovery+ |
|
united states |
Paramount+, ViX |
|
canada |
DAZN Canada |
The 2024 Kazakhstan Premier League season ended at the start of November as Astana only managed second, meaning Grigori Babayan’s side will be well rested or rusty for the visit of Chelsea on Thursday.
Astana have struggled for goals in the Conference League and are unlikely to trouble Chelsea too much. However, Nigerian striker Geoffrey Chinedu is a force to reckon with this Thursday as the 27-year-old has scored 12 goals in 18 games for the club since joining in the summer.
Astana predicted line-up against Chelsea (4-2-3-1): Chondric; Bartolec, Kazukolovas, Kalaica, Vorogovsky; Amanovic, Ebong; Tomasov, Gripshi, Camara; Chinedu.
Maresca will bring a number of young academy players to Kazakhstan on Thursday, perhaps leaving some bigger names behind. A host of talent has been added to Chelsea’s Conference League squad on UEFA’s website, including Richard Olise, brother of Bayern Munich star Michael.
In terms of injuries, Chelsea are without Reece James and Wesley Fofana due to hamstring problems; the latter is not included in the Conference roster anyway. Mykhailo Mudryk has also been battling illness in recent games and could be missed.
Midfielder Cesare Casadei, who could have been useful for this game, is unavailable through suspension after being sent off in the 2-0 win against Heidenheim.
Chelsea predicted line-up against Astana (4-2-3-1): Jorgensen; Olise, Disacea, Adarabio, Veiga; brother-in-law, Dewsbury-Hall; George, Chukwuemeka, Felix; guide
Even a much-changed and youthful Chelsea XI should have little trouble beating Astana comfortably, especially given that a number of senior players are likely to be involved. The Kazakh side haven’t played in two weeks and will be praying their opponent’s jet lag gives them some hope for one of the biggest games in their history.
However, Chelsea have beaten some of the smaller teams in Europe during their Conference League run so far and are likely to claim a fifth straight win in the league stage with very little fuss.
