Timo Werner scored two goals from the penalty spot as Chelsea made it three wins on the bounce without conceding, to ease past 10-man Rennes 3-0 on Wednesday night.
The German who has taken over penalty duties from Jorginho fired home both efforts from 12 yards as Dalbert was a culprit for Rennes on both occasions, tripping Werner for the first before the ball bounced off his arm in the penalty area for the second, which drew a second yellow card for the full-back after a VAR review.
The extra man advantage for Chelsea allowed them to enjoy their football for 90 minutes as Rennes could not muster much. Tammy Abraham tapped in from a Reece James cross to grab Chelsea’s third as they took control of Group E.
The result earns Edouard Mendy another clean sheet against his former club, and it makes it 540 minutes since he conceded across all competitions as Chelsea have kept five straight clean sheets for the first time since 2010.
Stats and facts from the match (Backed by Opta)
- Chelsea are unbeaten in their last eight Champions League group stage games (W5 D3), last going longer without such a defeat in the competition in November 2010 (13 games – W10 D3).
- Werner has been directly involved in 13 goals (10 goals, three assists) in his last 14 Champions League appearances, with each of his last five such goals coming from the penalty spot.
- Abraham is the first player to score in three consecutive Champions League starts for Chelsea since Willian in 2015, and the first Englishman to do so since Frank Lampard in 2008.
- Chelsea’s 3-0 victory is the biggest home win by a side under an English manager in the UEFA Champions League since Harry Redknapp’s Tottenham beat Werder Bremen (3-0) in November 2010.
Barcelona 2-1 Dynamo Kyiv: Messi scores a penalty as Barca maintains perfect record
Barcelona maintained their perfect record in Group G after a 2-1 win over Dynamo Kyiv keeps them atop the group.
Lionel Messi handed Ronald Koeman’s men the lead inside 6 minutes from the penalty spot having been tripped by Denys Popov. Gerard Pique made it two with 65 minutes gone, following a corner.
Dynamo captain Viktor Tsygankov reduced the deficit with 15 minutes left, knocking in a rebound.
The Catalans, despite their poor domestic form, are thriving in Europe and have won three straight games on the bounce.
Ferencvaros 1-4 Juventus: Morata scores twice as Juventus win
Alvaro Morata scored twice while Paulo Dybala ended his goal drought for the Lady as Juventus won 4-1 at Ferencvaros.
Cristiano Ronaldo made a return to the Champions League following his recovery from coronavirus, which saw the Portugal forward miss the defeat to Barcelona.
The Italians were in front after seven minutes courtesy of Alvaro Morata who also made it two on the hour with a beautiful curler.
Paulo Dybala tapped in a third with 18 minutes left, before an own goal from Lasha Dvali completed the scoring for the visitors while Franck Boli netted a late consolation.
The results in Group G mean Barcelona are top with nine points, Juventus second on six, with Dynamo Kyiv and Ferencvaros trailing on a point apiece.
Other Wednesday results: UEFA Champions League
- Istanbul Buyuksehir 2-1 Manchester United
- Zenit St. Petersburg 1-1 Lazio
- Barcelona 2-1 Dynamo Kiev
- Chelsea 3-0 Rennes
- Club Brugge 0-3 Borussia Dortmund
- Ferencvaros 1-4 Juventus
- RB Leipzig 2-1 Paris Saint-Germain
- Sevilla 3-2 Krasnodar
15 thoughts on “Champions League Roundup: Chelsea maintains perfect start; Barca and Juve win in Group G”