Djurgarden v Chelsea Prediction & Betting Tips

Thursday | 19:00 UTC | Tele2 Arena | UEFA Conference League Semi-Final (1st Leg)

Chelsea travel to Sweden to face Djurgarden in the first leg of their Europa Conference League semi-final, and while the Blues are expected to progress comfortably, the hosts might not make it easy early on.

Chelsea the Favourites but Not Flying

Enzo Marescsa’s men are massive favourites to lift the Conference League, but their road to the semi-finals hasn’t been without some speed bumps. While they’ve won all 5 of their away games in the competition, they’ve also been level at half-time in each of their last 4 in Europe.

There’s no doubt Chelsea have the firepower with Noni Madueke, Nicolas Jackson, and Jadon Sancho are all expected to feature, but recent games suggest they may need time to break Djurgarden down.

Djurgarden Overachieving but Up Against It

The Swedish side, currently 11th in the Allsvenskan, are this year’s surprise package. After a gritty win over Rapid Vienna in the last round, they’ve found themselves in uncharted territory, a European semi-final.

Their form in the competition has been impressive, winning 6 of their last 8, but they’ll face a significant step up in class on Thursday night. Still, they’ll look to stay organised and frustrate Chelsea for as long as possible.

How the Bookies See It

Chelsea are 1.35 favourites to take a first-leg lead back to London. A draw at the break and a Chelsea win at full-time is priced at 4.10, which looks like a tempting angle. You can get the Blues to win 2-0 at 6.75. Backing a Djurgardens win will get you odds of 8.80 with the draw priced at 5.00.

Head-to-Head: First Ever Meeting

This will be the first time Djurgarden and Chelsea have met in European competition.

Players to Watch

Cole Palmer’s recent dip in form has put pressure on others to step up. Nicolas Jackson and Madueke are both capable of producing match-winning moments.

For Djurgarden, forward Deniz Hümmet has chipped in with crucial goals, and they’ll hope he can trouble a Chelsea defence that hasn’t always looked watertight away from home.

Predicted Lineups

Djurgarden: Zetterstrom; Une Larsson, Danielson, Ekdal, Andersson; Finndell, Schüller; Wikheim, Chilufya, Banda; Hümmet
Chelsea: Petrovic; Gusto, Chalobah, Disasi, Cucurella; Caicedo, Fernandez; Madueke, Sancho, Palmer; Jackson