Chelsea sealed their spot in the Champions League last 16 following a hard-fought victory in a breathless contest against RB Salzburg.
Graham Potter’s side, showing four changes from their last-gasp draw with Manchester United, were initially dominant in Austria against the youngest team in the tournament, leading at the interval courtesy of Mateo Kovacic’s superb first-time strike and only denied a deserved second goal by a string of excellent saves from home goalkeeper Philipp Kohn.
However, despite their often sumptuous first-half performance that offered a possible blueprint of the future under Potter, Chelsea were made to work very hard indeed during a thrilling second period that saw chances galore at both ends.
As it was, the Blues sealed progress in Europe’s elite club competition thanks to another tremendous finish, this time Kai Havertz curling home a beauty off the crossbar after good work from Christian Pulisic with just over 25 minutes to go.
Such a result will be good enough for Chelsea to top Group E with a game to spare if Dinamo Zagreb do not beat reigning Serie A champions AC Milan in Croatia later on Tuesday evening.
It has been quite a turnaround under Potter, whose side were bottom when he took over after a dismal defeat in Zagreb - the final straw for predecessor Thomas Tuchel - was followed by a frustrating draw with Salzburg in his first match in charge.
Chelsea remain unbeaten in nine matches across all competitions under their new manager, busting Salzburg’s formidable 40-match unbeaten streak at home in the process.
It is the best start to a reign from any Chelsea manager since William Lewis all the way back in 1906/07, with Potter hoping to keep such a formidable run intact when former club Brighton play host to his current team at the Amex in the Premier League this weekend.
