Chelsea rounded off their Champions League group stage campaign with victory last night as they defeated Croatian side Dinamo Zagreb 2-1 at Stamford Bridge.
The evening didn't get off to the start planned for Graham Potter's side and any hangover remaining from last weekend's 4-1 defeat at Brighton remained in the opening stages. The Blues defence reacted poorly to a cross and Bruni Petkovic headed the ball past Eduoard Mendy.
Raheem Sterling's first goal since the middle of September calmed some nerves after good play from Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang. Chelsea completed the turnaround late in the first half when Denis Zakaria marked his debut for the club with a right-footed finish from just inside the penalty area.
READ MORE: Three things learned from Chelsea's win over Dinamo Zagreb as Denis Zakaria makes debut mark
The victory means Potter continues his 100% record in the Champions League at Chelsea. The draw for the knockout stages of the competition takes place on Monday November 7 in Nyon, Switzerland.
Here's how the national media reacted to the win:
The Express
Ryan Taylor writes: "Graham Potter will welcome this much-needed victory for more reasons than one after Chelsea banked £9.6million in Champions League prize money to bolster their January transfer kitty.
"Qualification for the last 16 alone was worth a lucrative sum of £8.2million and Chelsea had already made sure of that with the 2-1 win over Red Bull Salzburg in Austria last week.
"However, the Blues will also receive an additional £1.4million for Wednesday's win over Dinamo which is the figure every club nets for each Champions League victory - regardless of its importance and impact on potential qualification.
"It's a welcome bonus for co-owner Todd Boehly, who is highly anticipated to back his new head coach when the market opens in January with further reinforcements despite a £270million splurge this summer that was masterminded by former boss Thomas Tuchel before his emotional departure.
"A midfielder is understood to be of priority to Potter while some additional cover in defence could also be on the agenda given Chelsea have been scraping the barrel in that department in recent weeks due to a series of injuries."
The Guardian
Simon Mail writes: "Chelsea overcame a troubled start in the Champions League, which began with a defeat in Zagreb, to safely top their group – after back‑to‑back wins against Milan – and this win, albeit with little in the way of jeopardy, was the required response after the drubbing at Brighton on Saturday.
"Potter may have feared the worst, though, after Bruno Petkovic’s early header raised the possibility of an unlikely double for Zagreb. Chelsea gathered themselves and responded, with Raheem Sterling scoring a timely equaliser after a goal drought stretching back to the middle of September. Denis Zakaria crowned his debut for Chelsea by scoring the first-half winner. The hosts had further chances to increase the lead but were largely untroubled, after the inauspicious start, in closing the group stage with a fourth victory."
The Telegraph
Matt Law writes: "Denis Zakaria only needed to stay on the pitch for longer than 45 minutes to better the last Chelsea debut from an on-loan midfielder, but his goal capped an excellent performance that offered encouragement that the spirit of Saul Niguez does not live on at Stamford Bridge.
"Saul was dragged off at half-time on his debut last season, but Zakaria helped put Chelsea on their way to a Champions League success with not just a goal but also a display that he will hope could kick-start his career in blue.
"There was some concern that Zakaria was forced off with 20 minutes remaining after receiving a kick, but Graham Potter confirmed he had not been injured and it did at least afford the player a standing ovation from the two-and-half sides of Stamford Bridge that he limped his way around to the tunnel.
"It proved to be a special night for debutant Zakaria, who had not played a single minute for Chelsea since joining the club on loan from Juventus until Wednesday night.
"The midfielder, who has already been linked with a January return to Turin, looked emotional as he celebrated giving Chelsea the lead with his team-mates after half-an-hour.
"Zakaria’s lack of action had drawn comparisons with Saul’s tough season on loan at Chelsea last term, but the man nicknamed ‘the Octopus’ can already now claim to have contributed more than the Spaniard.
"Coming off the back of his first defeat to Brighton, Potter clearly wanted to rebuild momentum ahead of a tough run of games before the break for the World Cup starting with Arsenal on Sunday."
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