Liverpool’s participation in the 2024/25 UEFA Champions League has been confirmed after Tottenham fell to a 2-0 loss at Stamford Bridge on Thursday.
A depleted Chelsea side leapt into the lead in the first half, with a VAR check clearing Marc Cucurella of any wrongdoing in the buildup to Trevoh Chalobah’s opener.
Cole Palmer’s free-kick delivery allowed Nicolas Jackson to nod the rebound into an empty net with twenty minutes remaining, dealing a damaging blow to Ange Postecoglou’s hopes of qualifying for Europe’s elite competition in his debut season with Spurs.
As it happened
April hasn’t been a month to remember for the Lilywhites. They’ve recorded just one win – and defeat in SW6 on Thursday dented their dreams of securing UEFA Champions League football for next season.
Midway through the first half, Trevoh Chalobah opened the scoring – rising to nod Conor Gallagher’s free-kick delivery past the goalkeeper. A lengthy VAR check ensued, with Chalobah’s blushes ultimately spared as Marc Cucurella was adjudged not to have fouled Brennan Johnson in the buildup.
Embed from Getty ImagesAnge Postecoglou’s men were utterly uninspiring throughout. Cristian Romero squandered their best chance in the first half as he nodded wide from inside the six-yard box, allowing Chelsea to tighten their grip on the match when play resumed for the final 45 minutes.
It would be in the 71st minute that Mauricio Pochettino’s side doubled their lead, with Cole Palmer’s free-kick from the edge of the area striking the crossbar and falling to Nicolas Jackson – the Senegalese forward nodding into an empty net to ensure Chelsea can mount a late challenge for European football next season.
The lineups
CHE: Petrović; Cucurella, Badiashile, Chalobah, Gilchrist; Gallagher, Caicedo; Mudryk, Palmer, Madueke; Jackson
TOT: Vicario; Emerson, van de Ven, Romero, Porro; Sarr, Bissouma; Son, Kulusevski, Johnson; Richarlison
