Chelsea secured their place in the Conference League’s round of 16 with a convincing 3-1 win over Astana in freezing temperatures in Kazakhstan.

Two goals from Marc Guiu and a header from Renato Veiga gave Enzo Maresca’s team a 3-0 lead within 40 minutes. Marin Tomasov’s fine effort for Astana just before half-time ensured Chelsea couldn’t relax after the break.

Head coach Enzo Maresca’s decision to field a very inexperienced 20-man squad, 12 of whom were academy players, was rewarded despite the discomfort of playing in -11°C.

“The Athlete”Chelsea correspondent Simon Johnson watched the game from afar and highlighted these talking points.

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Achampeong shows why he is in demand

You can see why Chelsea were so keen to get Josh Acheampong to sign a contract extension.

This was Acheampong’s first professional start for the club – having made his professional debut as a substitute against former head coach Mauricio Pochettino’s Tottenham in May. Acheampong played alongside Tosin Adarabioyo at right centre-back and showed why he is so highly valued at the club. Defensively he may not have been tested as often, but his composure on the ball was very impressive.

Pedro Neto showed he had the ball at his feet and showed off his skills with a great early through ball. In the 38th minute, he confidently dribbled past several opponents into the penalty area, but his shot was blocked.

There were a couple of occasions before the break where he might have been out of position at the back, but he very calmly intercepted a cross aimed at Ousmane Camara at the back post. Camara also outwitted him with a dribble to score a cross soon after the restart, but there were a few other occasions when he made clever interceptions as Astana tried to score a second goal.

Acheampong would certainly have played under Maresca more than once if talks over a new deal hadn’t broken down. The 18-year-old, who came on as a substitute against Barrow in the Carabao Cup three months ago, was told he would not play for any Chelsea team, youth or senior, when negotiations stalled shortly afterwards.

In contrast to the icy conditions in Astana, the situation has thawed in recent weeks and is showing signs of positive development. He was seen training with the first team before the Heidenheim game two weeks ago and played for the U21s for the first time since September on November 29th.

Maresca said before this trip that a contract was close and that he would start against Astana. Certainly it is only a matter of time before an official announcement is made.

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Did Chukwuemeka impress with a rare appearance?

Carney Chukwuemeka won’t worry too much about the quality of the opposition, he’ll just relish the rare opportunity to show what he can do.

The midfielder hasn’t had much chance of justifying his £20million price tag since joining from Aston Villa in 2022. In his first season at Chelsea he made just 15 appearances (lasting 362 minutes) and due to injury only made 12 appearances (254 minutes) in 2023-24. Maresca revealed in September that he had told Chukwuemeka that it was better to leave him in the summer to get more first-team football, but no move (loan or permanent) occurred.

This was his first start under Maresca, having made four appearances as a substitute so far, and he should be pretty happy with how things have turned out. Playing at the front of a midfield diamond, Chukwuemeka was involved throughout, either running behind the Astana defenders or carrying the ball forward to launch another Chelsea attack.

The 21-year-old perhaps could have done a little better with some of his shooting chances or the positions occupied in the penalty area, but given the lack of playing time, it was a positive performance.

Maresca replaced him with Harvey Vale in the 67th minute, but Chelsea’s head coach clearly liked what he saw as he greeted him with his arms outstretched.

The transfer window opens in less than three weeks and Chukwuemeka’s future will certainly be up for discussion again. However, it would be a shame to see him go elsewhere because Chukwuemeka has a lot to offer and, given this evidence, could still be a useful option for Chelsea in the second half of the season.

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Academy joy in the cold of Astana

This should be remembered as a great night for the Chelsea academy.

Acheampong was actually one of seven homegrown academy players given the opportunity to shine on the European stage.

With Chelsea already comfortably top of the Conference League group, a 7,000-mile round trip to Kazakhstan looming and Brentford awaiting in the Premier League on Sunday, Maresca opted to leave the majority of his regular players behind in England.

Astana may only be ranked 129th in the UEFA coefficient, 121 places behind Chelsea, but Maresca’s decision to include so many young players (12 in total) was still great to see.

With Chelsea having spent over £1 billion on new signings in the last two years, it is important for the club to show its young players that they still have a way to play.

Three young players – Ato Ampah, Kiano Dyer and Shumaira Mheuka – made their debut on the bench in the second half. At 17 years and 54 days, Mheuka is the second youngest player to represent Chelsea in Europe. Samuel Rak-Sakyi, playing at the base of a midfield diamond, was called up to the eleven for the first time and arguably impressed the most.

Winger Tyrique George was the only U21 representative alongside Acheampong to complete the full 90 minutes. Vale, Chelsea’s 2022 Academy Player of the Year, made his first appearance for the club in over two years after loan spells at Hull City and Bristol Rovers.

It will be a struggle for all of them to get minutes in the Premier League and no-one should be under any illusions about how difficult it is to become a regular in the senior team.

But opportunities like these should only be viewed as positives and many will surely be taken again when Chelsea face Shamrock Rovers at home in the final group stage game next week.

(Top photo: Konstantin Chalabov/AFP via Getty Images)