Chelsea 4 Gent 2: Nkunku celebrates France recall with goal that seals Conference League victory for rejigged Blues side
CHRISTOPHER NKUNKU celebrated his recall for France with a killer goal for rejigged Chelsea.
The injury-jinxed £55million striker is finally back in the international game for the first time since joining the Premier League side in June last year.
His 63rd-minute goal was enough to see off stubborn Gent, who fought back from 2-0 down to make a fight of it in the second half.
It was also Nkunku’s seventh goal of the season as he battles to impress head coach Enzo Maresca and prove he has finally overcome a serious knee problem.
Versatile Portuguese Under-21 left back Veiga nodded Chelsea in front after 11 minutes with a header taken more like a striker than a defender and claim his first goal for the club.
Mykhailo Mudryk delivered a high cross over the box from an unfamiliar position on the right and Veiga was unmarked at the far post.
But it still took calm finishing to direct the ball into the opposite corner and beat the keeper.
Yet the early boost failed to trigger a wave of goals in a frustrating first half.
Maresca’s team was a much tamer version of that which plundered four in the first 45 minutes against Brighton last Saturday in the Premier League.
With an entirely changed starting XI it was too much to ask for a repeat performance.
FOOTBALL FREE BETS AND SIGN UP DEALS
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall fired wide, as did Pedro Neto.
But in a few worrying moments, so did Gent striker Andri Gudjohnsen, son of ex-Chelsea forward Eidur, who was sitting in the Stamford Bridge West Stand watching his lad following in his bootsteps.
Gudjohnsen Jnr’s shot whistled just over the bar in the 35th minute but they also threatened through English defender Archie Brown who shot straight at Chelsea keeper Filip Jorgensen.
It looked game over when Veiga’s fellow countryman Neto made it 2-0 less than a minute into the second half, cashing in on hesitancy in the Gent defence to blast home from a tight angle.
But Gudjohnsen Snr will have been proud to see his lad provide the cross that saw the Belgians pull a goal back in the 49th minute after Chelsea failed to clear from a corner.
Defender Tsuyoshi Watanabe headed in in similar style to Veiga to liven things up on the pitch and off it – with the visiting fans hurling objects at home supporters in the Shed End.
Nkunku finally saw off Gent with 23 minutes left with a drilled shot past the keeper.
Dewsbury-Hall’s goal in the 70th minute meant Chelsea eventually scored four goals for the second match in a row.
Gent sub Omri Gandelman made it 4-2 in the 90th minute.