UEFA YOUTH LEAGUE
Chelsea 0-3 Barcelona UEFA Youth League final: report
A brace from Marques and a late strike by Abel Ruiz sealed victory for Barcelona in the UEFA Youth League final over Chelsea in Nyon. Cruz Azul vs America: Liga MX, live online
Chelsea 0-3 Barcelona: match report
Barcelona won their second UEFA Youth League final in the competition's five-year history by beating Chelsea 3-0 in Nyon on Monday afternoon.
Chelsea were missing two of their most influencial players in Ethan Ampadu, who is out for the rest of the season with a broken ankle, and Trevor Chalobah, who was suspended for the game. It showed too as Chelsea struggled to gain a foothold in the game until it was almost out of sight.
Barcelona hassled and harried Chelsea when out of possession and were patient when they had the ball. It resulted in a goal after 33 minutes when Alejandro Marques headed home after a powerful Abel Ruiz run down the left hand side.
The first half drew to a close with the English side getting a shot at goal while Barcelona sent 11 in that direction.
It was Chelsea who designed their own downfall in the second half when a mistake at the back gifted Marques a one-on-one. He slotted home and Chelsea, who were struggling anyway, were now in a hole partly of their own digging.
They did improve and tested Peña in goals for Barcelona along with hitting the post and crossbar but it wasn't their day and they left it too late. Abel Ruiz scored at the death to ensure there would be no late comeback by Chelsea.
Chelsea U-19 vs Barcelona U-19 live stream online: commentary
Chelsea U-19 vs Barcelona U-19 live stream online: preview
The UEFA Youth League ends on Monday with Chelsea playing Barcelona in the final at the Centre sportif de Colovray in Nyon.
Chelsea saw off a decent Porto challenge in the semi-final having already beaten Real Madrid in Valdebebas in the quarter-final. Their pedigree in this competition is not in question and they have won it twice in its four years of existence.
Barcelona beat Manchester City in a belting affair on Friday, which ended 5-4. City had a man sent off in the first half and might have come back to beat the Spanish side if they weren't at such a disadvantage. They were excellent, at times, in attack on that occasion but dodgy in defence and that's something the English side will look to capitalise on in the final on Monday.