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Chelsea faced Antonio Conte's Napoli in the UEFA Champions League on January 29, 2026, at Stadio Diego Armando Maradona. After leading the match with Enzo Fernandez's penalty in the 19th minute, Chelsea fell behind 2-1 before Joao Pedro's brace sent the Blues straight to the Champions League round of 16.

Notably, Chelsea have not won away in the Champions League since October 2022. They led through Enzo Fernandez's penalty and looked ready to throw away that lead after Rasmus Højlund's goal in the 43rd minute. It took Cole Palmer's impactful cameo in the second half to set up Joao Pedro’s goals and bolster Liam Rosenior's strong start with the Blues since replacing Enzo Maresca.

Following the match, Chelsea boss Liam Rosenior praised Cole Palmer and his impact in the game despite not playing the full 90 minutes due to his fitness issues.

Liam Rosenior On Cole Palmer's Impact Against Napoli

Cole Palmer had endured an injury-hit season so far and was not fit to start against Napoli in the Champions League. However, after he came on the field in the second half, the English player made sure to make his presence felt.

Liam Rosenior shared, "There was no way that Cole could have started this game and played through to 60, 70, 80 minutes... I felt that later in the game we would be stronger, and I felt Cole’s performance was magnificent. Not just his quality, his pressing, his running for the team. We need to look after him. He’s had so many games over a long period of time."

He further added, "We need to look after him, and I think the way that he’s managed himself in the last two weeks has been magnificent, and hopefully we can now see the best of him now that he’s fully fit. We need to see him absolutely relish nights like this on a big occasion."

Liam Rosenior Praise Joao Pedro

The Chelsea manager also praised Joao Pedro and shared that there's more to come from the Brazilian. Additionally, he also lauded the brace netted by him and shared his delight at having Pedro on his team.