Chelsea produced a stellar collective performance to beat Barcelona 3–0 on Tuesday night, with the Blues dominant before the visitors were reduced to 10 men.
Enzo Maresca’s side had two goals ruled out before they eventually broke the deadlock through a fortuitous own goal, and the fifth red card of Ronald Araújo’s Barça career meant the La Liga champions were unable to fight their way back into the contest.
Brazilian sensation Estêvão upstaged Lamine Yamal and scored a majestic second for the home side, who secured their most significant Champions League triumph since Kai Havertz netted the only goal in the 2021 final.
Liam Delap’s maiden strike in the competition capped off a wonderful night for Maresca and his men, with Chelsea, who moved up to fourth in the league phase table, suddenly in a strong position to claim a top eight finish and qualify automatically for the round of 16.
Chelsea Player Ratings vs. Barcelona (4-2-3-1)
GK: Robert Sánchez—8.2: Probably would’ve thought he was in for a busy night, but Burnley tested him more at the weekend. The red card just before the break helped in ensuring the visitors were limited going forward.
RB: Malo Gusto—6.7: Withdrawn at half-time, but he played a crucial role in helping Chelsea overwhelm Barcelona’s left-hand side, all while supplying impressive energy without the ball.
CB: Wesley Fofana—6.8: The Frenchman is the best centre back at Maresca’s disposal, and Chelsea will almost always be better off when he’s in the starting XI. That was evident again here.
CB: Trevoh Chalobah—7.1: Chalobah was excellent when called upon, with his positional play superb.
LB: Marc Cucurella—7.5: Unorthodox at times, but Yamal was tamed. Cucurella had his say in the final third, too.
DM: Reece James—8.3: Had one or two hairy moments early on, but settled into a rhythm and contributed to a dominant Chelsea performance in midfield.
DM: Moisés Caicedo—7.6: The Ecuadorian sat at the base of Chelsea’s midfield and didn’t allow Barcelona to pass. Caicedo snapped into challenges in his trademark fashion and was clever with the ball.
RW: Estêvão—8.0: It‘s fair to say the Brazilian international was the standout teenager at Stamford Bridge on Tuesday night.
AM: Enzo Fernández—7.4: This was an all-encompassing performance from the Argentine, who was unlucky not to get on the scoresheet. Still, he did tee up Delap’s goal with a rather unselfish square pass.
LW: Alejandro Garnacho—7.0: Direct and dangerous when he faced up against Jules Koundé one-on-one.
ST: Pedro Neto—6.9: Chelsea’s primary outlet in behind the Barça backline. Maresca’s utilisation of him was smart. His straight-line running proved troublesome out wide in the second half.
Subs not used: Filip Jörgensen (GK), Jorrel Hato, Benoît Badiashile, Tosin Adarabioyo, Facundo Buonanotte, João Pedro, Marc Guiu
Barcelona (4-2-3-1)
Starting XI: Joan García; Jules Koundé, Ronald Araújo, Pau Cubarsí, Alejandro Balde; Frenkie de Jong, Eric García; Lamine Yamal, Fermín López, Ferran Torres; Robert Lewandowski
Subs used: Marcus Rashford, Raphinha, Andreas Christensen, Gerard Martín, Dani Olmo
Player of the Match: Reece James (Chelsea)
Chelsea 3–0 Barcelona—How It Unfolded at Stamford Bridge
Stamford Bridge greeted Barcelona for the first time since 2018, with resentment still prevalent in SW6 from the 2009 Champions League semifinal.
There was undeniably a big game feel to Tuesday’s bout—even if both sides are bereft of the superstars who defined their contests of yesteryear.
Goals are never too far away when Hansi Flick’s side are involved. Both teams came close to breaking the deadlock in the opening exchanges. Wesley Fofana’s handball ruled out Enzo Fernández’s early strike, then a build-up error from the hosts was somehow not seized upon by Ferran Torres who fired wide.
From then on, the Blues were the superior force. Key to their success was their intensity and diligence out of possession, with the visitors struggling to bypass Chelsea’s orientation. Moisés Caicedo was once again dominant at the base of midfield, Malo Gusto flew up and down the right flank, while Fernández offered his best Frank Lampard impersonation.
Maresca’s men functioned in impressive harmony to stifle Barça, who struggled to muster a chance after Torres’s miss. Fernández had a second goal chalked off, this time for offside, from a free-kick before Chelsea eventually took a deserved lead thanks to a Jules Koundé own goal. A neat short corner routine led to Pedro Neto flicking a Marc Cucurella cross goal-bound, and Koundé, in tandem with Torres, made a mess of an attempted block on the goal-line.
That was just reward for Chelsea’s endeavour, and they received a major boost before the interval, as Cucurella drew the already booked Ronald Araújo into a wild lunge that warranted a second caution.
Chelsea deserve h-t lead, tactics working well, pace and pressing, punishing Barca high-line. Bold f-bs Gusto & Cucurella (excellent v Yamal) James in midfield, Caicedo orchestrating, Enzo runs into box, Neto runs in behind and threat from wingers especially Estevao. #CHEBAR #CFC
— Henry Winter (@henrywinter) November 25, 2025
The dynamic must’ve reminded some of the memorable triumph over Tottenham Hotspur in November 2023, when Ange Postecoglou refused to deepen his defensive line despite his side, up against Chelsea, being reduced to nine men. There was similar stubbornness on display from Hansi Flick here and the Blues made the most of it.
A third disallowed goal, which denied Andrey Santos his first in the competition, was quickly followed by the sequence of the contest from Chelsea’s burgeoning Brazilian down the right. Estêvão slipped his way through Barça gold and thumped an emphatic weak-footed effort beyond Joan García.
The Bridge erupted, with the teenager producing his first major moment of surely many on the big stage in west London.
There was little Barcelona could offer in response, with Chelsea adding a third through substitute Liam Delap after Fernández finally compromised the offside trap. A joyous home crowd may have fancied Maresca’s side to run up the score against their former continental foes, but Chelsea instead finished the contest with a lengthy sequence of passes that epitomised their dominance.
Chelsea vs. Barcelona Half-Time Stats
Chelsea vs. Barcelona Full Time Stats
READ THE LATEST CHAMPIONS LEAGUE NEWS, PREVIEWS AND PLAYER RATINGS
This article was originally published on www.si.com as Chelsea Player Ratings vs. Barcelona: Estevao Outshines Yamal in Superb Blues Win.
