Chelsea vs Qarabag, Champions League - as it happened: Result and analysis from Stamford Bridge
Follow all of the action from the Champions League match
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Your support makes all the difference.Chelsea return to the Champions League on Tuesday night when they face Azeri side FK Qarabag at Stamford Bridge.
The Blues are back in Europe's premiere club competition following a one-year absence in which they claimed the Premier League title.
After that brilliant debut year, Antonio Conte endured a difficult summer in west London and an even more difficult start to the season with that home defeat to Burnley on the opening day.
But quietly Chelsea have turned things around with three wins on the bounce and now find themselves back near the summit of the table.
Follow the live action below...
What time does it start?
The game kicks off at 7.45pm at Stamford Bridge on Tuesday 12 September.
Where can I watch it?
BT Sport ESPN will be broadcasting the game, with coverage starting at 7pm. Alternatively, return to this page for updates from our live blog.
It's a big game for...
Tiemoue Bakayoko. The young midfielder was a big part of Monaco's exciting run to the semi-finals of this competition last year, protecting his defence and releasing the likes of Kylian Mbappe, Bernardo Silva and Falcao to wreak havoc going forward. But there have been fears in west London that the departure of Nemanja Matic has weakened Chelsea with competition on both domestic and European fronts this year. A big performance from Bakayoko at the heart of Chelsea's midfield at the start of this Champions League campaign could go a long way to putting the Stamford Bridge faithful at ease.
Player to watch...
Charly Musonda. The youngster has been unlucky so far this season, coming on as a substitute in Chelsea's defeats to Arsenal, on penalties in the Community Shield, and Burnley. However, reports this week suggest Conte is set to rest some of his more senior players and Musonda himself dropped a hint on Instagram that he could be set for some more first-team action soon. An opportunity against the unfancied Qarabag could see the 20-year-old attacking midfielder make a case for more regular inclusion.
Form...
Chelsea: WWWLD
Qarabag: WLWWW
Odds...
Chelsea win: 1/6
Draw: 7/1
Qarabag win: 25/1
It’s back! The greatest club competition of them all has returned!
Good evening and welcome to The Independent’s live coverage of Tuesday’s games on Matchday One of the UEFA Champions League group stage.
We’re at Old Trafford where we’ll be bringing you extensive coverage of Manchester United’s Group A fixture with Basel along with goal updates from tonight’s seven other opening games.
GROUP A
Benfica v CSKA Moscow
Manchester United v FC Basel
GROUP B
Celtic v Paris Saint Germain
Bayern Munich v Anderlecht
GROUP C
Chelsea v FK Qarabag
Roma v Atlrtico Madrid
GROUP D
Barcelona v Juventus
Olympiakos v Sporting Lisbon
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