The first day of Champions League group stage action featured a surprise as heavy underdog Valencia upset Chelsea 0-1 in their Group H opener.
Los Che, who finished fourth in La Liga last season and won the Copa del Rey competition, appeared unfazed by the raucous environment at Stamford Bridge in London and held strong until Rodrigo Moreno was able to score the game-winning goal in the 74th minute of the match.
Chelsea was simply unable to find the net, despite a few clear chances and a penalty awarded by VAR for a handball committed by Valencia winger Daniel Wass in the 87th minute, which Ross Barkley clanged off of the crossbar.
That lack of finishing ability ruined Chelsea manager Frank Lampard’s debut as a coach in the Champions League competition and puts them in a hole going forward in what could be a challenging group. Ajax defeated Lille 3-0 to gain three points along with Valencia.
The win is even more unlikely considering all of the turmoil experienced by Valencia last week. The team fired coach Marcelino Garcia after a slow start to the season despite his run of success with the club over the past two seasons, replacing him with Albert Celades.
Celades struck gold in his first Champions League match, putting Valencia in a position to challenge for a spot in the competition’s knockout rounds.
