The £22m Squad Out To Shock Chelsea - How Qarabag Are Defying Odds

Having been mocked connected their debut successful nan Champions League group shape 8 years ago, Azerbaijani broadside Qarabag person proved a astonishment package successful this season's competition.

They mislaid 6-0 astatine Chelsea and 4-0 astatine location successful that difficult 2017-18 campaign, claiming conscionable 2 points from a group featuring Atletico Madrid and Roma, and earning nan derisory nickname "carrier bag".

Qarabag person since recovered their feet successful Europe and, having matched Chelsea's six points from a imaginable 9 successful nan first 3 convention shape matches, they will person to beryllium taken much earnestly successful Wednesday's gathering successful Baku (KO 17:45).

Having often faltered successful nan qualifying rounds of nan competition, they gained a melodramatic first triumph successful nan main shape pinch a superb comeback occurrence astatine Benfica, winning 3-2 aft being 2-0 down and prompting nan Portuguese broadside to sack Bruno Lage and name Jose Mourinho.

Qarabag past hit Copenhagen 2-0 astatine location earlier going a extremity up astatine Spanish broadside Athletic Club, but losing 3-1.

They person tripled their extremity haul from nan 2017-18 campaign, raising hopes among supporters they tin proceed to defy expectations.

Should Gurban Gurbanov's broadside hit Chelsea, it would beryllium Qarabag's astir notable triumph successful their 200th European match.

Chelsea head Enzo Maresca is alert this is simply a tricky test, particularly fixed nan nine-hour information travel to Baku and four-hour clip difference.

"To beryllium honest, they are a very bully team," he said. "Well organised, very aggravated successful nan measurement they property and activity together arsenic a team, you tin spot that it's many, galore years they activity pinch nan aforesaid manager, 17 years, it is unbelievable. It will beryllium reliable particularly because they are astatine home.

"We will get [back successful London] connected Thursday astatine 6am successful nan morning, We person a crippled connected Saturday nighttime and person to adapt."

However, beating English guidance successful Europe has been truthful acold intolerable for Qarabag, having not moreover drawn a lucifer successful 7 attempts. scoring erstwhile and conceding 21 successful defeats by Chelsea, Tottenham, Arsenal and Liverpool.

When asked by BBC Sport, Qarabag head Gurbanov said: "Unfortunately, we haven't beaten English guidance because nan Premier League is nan apical level, nan strongest convention successful nan world.

"Qarabag has developed a batch [since past facing Chelsea] but nan spread [between nan clubs] is still dangerous. We person to beryllium capable to guidelines connected our feet, play our football, conflict and person a awesome lucifer for our fans. Any triumph would beryllium bully for us.

"Welcoming Chelsea to Baku is simply a bully accomplishment for america and will thief create this mini shot country."

Founded successful 1951, nan nine are primitively from Agdam successful Azerbaijan but, because of nan conflict complete Nagorno-Karabakh, nan squad has agelong played their location matches elsewhere and nicknamed "the exile club".

A bid woody was signed successful nan White House successful August to extremity nan decades-long Nagorno-Karabakh conflict betwixt Armenia and Azerbaijan, but nan nine had already near their location metropolis successful 1993.

The imaginable of a return is improbable immoderate clip soon, fixed nan region needs rebuilding pinch mines still littered crossed nan area.

Domestic domination has earned them introduction into Uefa competitions since nan 1996-97 season.

Key landmarks see a first Europa League group-stage quality successful 2014-15, nan maiden Champions League outing 3 years later - earning draws location and distant against Atletico Madrid - and a first qualification to nan knockout rounds of nan Europa League successful 2023-24, by beating Portuguese nine Braga successful nan play-off.

Qarabag stay minnows astatine this level, though.

According to Transfermarkt, nan squad is weighted astatine nether £22m, which is little than £1m per player, and they person spent little than £7m connected transfers since 2020.

Chelsea person spent complete £1.5bn successful 3 seasons, albeit balanced by important subordinate sales, pinch a squad now worthy much than £1bn.

"I person ne'er focused connected budgets. I conscionable effort to accommodate and we person to do our champion to execute our goals," added Gurbanov.

Capped 68 times by Azerbaijan, erstwhile striker Gurbanov is arguably nan country's astir salient footballing fig aft securing landmark wins successful Europe during his 17-year tenure, making him nan longest-serving head successful nan Champions League.

Their betterment and occurrence successful home shot has seen them viewed otherwise excessively - nicknamed "the Barcelona of nan Caucasus" aft claiming 11 of nan past 12 convention titles.

In Europe, however, Qarabag are not acrophobic to beryllium a spot much pragmatic.

They are 2nd down Union Saint-Gilloise for shot recoveries this word and 2nd down Pafos for clearances, pinch conscionable an mean possession stock of 46.7 per cent.

Packed mostly pinch Azerbaijan players, their cardinal overseas talent includes winger Leandro Andrade, who has scored 3 goals, on pinch Montenegrin creator Marko Jankovic and French attacker Abdellah Zoubir.

There will beryllium a sold-out 32,000 crowd astatine Tofiq Bahramov Stadium - built successful 1939 and named aft nan linesman who awarded Geoff Hurst's infamous extremity for England against West Germany successful nan 1966 World Cup final.

There will nary uncertainty beryllium heroic acclaim for nan Qarabag players should they flooded Chelsea and triumph back-to-back location games successful a awesome European title for a first clip successful their history.

If past season's Europa League aliases Champions League are thing to spell by - their existent six-point tally intends Qarabag are conscionable 3 aliases 4 points distant from reaching nan play-off round.

Should they hit Chelsea, they will person a awesome chance to participate nan knockout information directly.

However, nan play-offs are a much realistic target, pinch Napoli, Ajax, Eintracht Frankfurt and Liverpool their remaining guidance during nan convention phase.