Chelsea outcast has last laugh over new £42m Enzo Maresca signing after shock red card

The UEFA European Under-21 Championship quarter-final between Portugal and the Netherlands had it all with two players that have very different associations to Chelsea involved.

That knockout clash took place at the same time England and tournament favourites Spain were battling it out. Lee Carsley’s side raced into a two-goal lead before the deficit was reduced from the penalty spot. The young Three Lions held firm and scored from 12 yards themselves to make it 3-1.

Portugal and the Netherlands would battle it out to see who Englands opponents in the semi-final would be with a red card and penalty missed in the opening 31 minutes.

Dutch winger Ruben van Bommel was the player dismissed when he picked up a second yellow in the 21st minute. Just before the half hour mark, the Netherlands were awarded a penalty but it was missed by Geovany Quenda.

The versatile 18-year-old has endured an exciting last few months with he and Dario Essugo having moves from Sporting CP to Chelsea agreed for a combined £62.5million. The latter was confirmed as a new addition for the Blues earlier this month but Quenda is set to remain in Portugal for the 2025/26 season.

When he does report back for pre-season, he will likely see several changes as both Viktor Gyokeres and Ousmane Diomande are being linked with departures. The latter is expected to be Crystal Palace’s replacement for former Chelsea man Marc Guehi if he joins Liverpool.

Quenda was up against an ex-Blues star in Ian Maatsen during his most recent outing and it was the now Aston Villa star that played a decisive role in seeing the Netherlands through at Portugal’s expense.

Despite playing with a man disadvantage for an hour, they remained in the game and actually opened the scoring with six minutes left on the clock. Maatsen put Ernest Poku through on goal with a perfect first-time pass and the AZ Alkmaar forward finished clinically.

Maatsen made just 16 senior appearances during his six years at the club before being sold to Villa for £37.5million. That was seen as quite a significant fee but strong loan spells at Burnley and Borussia Dortmund perhaps justified it.

The 23-year-old and his teammates, which includes Chelsea-linked Jorrel Hato, will now face England for a spot in the final. Chelsea have no representatives in Carsley’s squad with new signing Liam Delap allowed to go to the Club World Cup instead.

Tino Livramento was once on their books though but he is now at Newcastle and plays in a full-back duo with another former Chelsea defender in Lewis Hall.