The Brazilian fired us in front on the quarter-hour but two Qarabag goals in nine minutes, from Leandro Andrade and a penalty by Marko Jankovic, turned the game on its head before the break.

A triple substitution at half-time redressed the balance in our favour, and Garnacho levelled with a fine left-footed strike.

Chelsea had the better of the chances thereafter - with Garnacho going closest to winning it in added time – but by the end of an absorbing European encounter in Baku, we had to settle for a point.

Team news

Enzo Maresca continued to make full use of his squad, with seven changes to the side that started against Tottenham.

Tosin Adarabioyo and Jorrel Hato formed the central defensive partnership tonight, flanked by Reece James, making his 150th start, and Marc Cucurella. Andrey Santos and Romeo Lavia came into the midfield, while Estevao, Joao Pedro and Jamie Gittens supported Tyrique George in attack.

Early change

Lavia’s evening came to a premature end when he pulled up and had to be replaced by Moises Caicedo seven minutes in. The Ecuadorian fizzed a shot over with his first touch.

Santos passed up a presentable chance on his right as we sought to quieten the vociferous home support inside the Tofiq Bahramov Stadium. The 800 travelling Blues fans were making themselves heard, too.

At the other end, Hato did well to muscle Qarabag striker Camilo Duran off the ball as he threatened to get a clear sight of goal. The Dutchman then made a vital interception to deny the Colombian.

Estevao strikes but Qarabag hit back

It had been an entertaining start. And it was crowned by a Chelsea goal on 15 minutes, made in Brazil. A cute Joao Pedro pass through midfield gave Andrey Santos space to drive into, and he shifted the ball right to Estevao. The 18-year-old cut inside and fired past the keeper at his near post. Estevao’s second Champions League goal for us was our 350th in the competition.

Our hosts did not go into their shell, though, and Cucurella had to be alert to clear a low centre away from danger. It would have been a certain equaliser if not.

However, there was nothing the Blues could do to prevent Andrade levelling on the half-hour. Duran worked his way into the box and saw his shot rebound off the right-hand post, but only as far as Andrade, who calmly steered his volley into the opposite corner. 1-1.

We were fortunate not to go behind when Elvin Zafarquliev overlapped and received a fine return pass before thumping his shot over the crossbar. The reprieve was temporary. From the resulting goal-kick, Hato lost the ball and was then adjudged to have handled the cross that followed. Jankovic sent Robert Sanchez the wrong way from the spot.

The Blues had looked defensively exposed all game and now we had been punished for it. There was plenty of work to do after the interval, and Maresca responded to what he had seen by making a triple sub at half-time. On came Enzo Fernandez, Garnacho and Liam Delap for Santos, Gittens and George.

Instant impact

The changes soon paid off. On 52 minutes, Delap did well to spin inside our half and launch a counter-attack by releasing Garnacho down the left. His initial pass was intercepted but only back into his path, and the Argentinian created a yard for himself before unerringly finding the far corner.

Fernandez then almost immediately put us in front after Delap had run in behind and teed him up. Mateusz Kochalski in the Qarabag goal got a strong hand to the shot, palming it around the post. This was more like it.

Suddenly we were looking sharper in and out of possession, though Qarabag’s commitment to throwing men forward remained. Delap was keen to expose the hosts’ high line, and one shot at the end of a run from deep almost did just that.

With 20 minutes to go, Maresca played his final hand, bringing Facundo Buonanotte on for Joao Pedro.

Going close

We kept pushing hard for a decisive fifth goal. Sensational skill from Estevao created space for Fernandez to have a shot that whistled a fraction over the bar. His compatriot Buonanotte also went close from distance, and then with time almost up, Fernandez’s strike took a touch off Delap before it could threaten Kochalski.

Both teams had great chances to win it in the five minutes added on at the end of the game, fitting for what had been a dramatic encounter.

For Qarabag, Olexiy Kashchuk met Nariman Akhundzade's low cross at pace but could only steer it straight at Sanchez; down the other end, Garnacho’s spectacular scissor-kick was kept out by the legs of Kochalski.

What’s next…

Chelsea return to London ahead of a home fixture against Wolves on Saturday evening.

The teams

Chelsea (4-2-3-1): Sanchez; James (c), Tosin, Hato, Cucurella; Lavia (Caicedo 8), Andrey Santos (Fernandez h/t); Estevao, Joao Pedro (Buonanotte 71), Gittens (Garnacho h/t); George (Delap h/t)
Unused subs Jorgensen, Merrick, Acheampong, Chalobah, Gusto, Fofana, Guiu
Scorers Estevao Willian 16, Garnacho 53
Booked Santos 44, James 47, Caicedo 90+1

Qarabag (4-2-3-1): Kochalski; Silva, Mustafazade, Medina, Zafarquliev (Dani Bolt 74); Pedro Bicalho, Jankovic; Leandro Andrade (Bayramov 61), Kady (Addai 31), Zoubir (c) (Kashchuk 74); Duran (Akhundzade 61)
Unused subs Magomedaliyev, Buntic, Mmaee, Kouakou, A.Huseynov, Jabrayilzade, B.Huseynov
Scorers Leandro Andrade 29, Jankovic (pen) 39
Booked Medina 87

Referee Sebastian Gishamer from Austria