WROCLAW: The UEFA Conference League was not where Chelsea wanted to be, but their triumph in Wroclaw could prove to be a turning pointfor a club that had lost their trophywinning habit.

The Premier League team beat Real Betis 4-1 on Wednesday, recovering strongly from being outplayed in the first half by their Spanish opponents, becoming the first club to complete a clean sweep of European trophies.

After Betis went in 1-0 up at halftime thanks to an early Abde Ezzalzouli strike at the Wroclaw Stadium, Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca`s second-half substitutions lifted his team but an inspired Cole Palmer was the catalyst for victory, producing two pinpoint crosses for Enzo Fernandez and Nicolas Jackson.

Jadon Sancho`s fine finish made it 3-1 and Moises Caicedo added a fourth in stoppage time to give Chelsea their first silverware since Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital acquired the club in May 2022 from Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich, following an era of unprecedented successfor the club.

During the past three years the owners have spent more than 1 billion ($1.3 billion) on promising young talent, but until now have had little to show for it.

Chelsea had been clear favourites to win Europe`s third-tier club competition from the start, and are the first club to win the full set of five UEFA club tournaments the Champions League, Europa League, Conference League, Super Cup and the now-defunct Cup Winners` Cup.

Boehly was on the pitch at the end, savouring the win that seemed unlikely when Betis were in control in the first half.

Chelsea have ended the season with a flourish after also securing aplacein next season`s Champions League following a fourth-placed finish in the Premier League.

Maresca, in his first season at Stamford Bridge, said he hoped Conference League glory would be a launchpad for the club.

`The club have invested lots of money in the last three or four years, so they are also waiting for results,` Maresca told TNT Sports. `Hopefully this can be astarting point and from tonight, from this season, [we are] building something important.

`You need to win games. You need to win competitions. And for sure, the trophy we won tonight is going to make us better. But also, Pm very proud about the path or the journey we have done in the Premier League. For me, it`s the most difficult competition in the world. You have to be consistent in 38 games. And these players, they showed it.

Under Abramovich, Chelsea became serial trophy winners, claiming five Premier League titles and winning the Champions League twice.

It is too early to predict whether they will return to those heady heights but the Conference League is a start.

Next on the agenda is a trip to the Club World Cup in the United States, for which Chelsea qualified by winning the 2021 Champions League. `Now we have 10 days off, 10 days where we need to recover energy, and then we`re going to start the Club World Cup,` said Maresca. `The target is to go game by game, tryto go step by step, but at this moment we don`t have any target for the Club World Cup. Now the only target is to recover energy, because the season hasbeen very long.

PALMER THE SPARK AGAIN Even before the match started, Betis fans set off green flares, their vibrant glow embodying the fervour and historic pride of the club`s debut appearance in a European final.

However, Betis appeared nervous in the opening minutes before they went ahead when Isco found the unmarked Ezzalzouli at the edge of the box in the ninth minute, giving him plenty of time to break the deadlock with a powerful low shot.

Chelsea needed a way back and Palmer provided two perfect assists in five minutes to swing the momentum in their favour.

The England midfielder fashioned a superb cross from the right that was perfectly placed for Fernandez to head home, before his quick feet and movement shook off a defender and created the space to cross for Jackson tomake it 2-1.

Sancho effectively ended the contest in the 83rd minute by firing into the far corner and Caicedo put the icing on the cake with the fourth goal in stoppage time to delight the fans and secure the London club`s seventh major European trophy.

Palmer`s quiet second half of the season produced one goalin 22 games and a handful of assists but when they needed his creativity and guile the playmaker delivered a masterful performance The 23-year-old`s ability to find the right pass, or pick a moment to up the tempo, makes him a man for the big occasion and if Chelsea are to progress and challenge for the Premier League title, he is the player manager Maresca will build the team around.

On a frenzied night in Wroclaw, when cool heads and quality were needed, Palmer showed just why.

`The bad run he had this season is going to make him a better player, no doubt. In the last third, he can decide games with a goal or an assist. And the two assists were very nice,` Maresca said.

-Agencies