Conference League round-up: Chelsea and Fiorentina open with wins

Chelsea kicked off with a win and two-time finalists Fiorentina eclipsed The New Saints as the league phase of the UEFA Conference League got under way.

UEFA.com rounds up the Matchday 1 action.

Chelsea 4-2 Gent

Chelsea made it 12 European home group and league phase matches unbeaten, Renato Veiga heading their opener before Pedro Neto's fierce finish. Tsuyoshi Watanabe's effort gave Gent hope but Christopher Nkunku and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall struck to make sure of a Blues win before Omri Gandelman's fine finish for the visitors.

Fiorentina 2-0 The New Saints

Welsh champions The New Saints held out for 65 minutes in their first UEFA league phase appearance before Fiorentina's pressure finally told. Yacine Adli curled in from the edge of the area before substitute Moise Kean smashed in the second to get the two-time Conference League finalists off to a winning start.

Heidenheim 2-1 Olimpija Ljubljana

Adrian Beck wrote his name into Heidenheim history, beating a defender before scoring the Bundesliga side's first European goal after six minutes. Alejandro Blanco headed the Slovenian side level but 18-year-old Bayern München loanee Paul Wanner hit a late winner, tidying up after his penalty was parried by Matevž Vidovšek.

Best of the rest

• Legia Warszawa will take heart from a 1-0 win against Real Betis, while Omonoia extended their winning home run in UEFA competitions to six games with a 4-0 defeat of Iceland's Víkingur. A 4-1 away win for Pafos made it a night of double celebrations in Cyprus.
• Cercle Brugge forward Kevin Denkey ends Matchday 1 as the Conference League's top scorer after the Togo international hit a hat-trick in his side's 6-2 win at home against Swiss side St. Gallen. He also provided two assists, meaning he was involved in five goals altogether.
• The league phase started on Wednesday, with the first goal of the new-look competition scored by Vitória SC's Samu seven minutes into a 3-1 win against Celje. Oddly, the first goal of Matchday 1 of the Europa League was also scored by a Samu: the one that plays for Porto.