A comfortable 4-0 winner in the previous meeting on matchday three, the defending champion found life tougher at Eleda Stadion without the extra attacking impetus of the injured Romelu Lukaku and Timo Werner, as well as the ill Mason Mount.

Hakim Ziyech struck what proved to be the winner early in the second half after being picked out superbly by Callum Hudson-Odoi.

Despite bossing 74 per cent of the first-half possession, Chelsea found it difficult to pick its way through the Malmo defence, with speculative efforts from Ziyech and Andreas Christensen and a shot on the turn from Cesar Azpilicueta about as close as it came to breaking the deadlock.

Malmo looked a threat when breaking forward, too, with Antonio-Mirko Colak sending a volley wide after being picked out by Sergio Pena's clever ball.

Ruben Loftus-Cheek, making his first Champions League start for six years, stung the palms of goalkeeper Johan Dahlin before Marcos Alonso's flick-on at a corner was deflected just wide.

Chelsea at last got the breakthrough 11 minutes into the second half, Ziyech side-footing home a simple finish after a terrific low cross from Hudson-Odoi, who had surged into space down the right.

Thiago Silva's improvised effort was cleared off the line as Chelsea pursued a second, which Kai Havertz should really have delivered when he ran through on Dahlin's goal but failed to slot the ball beneath him.