After Liam Rosenior’s sending off, Chelsea quickly returned to winning form, winning 1-0 against Leeds at Wembley and qualifying for the FA Cup final against Man City.
Rosseniol slammed his players for an “unacceptable” performance in Tuesday’s 3-0 defeat at Brighton, and ultimately ended his tenure the following day. But they changed in Sunday’s semi-final, taking the big stage with authority.
Incredibly, caretaker manager Callum McFarlane has been given the chance to defeat Josep Guardiola in a major final on May 16th. What a way to save Chelsea’s season.
Chelsea’s five-game losing streak in the Premier League has left them goalless, with Rosseniol costing him, but he took just 23 minutes to find the back of the net against Leeds.
Typically, it was Enzo Fernandes who ended the drought – with Rosenior missing two games this month after commenting about a possible move from Chelsea in the summer.
Enzo Fernandes puts Chelsea ahead
Wearing the captain’s armband, the Argentine national team player appeared filled with a sense of mission from the first whistle, deftly heading in Pedro Neto’s cross to give Chelsea the lead.
There were great chances on both sides before then. Roberto Sanchez stuck out his right foot to stop Brenden Aaronson’s shot from Dominic Calvert-Lewin’s exquisite flick-through, and moments before the opener Joao Pedro hit the near post from Fernandes’ pass.
Leeds switched to a back four in the second half to try to extend the game further, but Chelsea began to try to disrupt their rhythm after Sanchez made another excellent stop to deny sub Anton Stach’s rocket.
Leeds United’s Ethan Ampadu (left) and Chelsea’s Romeo Lavia clash during a drinks break
One incident in particular infuriated Leeds fans. Sanchez went down for treatment and allowed MacFarlane to give instructions to Fernandez. Naturally, Sanchez had no problem continuing to play.
Chelsea’s play limited Leeds’ chances of forcing a second-half equaliser, ending their winning streak at seven. They must now turn their attention back to the Premier League’s relegation battle.
The focus is on cup competition this weekend, but the gap between Leeds and the bottom three has narrowed to just six points. They host relegated Burnley on Friday.
Chelsea still have work to do in the league. They must continue aiming to qualify for the Champions League. But the eventful season could still end with silverware here at Wembley next month.
MacFarlane: “This victory will change the atmosphere of the group.”
Chelsea interim manager Callum MacFarlane:
“It was important to win. It was important to get the momentum going and break our own run. We were confident that we could do that today. I think that completely changed the atmosphere in the group. I think that was probably more important and it gives us confidence going into the next five games.”
On reaching the FA Cup final as interim manager:
“I don’t even have time to focus on it. I don’t have time to take it all in because I don’t accept the fact that we’re playing at Wembley and I’m just focused on keeping the team’s performance at the highest level. Maybe it will be at the end of the season. It’s an incredible experience for me, but there’s so much going on so fast that I don’t even have time to take it all in,” he said. ”
Falke: We were better, but we were also nervous.
Leeds manager Daniel Farke:
“We came away disappointed because we gave our supporters a lot of dreams and I wish we could have dreamed a little more. You’re always a little disappointed after a loss and a close game. Congratulations to Chelsea. It could have gone both ways. I just looked at the stats: expected goals, shots, shots on target, missed big chances. We were better.”
“But it’s understandable that I think our free flow wasn’t the best in the first half. We didn’t hold the ball and we were a little awkward at times in the build-up. You could also tell that the players were probably a little nervous today. We took a lot from this game. It’s also not like these players are used to playing in front of 90,000 people at Champions League level once a week.”
“I mean, it was a big, big game and they were probably a little too nervous to be at their best level. It wasn’t like we played off the field.”
A renewed focus on the Premier League relegation battle:
“We are not going to dwell on this loss. We had nothing to lose today, but we had a lot to win. We have supporters and a club that we are proud of. This is a testament to how hard the players have worked. From tomorrow we will focus on our own bread and butter.”
Farke refused to discuss Chelsea’s proposal for a tactical time-out.
“I’ve been talking about this this season. You want to show some dignity after a loss. It’ll be judged as just an excuse.”
