Paul Merson was left flabbergasted by Chelsea’s cautious approach in their 1-0 Carabao Cup semi-final second-leg defeat to Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium. Kai Havertz’s 97th-minute goal sealed a 4-2 aggregate win for the Gunners and a place in the final.
Chelsea, trailing from the first leg, needed a goal to force extra time but played conservatively. They managed 14 shots but only two on target, generating just 0.68 expected goals. The team failed to create clear chances or mount serious pressure.
Merson: “They went out with a whimper”
On Sky Sports, Merson said: “I’m flabbergasted. I can’t believe what I’ve just watched. Chelsea aren’t a bottom-five team. They have World Cup winners. [Wesley] Fofana is crying. He should be crying because they never had a go. They’ve gone out with a whimper in a semi-final. It hasn’t worked. Go out in a blaze of glory, don’t go out like that.”
He added: “They played in second gear. This is the semi-final of a cup. Chelsea have got the players to mix it with Arsenal. And they didn’t have a go. If they’d have lost 3-0 but had shot after shot and Kepa was brilliant and they got broken three times, that’s the way it is. I’ve played in games like that where you come off and you think we just got beat and didn’t really have a go.”
Jamie Redknapp agreed: “If you’d have turned up today and not known the score you’d have thought that Chelsea were winning, the way they were playing with six at the back, playing cagey and trying to hit on the counter-attack. You’ve got to throw punches in a semi-final. Having two shots on target isn’t good enough. It’s overthinking tactics, you’ve got to have a go.”
Rosenior Defends Tactics: “I’ve been a pundit, it’s easy in hindsight”
Chelsea boss Liam Rosenior responded to the criticism: “I’ve been a pundit, it’s easy in hindsight. If I go and attack the game and press really high, people will ask what I am doing. You can come away from home, press all over the pitch, go man to man and you could go 2-0 up or you could go 2-0 down.”
He continued: “I felt that the psychological aspect of the tie was very important. Sixty minutes in, I bring on Cole [Palmer] and Estevao and the game opens up and we have moments in and around the box. I think there was a feeling in the stadium that this tie could turn. We didn’t achieve what we wanted to, but it’s not about game plans, it’s about results.”
Rosenior praised his players: “I have to give our players so much credit for what they put into the game. Ultimately their goal comes when we’re just throwing the kitchen sink at the game. That’s going to happen, but we have to take the positives. The reality of my job is if you lose games, you’ll be criticised. If you win, you’re a genius. It’s normally somewhere in between.”
The defeat ends Chelsea’s Carabao Cup campaign, while Arsenal advance to the final next month.
