Branislav Ivanovic's thumping
extra-time header sealed Chelsea's spot in the League Cup final after an
incident-packed 1-0 victory over Liverpool at Stamford Bridge on
Tuesday.
Neither side could
be separated after 90 pulsating minutes in the semifinal second leg
before Ivanovic leapt highest to meet Willian's free kick in the 94th
minute to wrap up a 2-1 aggregate win and a trip to Wembley in March.
However,
the match was noteworthy for a series of flashpoints involving Diego
Costa, including a stamping incident in each half on Emre Can and Martin
Skrtel.
The Spain
international was at the heart of more contention when he was denied a
penalty by referee Michael Oliver after going to ground under a
challenge from Skrtel just after the 20 minute mark.
Chelsea
goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois also made two brilliant one-on-one saves
from Alberto Moreno and Philippe Coutinho in the first half that
ultimately proved crucial.
Victory over Liverpool
represents an ideal response for Chelsea after Saturday's 4-2 FA Cup
defeat to League One side Bradford City that left manager Jose Mourinho
fuming.
The Portuguese - who
was involved in a touchline exchange with Brendan Rodgers - now has his
sights set on a third League Cup title, the first of which came against
Liverpool in 2005 and was his first trophy in English football during
his first stint at the club.
Chelsea
had shouts for a penalty waved away in an end-to-end opening when
Willian's low shot struck the arm of the sliding Lucas Leiva.
Can
and Costa were then involved a brief altercation after the latter was
lucky to escape punishment for seemingly stamping on the Liverpool
midfielder's shin.
Costa was
in the spotlight again in the 22nd minute as he went to ground when
Skrtel looked to have stood on his foot, but referee Oliver was
uninterested.
At the other
end, Steven Gerrard's superb pass picked out the run of Moreno on the
left of the area, with the fullback's subsequent shot well parried by
Courtois, before the Belgium international saved Coutinho's drive with
his foot after the Brazilian waltzed through the Chelsea defense.
The
home side was dealt a blow when Cesc Fabregas had to be replaced
following an accidental collision with team-mate John Terry shortly
after the restart.
Tempers
then threatened to boil over when Costa appeared to tread on Skrtel,
leading to an angry coming together between the two players.
Eden
Hazard, scorer of Chelsea's goal in the first leg, gave a timely
reminder of his brilliance with a mazy run that led to him fizzing a
shot just wide from 20 yards, before Simon Mignolet made a terrific
block with his feet to keep out Costa's deflected half-volley.
Liverpool
was then fortunate not to be reduced to 10 men in the 67th minute when
Jordan Henderson avoided a second yellow card for a deliberate hand
ball, before Chelsea's Filipe Luis hobbled off after taking a knock.
The
breakthrough finally came four minutes into extra time, as Willian's
teasing free kick was headed home emphatically by Ivanovic.
Henderson
could have forced penalties when he put a free header wide from 10
yards, but ultimately Chelsea safely saw out extra time to reach its
first final since Mourinho's return in June 2013.
0 comments:
Post a Comment
Disclaimer: Opinions expressed in comments are those of the comment writers alone and does not reflect or represent the views of StaffyXCLUSIVE.