A successful night at Stamford Bridge for Mauricio Pochettino’s Chelsea see’s the London side will be at Wembley next month to take on Fulham or Liverpool in the EFL Cup Final.
A hapless Middlesbrough failed to sustain their momentum from the first-leg, and conceded four goals in 40 first-half minutes. Chelsea now have a chance to secure their first trophy in two years, and will visit the national stadium for a final in Pochettino’s first season in charge. Here’s what we learnt as they secured their place in this season’s top two in the EFL Cup.
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Chilwell in Charge
Chelseas’s vice-captain Ben Chilwell made his return to a starting line-up for the first time since September, and made a real difference to his team. His intricate footwork to skip past two Middlesborough midfielders and thread a ball through to Raheem Sterling was the catalyst for the opening goal, which deflected in off the unfortunate John Howson.
Chilwell’s reintroduction to first-team action ensured that Levi Colwill, who struggled at left-back in the first game, was able to play in his more favoured centre-back role alongside Thiago Silva. Chelsea's Captain on the day, Chilwell lasted 65 minutes before he was replaced, due to his lack of match fitness. But, his inclusion was a real positive for his side, going into a big week of games, which include a round in the FA Cup against Aston Villa and a Premier League fixture against Liverpool still to come.
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Howson's horror-show
Middlesbrough’s Captain John Howson had an evening to forget at Stamford Bridge. Operating as a defensive midfielder, he dropped back in to the back line when Chelsea had possession of the ball. Howson looked uncomfortable in this position and won’t look back on a match fondly in which he scored an own-goal after 15 minutes and was substituted off after 70 minutes.
Manager Michael Carrick will have been relieved that the second half was a lot tighter at the back, managing to go 30 minutes without conceding. Morgan Rogers' late goal was a late consolation, but a credit to Boro's resolve to give a good account of themselves on the night, after the tie had escaped them.
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Palmer Pounces
So much has already been said about the impact that Cole Palmer has had at Chelsea since his arrival last August. With over 20 goal involvements and already into double figures for his own goal tally, Palmer has been a revelation since his £45m signing. Having been singled out for criticism in the first-leg of this tie, having missed several chances, he was back to his best for the return fixture.
Just before half-time, Palmer capitalised on a mistake from a goal kick, when poor distribution from Boro goalkeeper Tom Glover and sloppy defending, saw Palmer pounce on the ball on the edge of the penalty area and slot the ball into the bottom left-hand corner of the net. He also scored Chelsea's fifth goal and has matched former Chelsea forward Kai Havertz's goals for the whole of last season in just 25 games for Chelsea.
He has become the first name on the team sheet for Pochettino, and will surely have a real chance to make the England squad for this summer's UEFA Euro 2024.
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Poch's Progress
Chelsea have not had as much luck in recent visits to Wembley as their success over the last two decades might suggest, losing the last two Wembley finals that they have reached.
Pochettino has not visited the iconic North-London stadium since his Tottenham Hotspur side were beaten by Jose Mourinho's Chelsea in the EFL Cup Final 2015. This opportunity offers the chance for Pochettino to get his hands on the first trophy of his managerial career and the first of the Todd Boehly era.
The performance of the club, that has continually been dubbed 'a project', surely offers a sign that progress has been made. All of Chelsea's goals were scored by signings made under Boehly, excluding Howson's own-goal, and the performance of record-signing Enzo Fernandez was a particular highlight. His goal, Chelsea's second of the evening was reminiscent of another Chelsea number eight, Frank Lampard, as he struck the ball on the half-volley after arriving late into the penalty area.
If Chelsea can manage to come away from Wembley with silverware in February, and continue their climb up the Premier League table, it appears that the tide has been turned, and that they are heading in the right direction for the first time since their UEFA Champions League victory in 2021.
