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Chelsea immediately returned to winning ways after Liam Rosenior’s exit, booking a FA Cup final clash with Man City with a 1-0 victory over Leeds at Wembley.
Rosenior slammed his players for an “unacceptable” performance in their 3-0 defeat at Brighton on Tuesday which ultimately ended his tenure a day later. But they were transformed in this semi-final on Sunday, managing the big-stage occasion with authority.
Incredibly, interim boss Calum McFarlane now has the opportunity to beat Pep Guardiola in a major final on May 16. What a way that would be to save Chelsea’s season.
Chelsea failed to score in the five-game losing streak in the Premier League which cost Rosenior but it took them just 23 minutes to hit the net against Leeds.
Typically, it was Enzo Fernandez – left out for two games this month by Rosenior after comments about a potential summer move away from Chelsea – who ended the drought.
The Argentina international, wearing the captain’s armband, had looked like a man on a mission from the first whistle and expertly headed in Pedro Neto’s cross to give Chelsea the lead.
There had been big chances at both ends before then, with Robert Sanchez sticking out his right foot to brilliantly stop Brenden Aaronson converting from Dominic Calvert-Lewin’s fine flick through, while Joao Pedro blasted against the near post from a Fernandez pass moments before the opener.
Leeds tried to open up the contest further in the second half, switching to a back four, but after Sanchez made another impressive stop to keep out a rocket from sub Anton Stach, Chelsea set about disrupting the rhythm.
Leeds United’s Ethan Ampadu (left) and Chelsea’s Romeo Lavia clash during a drinks break
One incident in particular had Leeds fans raging. Sanchez went down asking for treatment, allowing McFarlane to issue instructions to Fernandez. Sanchez, unsurprisingly, was fine to continue.
The game management from Chelsea limited Leeds’ prospects of forcing a late equaliser and ended their seven-game unbeaten streak. They must now quickly turn their attentions back to the Premier League relegation battle.
While they have been focused on the cup this weekend, Leeds’ gap to the bottom three has closed to six points. They host relegated Burnley on Friday.
Chelsea still have work to do in the league, too. They must keep themselves in the hunt for Champions League qualification. But a tumultuous season could yet still end with silverware back here at Wembley next month.
More to follow…
