Chelsea were unable to pull off a miraculous comeback at the Emirates Stadium, as Arsenal came out victorious after winning 1-0.
The Blues lost the first leg of the Carabao Cup semi-final 3-2 at Stamford Bridge. As a result, Liam Rosenior’s side gave themselves a mountain to climb, and their chances of overturning the deficit were very slim.
The visitors' game plan was to sit back and be compact in order to keep themselves in the tie. The Blues bought on Palmer and Estevao in the 60th minute whilst the match was in the balance.
However, Mikel Arteta’s side has a reputation and history for being rock solid defensively. The visitors were unable to create any clear-cut chances in order to break Arsenal down.
Throughout the match, Chelsea did not look like scoring at any stage, and they did not throw the kitchen sink at Arsenal, despite being a goal down in the tie.
Chelsea only had two shots on target throughout the match and an expected goals of just 0.68. The visitors did not lay a glove on the hosts, and they came up short. As a result, Arsenal have reached the Carabao Cup final.
Starting XI
Robert Sanchez - 7
The Spanish international was not put under the cosh. Arsenal had two shots on target throughout 97 minutes.
The former Brighton goalkeeper was very comfortable in possession and he was looking to get his team up the pitch by passing forward particulary to Malo Gusto on the Blues right hand side.
This was a good performance from Chelsea’s number one goalkeeper, and he was not at fault for the goal that his side conceded.
Wesley Fofana - 6
The former Leicester centre-back rose to the occasion. The French international was solid defensively, he was good in possession and was a threat from set pieces. When the defender was tested, he dealt with the threat that Arsenal possessed well.
Trevoh Chalobah - 6
Just like his Wesley Fofana, the Cobham graduate was solid defensively, although Arsenal did not put a lot of pressure on Chelsea’s defence throughout the match.
Chalobah did not make any mistakes, and he was calm in possession. Overall, it was a strong performance from the England international.
Jorrel Hato - 6
The 19-year-old came under a lot of scrutiny on the weekend, after his poor performance against West Ham led to him getting substituted at half-time.
He played on the left-hand side of a back three and did not get caught out of position. He intercepted some passes, was solid defensively, and the occasion did not get the better of the young defender.
Malo Gusto - 5
The right back was able to keep Gabriel Martinelli quiet, due to winning the majority of his one-on-one duels against the left winger.
However, his decision-making in the final third, passes and crosses left a lot to be desired.
When the 22-year-old found himself in space down Chelsea’s right-hand side, he was not able to take full advantage offensively.
Marc Cucurella - 5
Just like Malo Gusto, the left back was superb defensively, particularly when going up against former Chelsea winger Noni Madueke.
However, going forward there were opportunities for him to put crosses after overlapping and the majority of his crosses or passes did not come close to reaching his teammates.
Although it must be stated that the Spanish international did not have plenty of touches in the final 3rd but when he did, his final pass was not up to par. It was also Cucurella’s sloppy pass in the 97th minute that led to Kai Havertz ending Chelsea’s hopes of reaching the Carabao Cup final.
Andrey Santos - 5
The midfielder did not take enough risks on the ball and was not able to play passes between the lines.
He only had 51 touches, which was the least out of every Chelsea midfielder, and he was not getting into forward areas. Santos’s job was to pick up the ball in Chelsea’s half and give it to the two midfielders ahead of him.
However, there were periods, particularly in the second half, where he should have looked more incisive and confident with his passes.
Moises Caicedo - 5
The Ecuadorian was very tenacious with his tackles, and he won plenty of duels in the middle of the park.
However, on the ball, there were opportunities for him to switch the play and look to create more dangerous chances.
The majority of his passes were sideways and backwards, which suggests that he, alongside his teammates, wanted to be safe on the ball in order to prevent Arsenal from scoring on the counterattack.
Enzo Fernandez - 5
The World Cup winner played out of position closer to Chelsea’s left-hand side.
However, he found himself in plenty of space, just outside Arsenal’s penalty area.
The 25-year-old had 3 shots from outside the box, but none of them tested Kepa Arrizabalaga, and two of them flew over the bar. There were multiple opportunities for the midfielder to have his say in this match. However, his final passes or shots were unable to change Chelsea’s fortunes.
Joao Pedro - 7
The Brazilian was Chelsea’s best outfield player. The forward was tasked to go head-to-head against two of the best centre-backs in the world, William Saliba and Gabriel Magalhaes.
The 24-year-old held up the ball superbly throughout the match; he won free kicks further up the pitch and brought his teammates into the game.
Although the former Brighton attacker was not able to score or create clear-cut chances, he was feeding off scraps and was in his element every time he received the ball. His all-around performance was very impressive.
Liam Delap - 4
The striker found himself playing as a right winger for large spells of the game. He was not put in the best position to have a brilliant individual performance.
However, despite this, unlike Joao Pedro, the English striker was very sloppy on the ball, and his hold-up play left a lot to be desired. The former Ipswich forward did not put Piero Hincapie on the back foot and did not give him a run for his money.
Overall, this was an underwhelming performance from the striker, and he did not make a major impact in this particular match.
Estevao - 5
The Brazilian sensation came on in the 60th minute, and due to a lack of service, the forward had to consistently drop deep in order to receive the ball.
When he tried to be direct and take players on, Mikel Arteta’s side did a magnificent job of nullifying him by double-teaming the winger.
Cole Palmer - 5
The attacking midfielder was not receiving the ball in the final 20 metres. As a result, he had to drop deep and try to break down the Premier League’s best defence by aiming to produce a moment of magic.
Arsenal were robust defensively and the English international did not have an opportunity to flip the game on its head.
Alejandro Garnacho - 5
The left winger only touched the ball 12 times since coming on in the 75th minute. Chelsea were predominantly attacking down their right-hand side.
However, when they looked to get the winger involved, he was isolated and was not put in a position to be direct or take the game to Arsenal, particularly their right back, Jurrien Timber.
Josh Acheampong - N/A
He came on in the 87th minute and did not have any substantial time to make an impact in the game.