A bonkers second half at Stamford Bridge resulted in a Carabao Cup classic between old rivals Chelsea and Leeds United.
At half-time in this third round tie, the Yorkshire side held a slender 1-0 lead thanks to Tarik Muharemovic’s header from a corner midway through the first half. They even had the audacity to double their lead, just minutes after the restart as Brenden Aaronson fired home in front of the jubilant away end in West London.
Many of a Chelsea persuasion must have been fearing the worse. But they needn’t have. Manager Xabi Alonso had made an eye-raising quadruple substitution at the break and it didn’t take long for the hosts to kick into life.
Remarkably, they notched four goals in the space of just 12 minutes to blitz the Whites with most of the subs involved. Cole Palmer halved the deficit from the penalty spot before a delightful curled shot to make it 2-2.
The shellshocked visitors could scarcely believe what was happening and before they knew it they found themselves behind as another sub, Pedro Neto, tapped in Chelsea’s third.
Danny Welbeck then created a two-goal buffer with Morgan Rogers – yet another half-time arrival – teeing him up for a hat-trick of assists.
Leeds offered brief resistance when Dominic Calvert-Lewin provided a clever finish to make it 4-3 and inject even more jeopardy into the contest. But Chelsea then found another gear and Valentin Barco got in on the act before Welbeck’s second added further gloss and complete a mad cup tie.
It was a huge shot in the arm for Chelsea and their manager and should provide ample confidence in their new-look team as they look to bounce back in the Premier League following defeat to Arsenal last weekend. As for Leeds, they must lick their wounds ahead of an enticing home game with Newcastle United next Monday.
Blues’ boss Alonso, reflecting on a breathless night, said: “It was thrilling and there were different emotions during the game. Things were not going the way we wanted in the first half, and I made those decisions, so I take responsibility and take the blame, not the players. In the second half, we showed a great reaction after conceding the second goal. We kept going, and it was very important to believe and get the crowd excited. They helped us a lot.”
Leeds chief Daniel Farke believes the award of Chelsea’s penalty – when it was 2-0 – was the turning point. He said: “It was a bit of a crazy game. Sometimes it happens when there is loads of changes.
“We played with confidence, there was not even a chance for them, then the referee decided to give a penalty, nobody was asking for it, all of a sudden their players came into the game. The momentum was on their side. Situations can change the whole momentum of the game.”
