Rampant Chelsea destroys Boro on route to Carabao Cup final
Chelsea recovered from a 1-0 first-leg deficit in its Carabao Cup semi-final against Middlesbrough by thumping the EFL Championship side 6-1 at Stamford Bridge to stamp one half of the Wembley final ticket in blue, winning the tie 6-2 on aggregate.
Mauricio Pochettino's Premier League side had blown the visitors away by half-time, leading 4-0 on the night after an impressive opening spell that saw Michael Carrick's side completely overwhelmed.
It was a bad omen when Boro captain Jonny Howson put through his own net in the 15th minute to level the tie on aggregate, and Enzo Fernandez put the Blues in front on 29 minutes before they completely ran away with it.
Axel Disasi added the third before Cole Palmer scored the first of his two goals on the night three minutes prior to the break.
He'd grab his second on 77 minutes to make it 5-0 and Noni Madueke's deflected strike made it six before Morgan Rogers produced arguably the best finish of the night, curling a shot home from distance to at least give the travelling support something to cheer.
Chelsea will play either Liverpool or local rival Fulham in the final at Wembley. The Reds hold a narrow 2-1 lead as they head to Craven Cottage, with both sides looking to join Chelsea for the showpiece final on Monday 26 February.
Chelsea dominated possession early but took until 11 minutes to fashion its first chance, Ben Chilwell appearing unmarked inside the box and heading fractionally wide from Thiago Silva’s drilled ball over the top.
It was the returning Chilwell whose vision and delivery fashioned the opener. The ball through the middle for Raheem Sterling cut Boro’s defence in two and Sterling, foregoing the chance to shoot, looked up and fed Armando Broja, but before he could knock it past Tom Glover, Howson diverted it beyond his own goalkeeper.
Rogers fired towards Djordje Petrovic’s bottom corner from a clever corner routine as the visitors sought an instant response, the keeper saving at the foot of the post.
But the game was looking increasingly like Chelsea’s to lose, and just before the half-hour mark it led for the first time in the tie.
Sterling manoeuvred out of a cul-de-sac via a delightful back-heel to feed Disasi, who sprinted up on the overlap. Charging into the box, he cut the ball back for Broja whose scuffed shot diverted into the path of Fernandez for the simplest finish guided into the corner.
Sterling and Disasi combined again minutes later to make it 3-0, the England forward sliding in his team-mate to sweep home first time as the visiting supporters behind the goal saw dreams of reaching Wembley evaporate.
Boro bravely sought to play their way out from the back despite the torrent of Chelsea goals that threatened to wash it away but its hero from the first leg, Hayden Hackney, had a hand in gifting Chelsea its fourth, leaving Dan Barlaser exposed with a catastrophic pass that let in Palmer to finish inside the post with typical cool.
The hosts were looking to reach a first major final since Todd Boehly’s Clearlake Capital consortium completed its buyout of the club in May 2022 and with the job all but done by the break, a sense of ease rarely observed this season passed around Stamford Bridge.
Carrick’s side still looked to get on the ball and play in the second half, an approach that did it credit if at times it seemed like inviting a fifth Chelsea goal.
It arrived with 15 minutes to play. Substitute Conor Gallagher ran the ball to the byline and cut back for Palmer to open up his body and score beyond the exposed Glover.
Madueke, sent on at half-time, danced through and made it six via a deflection off Ray van den Berg minutes later.
Rogers’s goal at the death brought a roar of approval from the visiting fans, but in truth, their side had never looked like earning the win it craved on its long journey south.
