Chelsea beat Liverpool in extra-time, advance to League Cup final
Branislav Ivanovic scored in extra-time to send Chelsea into the Capital One League Cup finals in London, downing Liverpool 1-0 (2-1 on aggregate) on Tuesday night. Chelsea now await the winner of Wednesday's second leg between Tottenham and Sheffield United at Bramall Lane; Tottenham lead that tie 1-0.
Ivanovic's goal punctuated what had been a frantic and fractious game that saw far more effort from a Chelsea side that frankly coasted through the first leg. Chelsea and Liverpool drew that first leg 1-1 thanks to a terrific second-half fightback from the Reds and one stellar goal from Raheem Sterling. That allowed, there was such malaise around the Chelsea side that you got the sense their players were simply going through the motions, knowing that they had home advantage ahead.
Not a bad plan -- until Chelsea fell into a pothole. Playing on the weekend in the FA Cup, the Blues suffered one of the great losses in that tournament when they coughed up four unanswered goals to third-tier Bradford City. More embarrassing was the fact that Chelsea had led the game 2-0 and seemed to be cruising. That was before the Bantams poured on, scoring three goals in the final 15 minutes of the match alone. Manager Jose Mourinho was incandescent, refusing to speak to his team after the game and telling the media the loss was "a disgrace." It was only the second time in 17 seasons that the Blues had failed to reach the 5th round of the FA Cup, and it ended Chelsea's hopes of a four-trophy season.
Liverpool also didn't have the finest run-up as they were held by Bolton to a 0-0 draw at Anfield, in part to the heroics of keeper Adam Bogdan -- if the red-tops can be believed, that performance has suddenly landed him on Brendan Rodgers' shopping list. But they looked the better of the two sides in the first encounter, leading Rodgers to claim Liverpool might have won by two or three goals.
That backdrop helped ensure that Tuesday's encounter was a spiky affair from the start, a game that saw as many cheap fouls and hacks as shots on frame.
Eden Hazard slotted through in the second minute on a play that forced Martin Skrtel into what would be the first of many rearguard actions. Willian would fire in a blast in the 6th minute that provokes a suspicion of handball but referee Michael Oliver waved play on, a signal that he would be taking a light touch this evening.
That decision led to two early flashpoints, the first when Diego Costa appeared to stamp on Emre Can in the 12th minute, an incident that left the Liverpool man so enraged he had to be restrained. Costa would not be carded. Then, in the 23rd minute, Sktrel appeared to hack down Costa in the area with Oliver right nearby. The referee swallowed his whistle, a decision that replay showed to be incorrect.
With Chelsea retreating into a shell, it was Liverpool that started to have the better of the chances, as Kurt Zouma was forced into making a saving tackle on a fleet Raheem Sterling. Zouma would be caught out later, however, as Philippe Coutinho slalomed around him on the half hour to force Thibaut Courtois into a brilliant kick-save.
Alberto Moreno also forced Courtois into a fine stop from a tight angle at the far post after Steven Gerrard fed him with excellent service. But Moreno would have been better to square the ball for a waiting Sterling, and the young striker let him know it.
The second half saw the temperature continue to rise as Oliver seemed to lose his grip on the proceedings. Lucas Leiva and Skrtel both could have been dealt with harshly after bad tackles; Costa was also shown to stamp on Skrtel's shin, earning no card but probably just retaliation from the defender.
For all his naughtiness, it wasn't until the hour mark that Costa actually made a mark on the game, with Simon Mignolet forced into a sprawling kick-save not once but twice. First, the ball fell to the Brazilian-born Spaniard on the edge of the area, and his shot took a cut off Skrtel before Mignolet was able to hack it away. Then, Costa was slipped through cleanly and somehow Mignolet got his boot to the ball before him.
But in extra-time, Chelsea finally got their breakthrough. After a foul on Hazard out wide, Willian sent in a free kick that an unchallenged Ivanovic climbed to head home. Glen Johnson was the man at fault on the play, allowing the defender to go in free, but his header was powerful, and Mignolet really had no chance.
Liverpool, needing but a goal to send the match to penalties, kept pushing, with Sterling trying to feed Jordan Henderson and Mario Balotelli up top. Balotelli almost found Sterling alone, only to see the striker pound it into the boards.
Rodgers claimed his side were the better over the two legs, with Blues goalkeeper Courtois proving the main obstacle.
"I'm very proud of the team, over the two legs we were the better side and their goalkeeper has got them to the final," Rodgers said after the loss. "At Anfield and here tonight he's made very, very important saves and that's won them the game.
True or not, Liverpool could not find the final touch, and the Reds would fall out on the night.
