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Tag: FA Cup

  • Chelsea avenge FA cup loss, beat Leicester to gain top-four advantage

    Chelsea avenge FA cup loss, beat Leicester to gain top-four advantage

    Kelechi Iheanco’s goal was not enough as Chelsea avenged their FA Cup final defeat by Leicester to move above the Foxes into third in the Premier League with a 2-1 win in front of 8,000 fans at Stamford Bridge on Tuesday.

    Antonio Rudiger and Jorginho, from the penalty spot, scored the goals for Thomas Tuchel’s men to keep a place in next season’s Champions League in their own hands.

    However, victory came at a cost for the Blues as N’Golo Kante limped off injured in the first half just 11 days before they face Manchester City in the Champions League final.

    Victory away to Aston Villa on Sunday will guarantee Chelsea a top-four finish.

    Leicester will forever have the memories of winning the FA Cup for the first time at Wembley on Saturday, but are now at risk of missing out on Champions League football on the final day of the campaign for the second consecutive season.

    Brendan Rodgers’s men still lead Liverpool by three points, but the Reds will go fourth on goal difference if they win at Burnley on Wednesday.

    Leicester host Tottenham on the final day, while Jurgen Klopp’s men welcome Crystal Palace to Anfield.

    Roared on by the biggest attendance at Stamford Bridge in over 14 months, Chelsea exploded out the blocks with Leicester barely able to get out their own half in the first 45 minutes.

    However, a combination of Kasper Schmeichel and controversial refereeing kept the hosts at bay until the break.

    Chelsea were denied in a dramatic end to the cup final by a VAR review which ruled out Ben Chilwell’s goal for offside.

    Timo Werner had two more goals disallowed in the first half as the German international was firstly flagged offside before his second effort was ruled out by a VAR review for handball.

    But in between, Werner was rightly dismayed when he was somehow denied a penalty.

  • Wembley snub not personal for Abraham – Tuchel

    Wembley snub not personal for Abraham – Tuchel

    Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel has ducked questions about Tammy Abraham’s future.

    Abraham was omitted from Saturday’s 1-0 FA Cup final defeat by Leicester, and has been on the periphery since Tuchel’s January arrival.

    With the Champions League final ahead on May 29, Tuchel is in no mood to let collective eyes wander from the most pressing prizes.

    Asked why Abraham missed out on Saturday, Tuchel replied: “Well it’s just the amount of people that I can nominate for a game.

    “I decided to start Timo Werner in the number nine role, so we had Kai Havertz and Olivier Giroud on the bench, so we decided not to have three number nines on the bench. This is it, it’s never personal.

    “When Mateo Kovacic and Andreas Christensen, maybe, come back into the squad, I need to figure out the squad and maybe eliminate two more players.

    “This is the worst day and the worst decision for me in the whole week.

    “Because since I arrived here everybody deserves to be in the squad.

    “I understand his frustration and it was not the first time, and we have other guys with the same situation to face.

    “This is not the moment to complain, and this is not the moment to explain too much. This is the moment just to live in the moment.

    “These are the two decisive weeks now of the whole season.”

  • Double boost for Chelsea as Kovacic, Kante return for FA Cup final

    Double boost for Chelsea as Kovacic, Kante return for FA Cup final

    Manager Thomas Tuchel says it is a “huge” FA Cup final boost for Chelsea to have Mateo Kovacic and N’Golo Kante back fit to face Leicester City.

    Croatia star Kovacic has missed nine matches with a hamstring problem but is now ready to return for Saturday’s Wembley showdown.

    France World Cup-winner Kante was kept out of Wednesday’s 1-0 English Premier League (EPL) loss to Arsenal due to a painful Achilles issue.

    But now, the Blues boss Tuchel confirmed on Friday both midfield men are ready to take on the Foxes.

    “The whole group is available, Kova is with us again,” said Tuchel.

    “It’s huge because Mateo has everything that we need in midfield. He has experience, power, acceleration, deceleration, he can dribble the ball and beat players.

    “He’s fast, he has physical ability and he’s experienced in big games and in the Premier League.

    “When we missed N’Golo and Mateo in the same match we lacked a lot of quality, energy and experience.

    “Billy Gilmour did a huge job in both games but it’s not fair to compare him to these players because they have more experience and they are a step ahead in their development.

    “It’s what we need in the key moments of the season. It’s big news for us that Kova is back, he has a huge impact in the dressing room around big matches.”

    Kante formed a pivotal part of Leicester’s Premier League title win in 2015 and will now go up against his old club in Saturday’s Cup final.

    The linchpin midfielder has been back to his very best under the German, with the Chelsea head coach delighted to have one of his chief lieutenants back in top condition.

    “Yes, it’s huge,” said Tuchel. “We took the decision together, him, me and the medical team, to leave him out and give him this Arsenal match to rest and have treatment to his right Achilles.

    “It was pain management. It’s not a huge injury, it’s nothing you need to be afraid of getting bigger. It was just there, it was a bit annoying, just pain management and pain treatment.

    “So, he did all training sessions yesterday (Thursday) and today (Friday) full, no complaints. He will start tomorrow (Saturday) and very likely finish the game for us.”

    Chelsea’s defeat to Arsenal on Wednesday has left the Blues exposed in their quest for a top-four Premier League finish.

    Tuchel’s men will face Leicester City again on Tuesday in a crucial league encounter.

    The Blues boss accepts that the two quick-fire Foxes clashes could now prove the crux of the close to their season.

    “These are two finals and we don’t think about anything other than the two finals,” said Tuchel.

    “There’s the final for the Cup and the final for the top four.

    “We missed the chance against Arsenal to be decisive, have the decisive advantage. So, now we have to cope with it, and first of all show the reaction at Wembley to have the upper hand on Tuesday. And this is what we are up for.”

  • Tuchel confirms goalkeeper to start Chelsea FA Cup final

    Tuchel confirms goalkeeper to start Chelsea FA Cup final

    Thomas Tuchel has confirmed that Kepa will start in goal for Chelsea in the FA Cup final against Leicester this weekend.

    The Spanish stopper has started in every round of the competition so far and his run looks set to continue at Wembley when Tuchel targets his first piece of silverware since taking over at Stamford Bridge.

    Kepa was drafted into the starting lineup for the 1-0 defeat against Arsenal in the Premier League on Wednesday night that saw the German head coach taste defeat for just the third time in his tenure at Chelsea.

    Edouard Mendy has been in superb form since Tuchel came to the club but he is going to show faith in his understudy Kepa, who lost the gloves to Mendy three games into the new season when Lampard was in charge.

    Tuchel was asked by football.london if Kepa’s inclusion on Wednesday was a sign he would start at Wembley and Tuchel effectively confirmed that it was.

    The Blues head coach said: “He starts the cup final and we thought it was a good idea to give him the game before.

  • Chelsea players stunned by Abraham FA Cup axe

    Chelsea players stunned by Abraham FA Cup axe

    Chelsea’s players were stunned by manager Thomas Tuchel’s axing of Tammy Abraham from their FA Cup semifinal squad against Manchester City yesterday.

    Chelsea are in the final after their 1-0 win at Wembley, which was achieved with Abraham nowhere to be seen.

    Despite being fully fit and the competition’s top scorer with four goals in three matches – there was no place for him in Tuchel’s picks.

    And the Telegraph report that players were ‘shocked’ by his Wembley omission.

    The striker has not featured for Chelsea since February 20 where he was subbed at half-time in a 1-1 draw with Southampton.

  • FA Cup: Chelsea end Man City’s quadruple hopes

    FA Cup: Chelsea end Man City’s quadruple hopes

    Chelsea ended Manchester City’s hopes of winning an historic quadruple as they edged a closely-fought FA Cup semi-final at Wembley.

    City and Chelsea had both secured their places in the last four of the Champions League this week – but Pep Guardiola’s side had their sights set on a unique haul of four trophies as they close in on the Premier League title and also face Tottenham here in the League Cup final on 25 April.

    Chelsea had other ideas, however, and they deserved the victory given to them when Hakim Ziyech slid home Timo Werner’s pass in the 55th minute to set up an FA Cup final against either Leicester City or Southampton.

    Ziyech had a goal ruled out for offside before he scored but that was enough to beat a lethargic City, who made eight changes from their Champions League win against Borussia Dortmund and now have the added worry of the sight of Kevin De Bruyne limping off injured in the second half.

    Chelsea had a very late scare as keeper Kepa Arrizabalaga clawed away Rodri’s injury-time header but manager Thomas Tuchel can now reflect on a hugely satisfying week as his impressive start at Stamford Bridge gathers momentum.
    BBC

  • FA Cup: Chelsea and Manchester City line-ups named

    FA Cup: Chelsea and Manchester City line-ups named

    The two squads for today’s FA Cup semifinal between Chelsea and Manchester City have been named.

    There are three changes to Thomas Tuchel’s Chelsea side who faced Porto on Tuesday.

    Kepa Arrizabalaga replaces Edouard Mendy in goal. Timo Werner and Hakim Ziyech replace Kai Havertz and Christian Pulisic.

    Chelsea XI: Kepa, Azplicueta, Chilwell, Jorginho, James, Kante, Mount, Rudiger, Silva, Werner, Ziyech.

    Subs: Caballero, Alonso, Emerson, Zouma, Gilmour, Havertz, Hudson-Odoi, Pulisic, Giroud.

    Pep Guardiola makes eight changes to the Man City side who beat Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League quarter-finals on Wednesday.

    Goalkeeper Zack Steffen, Joao Cancelo, Fernandinho, Gabriel Jesus, Aymeric Laporte, Benjamin Mendy, Raheem Sterling and Ferran Torres all come in.

    Phil Foden, Riyad Mahrez, Ilkay Gundogan, John Stones and Ederson are among those to drop out.

    Manchester City XI: Steffen, Cancelo, Dias, Laporte, Mendy, Rodrigo, Fernandinho, De Bruyne, Torres, Sterling, Jesus.

    Subs: Ederson, Walker, Stones, Ake, Gundogan, Zinchenko, Bernardo, Mahrez, Foden.

  • Abraham axed from Chelsea FA Cup semifinal squad

    Abraham axed from Chelsea FA Cup semifinal squad

    Tammy Abraham has been left out of Chelsea’s squad for today’s FA Cup semifinal against Manchester City.

    The Daily Mail says Abraham’s future is set to be thrown under further doubt with the Chelsea striker due to be left out of today’s squad for Wembley.

    Abraham is fully fit and is said to have trained well since recovering from a niggling ankle injury.

    But his absence from today’s squad casts further unclarity over his long-term future under Thomas Tuchel, who has used him sparingly since arriving as Frank Lampard’s successor in January.

    Abraham remains the club’s top goalscorer this season with 12 goals, despite the fact he has appeared to have fallen out of favour under the German coach.

    However, Tuchel’s reluctance to use Abraham casts significant doubt over his future and it is becoming increasingly clear that the club could listen to offers for their academy graduate ahead of next season.

  • Manchester City reach FA Cup semi-finals, beat Everton 2-0

    Manchester City reach FA Cup semi-finals, beat Everton 2-0

    Manchester City’s quest for an unprecedented quadruple of trophies remains intact after seeing off Everton 2-0 to reach the FA Cup semi-finals on Saturday as Southampton also booked their place in the last four.

    City were far from their flowing best at Goodison Park after Pep Guardiola made six changes from the side that cruised into the Champions League quarter-finals in midweek with a routine 2-0 win over Borussia Moenchengladbach in Budapest.

    But goals in the final six minutes from Ilkay Gundogan and Kevin De Bruyne booked City’s place in the semi-finals for the fourth time in five seasons under Guardiola.

    City won the domestic treble of Premier League, FA Cup and League Cup for the first time in English football history two seasons ago and are firm favourites to repeat that feat.

    Guardiola’s men are 14 points clear at the top of the Premier League and face struggling Tottenham in the League Cup final next month.

    However, the Champions League is the trophy City most want and Guardiola showed where his priorities lie with a quarter-final clash with Borussia Dortmund to come after the international break by taking the chance to rest the likes of Joao Cancelo, Riyad Mahrez and De Bruyne from the start.

    Oleksandr Zinchenko cleared Everton defender Yerry Mina’s header off the line with the best effort either side mustered before half-time.

    Joao Virginia started in goal for The Toffees for just the second time due to injuries to regular goalkeepers Jordan Pickford and Robin Olsen.

    However, the 21-year-old Portuguese stopper produced a brilliant save early in the second half to prevent Raheem Sterling from converting Fernandinho’s pinpoint low cross.

    Guardiola was forced to introduce Mahrez and De Bruyne off the bench in the final quarter.

    But it was the unlikely source of Aymeric Laporte who opened Everton up as he broke forward from centre-back before Virginia brilliantly turned the Frenchman’s initial effort onto the crossbar.

    Gundogan was following up, though, to head into an empty net and end the resistence from Carlo Ancelotti’s men.

    De Bruyne then wrapped up the tie with a thundering finish in stoppage time as Everton claimed in vain for a high boot by Mahrez on Mina.

  • FA Cup: Tuchel praises three youngsters after Chelsea win

    FA Cup: Tuchel praises three youngsters after Chelsea win

    Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel praised three academy youngsters after their FA Cup win at Barnsley.

    Tammy Abraham struck the only goal on the night and Tuchel was happy with how he combined with two other academy graduates.

    He said, “Clearly he made the difference.

    “But with the strike you cannot leave out the pass from Billy Gilmour, you cannot leave out the run from Reece James, so it was a very nice goal where he was at the end of a very good combination.

    “But yes, he scores decisive goals in cup games and that is good for him because for the strikers it is most important to score. And of course the stop on the line was crucial at that moment.”