After securing a 1-0 victory against Chelsea at Riverside Stadium, Middlesbrough will take a one-goal lead into the second leg of the Carabao Cup semi-final.
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In the first half, Héctor Hackaní’s effort, closing the opening period for the Championship team, brought joy to the home fans. Meanwhile, Cole Palmer rejected three excellent opportunities for the struggling Premier League team. Mauricio Pochettino’s team maintained control but couldn’t muster enough effort to secure a draw for the night, facing their fifth defeat in six matches. They still have work to do to reach the final at Wembley. The dream is alive for Boro.
Player Ratings:
Middlesbrough: Glover (7), Van den Berg (7), Fry (8), Engel (8), Jones (8), Howson (7), Barlaser (7), Hackaní (8), Bangura (N/A), Crooks (7), Lait Laithe (N/A).
Subs: Coburn (7), Clark (8).
Chelsea: Petrovik (6), Gusto (6), Diasi (5), Thiago Silva (6), Colville (5), Enzo (5), Casido (5), Gallagher (6), Maduke (6), Pamar (5), Sterling (5).
Subs: Mudrik (5), Broja (6), Gilchrist (N/A).
Man of the Match:
Isaiah Jones
How Boro Exploited It:
Boro played with intent from the start. Levi Colville’s poor defensive header allowed Emmanuel Lait Lait a chance to score within the first minute, but the forward failed to connect properly, making it comfortable for George Petrovik.
It was doubly costly for Carrick’s team as an attempted clearance by Excel Diasi resulted in Lait Lait being caught, forcing the Ivorian to leave the field injured. Josh Coburn replaced him, but Boro also lost Alex Bangura.
Chelsea struggled to capitalize, but when Johnny Howson gifted Pamar a chance, they should have taken advantage. His well-placed shot was pulled just wide of the post, punishing the Premier League team for this lapse immediately.
How we got here ⏪ #UTB pic.twitter.com/KvEC7fZMQS
— Middlesbrough FC (@Boro) January 9, 2024
Daniel Barlaser sent Isaiah Jones wide on the right, and his low cross was delivered by Hackaní. Moises Casido didn’t track the run, but the 21-year-old academy graduate finished well to raise the temperature inside Riverside Stadium.
Pochettino had urged his team to start with more purpose in the EFL Cup against Preston than they did against Chelsea, but the failure to exploit Boro’s mistakes was the issue here. Pamar wasted a better chance than his average goal in the midweek, just before the break, compounding Chelsea’s woes.
Tom Glover mishandled Enzo Fernandes’ long-range shot, attempting an unnecessary save that left the goal open for Pamar to finish with a direct volley. This wastefulness became the talking point of Chelsea’s season, but the advantage of a two-legged semi-final is that there is time to rectify it. Nonetheless, despite their overall dominance, there was disappointment in their game in the second half. Wild shots. Goalless draws.
Boro needed an excellent rear-guard action to keep them at bay, and amid a special atmosphere, that’s exactly what they delivered. Chelsea will seek redemption on January 23rd at Stamford Bridge. But they have work to do. It’s Boro who are advancing to the next round.
Boro believes they can get the job done:
Players of Middlesbrough were delighted, giving the home fans a memorable night and acknowledging that the job is not yet complete.
Hackaní told Sky Sports, “We stuck to the plan and tried to keep it steady and catch them on the counter.” “It was a fantastic goal; I just reached the end of it. Although I believe we played well tonight, playing away from home is a whole different ballgame.
🌋 Listen to the @Boro crowd erupt!#EFL | #CarabaoCup pic.twitter.com/ENASu6TM1U
— Carabao Cup (@Carabao_Cup) January 10, 2024
We’ll give our best in that.”
Experienced midfielder Howson, on his second goal of the career, relished the opportunity. “These opportunities don’t come around often. It’s the first time in my career. You have to make the most of it, give your everything, and see what happens.”
Man of the Match Isaiah Jones said, “Because we were at home, we needed to use the crowd as our 12th player, and I felt we did that with the early chances in the first half. We have confidence. Hopefully, we can go there, get a win, and reach Wembley.”
Carrick praised the team after the ‘special’ night:
“This was very special. There’s still a game to be played, and I am aware that it is a two-way street. But as a club, we’ve had to endure whatever comes our way, injuries, and beating a quality Chelsea team in any shape or form is unbelievable.
“The lads were exceptional tonight. It was an incredible night, and their effort was enormous.
Seeing them fight and fight together, there were bodies everywhere at the end. I’m so proud of them, so it’s a wonderful feeling.”
Hazlebank points out Kacido’s error:
Chelsea’s former striker Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink laid the blame entirely on midfielder Kacido for his peculiar decision to let Hackaní’s run go untracked, leading to the winning goal. Hasselbaink told Sky Sports, “The goalkeeper has no chance, but we cannot forget Kacido.”
“It becomes one-v-one, and if you have a strong mentality, you don’t lose your one-v-one; you just stay with your man, and you make sure you stay with him. In the end, you give him a little push so that he can’t put the ball in. He stopped.
Talking more generally about Chelsea’s performance, they said: “I felt there was a plan, but breaking the lines and doing more was necessary. There was a need for selfless runs to open up space. It’s not just about crossing into the box; there’s [Raheem] Sterling waiting.
🤩 Those full-time scenes, @Boro fans!#EFL | #CarabaoCup pic.twitter.com/0193MvfOce
— Carabao Cup (@Carabao_Cup) January 9, 2024
“It’s about knowing and understanding your teammates. Chelsea didn’t quite get that. It was slow, required hard work, and there were many turnovers to give Boro joy. And that’s why they were dangerous.
“It all starts with the right mentality. It begins with the right mentality. They didn’t keep the opposition on the back foot, and they weren’t playing in the right areas.”
Pochettino is disappointed about missed opportunities:
“Today, the perspective was good. Although we are unable to comment on the referees, we committed mistakes in the first half that allowed them to score. They played on the counter and were combative.
Breaking their defense was challenging.
“We had plenty of chances to score, and that’s football. This is only the first part of the competition, and we have 90 minutes at Stamford Bridge, so we need to stay positive.”
“We committed errors, and the consequences were inevitable. Even though we produced clear opportunities and were generally the superior team, we must continue forward motion while evaluating our performance.
We weren’t clinical, and that’s happened in several games over the last six months.
“We have 15 days [before the second leg], so we can get some players back. We are now thinking about Fulham, and we will progress.”
What happened with Chelsea fans?
The tension was palpable as distant Chelsea supporters reacted angrily to players, visible with the last-minute scenes. However, Pochettino was eager to emphasize that the issue is not like that.
He said, “Don’t be misled. Our fans were fantastic. Thiago [Silva] was talking to the players, and I heard. They were trying to calm our fans because I think there was an issue between two groups of fans, not between our players. Be careful about how you report on this, don’t get it wrong. Don’t confuse people.”
What’s next?
Middlesbrough is back in Sky Bet Championship action when they travel to Millwall on Saturday, starting at 3 p.m.
On Saturday, at 12:30 p.m., Chelsea played Fulham at Stamford Bridge in a West London derby.
The second leg of this semifinal starts on Tuesday, January 23, at 8 p.m., taking place at Stamford Bridge.
