Arsenal and Chelsea played out one of the most uneventful games ever in the Carabao Cup semi-final until Kai Havertz saved the day.
Fans at the Emirates had their boredom over 90 minutes reimbursed thanks to Havertz’s 97th-minute match-winner.
The German made the Emirates explode as he scored against his former club to confirm Arsenal’s place in the Carabao Cup final.
Mikel Arteta will be relieved that Havertz scored to spare him from accusations of playing conservatively, as the Gunners were set up in a way that reinforced the one-goal lead they carried into the second leg.
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Trevoh Chalobah called Arsenal out for not creating chances against Chelsea
Gary Neville was having a field day on Sky Sports’ coverage of the match, making his thoughts on Arsenal’s performance known.
Arsenal went out with a clear task to keep their aggregate lead intact, and they did just that, but Chelsea didn’t appreciate their approach.
Speaking to Chelsea’s official website after the clash, Blues centre-back Trevoh Chalobah protested that his team were the better side, but he was wrong.
“Arsenal didn’t create many chances, they didn’t really hurt us in that final part of the game,” Chalobah said.
“It was just the final details – finishing our attacks or getting shots off, and for us that’s what we need to improve.”
Chalobah stated that Arsenal didn’t create many chances, but the reality was that the Gunners actually created more clear-cut chances to score than Chelsea.
Chelsea might have had more shots, but when it came to big chances and chances created from open play, Arsenal were the better side.
Arteta’s side recorded 0.81 expected goals from open play, compared to Chelsea’s mere 0.25, and generated two big chances in comparison to Chelsea’s one, as per FotMob.
Paul Merson was flabbergasted by Chelsea
Chalobah shared his review of Arsenal’s performance, but what the Chelsea players really needed to do was look in the mirror.
Paul Merson was ‘flabbergasted’ when reacting to the game on Sky Sports, making it clear that he was stunned by how poor Chelsea were, given their circumstances heading into the second-leg.
Do you agree with Paul Merson, were you surprised by Chelsea’s approach against Arsenal?
“I’m flabbergasted. I can’t believe what I’ve just watched. Chelsea have World Cup winners, this is not a bottom-five team,” Merson said.
“Fofana is crying. He should be crying because they never had a go. They’ve gone out with a whimper in a semi-final. It hasn’t worked. Go out in a blaze of glory, don’t go out like that.”
The night belonged to Arsenal, as did the tie, with the Gunners booking a spot in the Carabao Cup final while their rivals exited with their tails between their legs.
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