Chelsea have a battle on their hands to reach the EFL Cup final after falling to a surprise 1-0 defeat to Championship side Middlesbrough in the first leg of the teams’ semi-final tie on Tuesday.
Hayden Hackney tapped in the winner late in the first half at a jubilant Riverside Stadium, and Chelsea only had themselves to blame as they missed chance after chance to level the match.
Cole Palmer, in particular, was guilty of spurning several clear opportunities as Mauricio Pochettino’s side endured another frustrating outing, and they must now fight back from behind in the second leg at Stamford Bridge on January 23.
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Middlesbrough started brightly and created the first chance within 36 seconds as Emmanuel Latte Lath forced Djordje Petrovic into action, though the forward had to be withdrawn shortly thereafter, having been injured by Axel Disasi’s lunge while taking the shot.
The hosts also lost wing-back Alex Bangura to injury in a disrupted start, and the first clear-cut chance went to Chelsea 31 minutes in, when Palmer intercepted a casual pass from Jonny Howson but dragged his finish wide.
Palmer was punished for that miss six minutes later as Hackney sent the Riverside into raptures, ghosting into the six-yard box to tap Isaiah Jones’ cutback past Petrovic.
STARBOYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY!!!!!! #UTB pic.twitter.com/V6JOEnjId8
— Middlesbrough FC (@Boro) January 9, 2024
The former Manchester City man then missed two great chances to equalise in first-half stoppage time, somehow side-footing over when Tom Glover spilled Enzo Fernandez’s drive before seeing a low effort parried by the Middlesbrough goalkeeper.
Middlesbrough were pinned back from the start of the second half as Chelsea dominated possession, with Conor Gallagher failing to trouble Glover when he steered Malo Gusto’s cross wide on the hour.
Raheem Sterling bent a 20-yard effort just over the bar as Chelsea grew increasingly desperate, but Michael Carrick’s hosts were relatively comfortable in the closing stages, with the 2004 EFL Cup winners giving themselves something to defend in west London in two weeks’ time.
????⚪️ Advantage @Boro!#EFL | #CarabaoCup pic.twitter.com/GUV4BGONma
— Carabao Cup (@Carabao_Cup) January 9, 2024
