Chelsea is looking at the opportunity to advance to the English League Cup final. Having to make a comeback against Middlesbrough, this is Mauricio Pochettino’s hope for his team.
Chelsea will host Middlesbrough at Stamford Bridge, Wednesday (24/1/2024), in the second leg of the English League Cup semi-final. In the first meeting, the Blues lost 0-1 to the Championship team.
Despite appearing dominant, Chelsea were sluggish when attacking and were unable to convert it into goals. Instead, they were conceded by Hayden Hackney in the 37th minute.
The match at Stamford Bridge will be the last and closest opportunity for Chelsea to try to save the season a little. They are struggling in the Premier League (in 9th place) and face a tough challenge in the last 32 of the FA Cup against Aston Villa, who have performed very well this season.
“This is a passport to the final, to Wembley. This is very important for us, for the club, for everyone. We want to get to the final, but first we need to beat a very good Middlesbrough team,” said Chelsea Manager Mauricio Pochettino about how important the match was. Later.
“We couldn’t beat them in the first leg, but we are very confident that we can perform very well in front of our own fans and absorb their energy. We are very disappointed with the first leg,” he added, quoted by the BBC.
When they lost at Middlesbrough headquarters, Chelsea fired a total of 18 shots, five of which were aimed at the goal but were in vain. Now Chelsea inevitably has to be braver in pressing their opponents because they have to chase goals, but at the same time they can’t afford to lose again.
“We have to be sharp,” said Pochettino hopefully.
“When the opponent forces us to defend, we need to play tough and position well. We have to respect the opponent, it will be tough but there is a massive opportunity.”
John Terry admits that Chelsea is still far behind the top Premier League teams at the moment. But there is no reason to rush to remove Mauricio Pochettino.
“Unfortunately, Chelsea is a bit behind at the moment. But considering the time, managers need time, Poch is a good manager, I have seen him work from day to day,” he said as quoted by Football365.
“We are also a squad containing young players, but we are still far behind teams like Man City and Liverpool at the moment.”
“Obviously, with time, the squad will grow as the players gain more experience, and a good manager like Pochettino can steer them on the right path for the future.”
“He should be given the rest of the season at Chelsea, because there has been a clear improvement in recent weeks, which shows the potential of this squad, and that will probably continue for the rest of the season,” he added.
