Chelsea reach semifinal EFL Cup

 

Chelsea survive scare to reach Carabao Cup semi-finals after beating Newcastle on penalties

Chelsea survived a scare at Stamford Bridge to reach the Carabao Cup semi-finals by defeating Newcastle United on penalties after a 1-1 draw.

Callum Wilson gave the Magpies an early lead before Mykhailo Mudryk equalised in stoppage time to send the match to a shoot out on Tuesday night, which the home side won 4-2.

Though both sides have been ravaged by injuries this season, each named strong starting XIs, with Newcastle defender Sven Botman notably starting for the first time in three months after recovering from a knee injury.

And straight from kick-off it was evident that it would be an intense affair, with Moises Caicedo booked within two minutes for a nasty foul on Anthony Gordon, which could well have been a red card had VAR been in operation.

Newcastle who took the lead, with Wilson capitalising on a Benoit Badiashile mistake, after the defender had initially won the ball off the England striker, to lop Dorde Petrovic.

However in the end, it took another defensive error to generate a goal, after Kieran Trippier’s attempt to head back to his keeper went all wrong and allowed Mykhailo Mudryk to pounce and smash home an equaliser in stoppage time.

The Blues had chance after chance to equalise before the break, with Raheem Sterling coming close twice in the space of two minutes – first shooting wide from a tight angle before having an effort blocked on the line by Bruno Guimaraes.

Chelsea were faultless from the penalty spot, courtesy of Cole Palmer, Gallagher, Nkunku and Mudryk, but the same could not be said for the away team.