The first leg of the EFL Cup semi-final was contested with Chelsea travelling to Middlesbrough. Chelsea's results this season have been dismal, with eight wins, four draws and eight defeats in the league, with just 28 points and 10th place. Such a result is a great shame for Chelsea, who are worth a total of €1 billion. It's too difficult for Chelsea to qualify for Europe. However, Chelsea's form has picked up in recent times, winning three games in a row. In the EFL Cup, Chelsea face Middlesbrough, 12th placed in the Championship. The last nine meetings between the two sides have been won by Chelsea. This time, Chelsea were in a big upset, losing the game.
Chelsea lined up 4,231 for this game. Palmer is at the front. Raheem Sterling, Conor Gallagher and Juekai form the attacking pairing. Enzo Fernandez and Caicedo partnered in a back two. Colwill, Thiago Silva, Disasi and Gusto started the game at the back four. Petrovich served as the starting goalkeeper. Mykhailo Mudryk and Armando Broja were on the bench. Nikolai Jacquesson went to the national team.
Chelsea came close to conceding a goal shortly after the start when Rattle's one-on-one shot was cleared away by the goalkeeper. Middlesbrough were unlucky, with injury strikes in quick succession, with Rattle and Bangura coming off injured, resulting in two early substitutions. Palmer had the chance to open the scoring, but his one-on-one shot was deflected wide. The result was Middlesbrough who took the opportunity to score first, with Jones setting up Hackney to push the back of the net. Then Palmer wasted another chance when he faced a big empty goal and couldn't find it, which was very confusing. At half-time, Chelsea were one goal down. Chelsea had 63 per cent possession in the first half and failed to score with 11 shots on goal with three on target. Middlesbrough, on the other hand, scored one goal in the first half, although they only had four shots on goal.
In the second half, it was easy to play again. Jue Madueka's header was denied, Conor Gallagher swept wide, substitutes Mykhailo Mudryk and Armando Broja were also impressed, and Raheem Sterling was a slow step in front of goal to miss an empty goal. The final score was set at 0-1 as Chelsea suffered a shock defeat to Middlesbrough. Such a result made Pochettino unbelievable, and the 1 billion big team overturned. Mauricio Pochettino has recorded an 18-year record of humiliation, the first defeat to Middlesbrough in 18 years. However, there is still a second leg in this tournament, and will Pochettino be able to complete a comeback?We'll see!