Cardiff City 1-3 Chelsea: Two goals from Alejandro Garnacho and one from Pedro Neto helped the Blues defeat the Ligue 1 hosts and reach the Carabao Cup semi-finals.
Chelsea overcame a fierce challenge from Cardiff City to advance to the Carabao Cup semi-finals. The Premier League side needed late goals from Pedro Neto and Alejandro Garnacho after David Turnbull canceled out Garnacho’s opener.
Chelsea’s much-changed eleven had a poor first half, but Enzo Maresca was the catalyst to shake things up again at half-time. Within 12 minutes of the match, Garnacho scored the opening goal due to a mistake by Cardiff’s backline.
They looked comfortable until Cardiff scored an equalizer against the run of the game. David Turnbull scored a flying header to set up a grandstand finish in the Welsh capital.
But Neto, also a disappointing substitute for Maresca, broke the Bluebirds’ hearts with a goal in the 82nd minute, before Garnacho scored a late goal. Brian Barry Murphy’s men made a valiant effort, but it was not enough.
Here are five talking points from Cardiff City Stadium.
read more: Jamie Carragher shares his big predictions for Enzo Maresca in the aftermath of Chelsea digread more: Bayern Munich star’s father flies to England to negotiate transfer between Chelsea and Man City
1. Major overhaul of Maresca
Rotate, rotate, rotate. Those familiar with Maresca’s reign at Chelsea will know how much the Blues manager likes to change his starting lineup from game to game.
Maresca used the Conference League last season as a training ground for young talent and peripheral players, and that now appears to be the role of the Carabao Cup. None of the players who started in Saturday’s 2-0 home win over Everton were named in the starting XI.
Moises Caicedo returned from a three-match suspension and Marc Giu was appointed captain. Filip Jorgensen also had a chance to score.
Is Chelsea’s lack of a stable eleven holding them back? Please share your thoughts in the comments section.
2. Half-time change forced by Cardiff’s intentions
If you didn’t watch the first half and saw Joao Pedro and Garnacho brought on midway through the second half, you can guess exactly what was going through Maresca’s mind: Worry. Cardiff were so good in the first half that it was hard to tell which were the Premier League team and which were the League One team.
The Bluebirds looked more dangerous than Chelsea in the opening 45 minutes, taking six shots to their opponents’ five and keeping Jorgensen busy. Cardiff were also confident at the back, playing through goalkeeper Nathan Trott and looking to build up from deep, although there were some nervous moments.
Maresca had done enough by half-tome to eliminate two of the Blues’ attackers in Giu and Tilik George. Could futures on this pair be in the spotlight in January?
3. Garnacho presents the goal
There was an immediate change in Chelsea’s performance after the interval, but it was Cardiff who looked most comfortable when they broke the deadlock. Looking for a pass with plenty of time to possess the ball, 19-year-old Dylan Lawler sent a pass straight to Facundo Buonanotte, making it a 3-on-2 attack for Chelsea.
Buonanotte saw Garnacho sprinting past his left and placed a perfectly weighted pass into the path of the fellow Argentina international. Garnacho finished simply, with their trademark celebrations in front of the away end.
Just a few minutes later, the Blues smelled blood and were almost 2-0 up. Buonanotte picked up the scraps of Pedro’s blocked shot and fired a shot from long range, forcing Trott to make a good save.
4. Turnbull comes on with the equalizer.
Chelsea stumbled repeatedly in search of a second goal and were made to pay for their waste. A rare leap forward resulted in Perry Ng picking up Turnbull’s well-timed run, who struck the wrong side of Maro Gusto and fired a superb header past Jorgensen.
Suddenly, with only 15 minutes of normal time left, Barry Murphy’s men return. There will be no overtime and now is the only time to avoid penalties.
5. Neto breaks Bluebird’s heart
Cardiff’s celebrations didn’t last long, eight minutes to be exact. Another Chelsea substitute, another Chelsea goal.
Neto was on the scoresheet this time, finishing brilliantly past Trott after some patient build-up play from the Blues. Cardiff had to react quickly but the crowd was behind them.
Looking for another equalizer, Chelsea’s Andrei Santos hit a decisive shot inside his own box in the 6th minute of second-half stoppage time. And the winning goal was scored by the other side. Garnacho doubled on the night to secure a nervy win that sent Chelsea into the last four of the cup competition.
Join our new WhatsApp community and receive Mirror Football content every day. Community members also receive special offers, promotions, and advertisements from us and our partners. If you don’t like our community, you can always check out. If you are interested, please read our privacy notice.
Sky Sports Premier League and EFL package discounts
£43
£35
sky
Get the deal here
Sky has reduced the price of its Essential TV and Sky Sports bundle ahead of the 2025/26 season, saving members £192 on their bill and offering more than 1,400 live matches from the Premier League, EFL and more.
Sky will broadcast at least 215 live Premier League matches next season, with an increase of up to 100 more.
