Chelsea struggled more than expected at Lincoln City, but still celebrated a hard-fought 2-1 victory and advanced. The Imps can take heart from the fact that they were able to keep up with a top Premier League team for 90 minutes, even though the Blues did not field their first-choice lineup.
Chelsea coach Enzo Maresca responded to the recent 2-1 defeat at Manchester United, the second defeat and third consecutive game without a win, with numerous changes, fielding an almost completely revamped starting lineup. Only the two center backs, Fofana and Chalobah, and defensive midfielder Fernandez survived the rotation.
However, Maresca was unlikely to have been pleased with what he saw. The big favorites got off to an alarmingly poor start, with Gittens (19′) recording a decent finish, but that only masked the fact that the third-division side set the pace in the first half. Present in the challenges and equipped with the classic virtues of grounded football, Lincoln City even had a slight advantage in terms of chances, proving particularly dangerous from set pieces such as long throw-ins and corners.
Shortly before halftime, the underdogs, who had been unbeaten in nine competitive games, took a sensational lead – with a little help from the Londoners: Fernandez played a far too risky cross to Chalobah, who then misjudged the ball and lost it to Varfolomeev. The Ukrainian passed to Street, who easily slotted home from 11 meters (42′).
George initiates the turnaround
The score was 1-0 at halftime, but the lead was not to last long after the restart: Gittens’ low cross from the left took a pinball bounce and ended up at the feet of George. The 19-year-old took heart and fired the ball into the right corner from around 18 meters out, with the help of the inside post, to make it 1-1 (48′).
When, two minutes later, Buonanotte showed luck and skill to beat his man in the opposition’s box after a fine combination and one-two with George to make it 2-1, it must have been a huge weight off the minds of everyone supporting Chelsea. It was the Argentine’s first goal in a Blues shirt, while the Imps’ FA Cup dream went up in smoke. Lincoln did not give up, however, playing courageously even after falling behind and looking for the equalizer, but the third-division side was unable to find it and ultimately had to admit defeat after a remarkable performance.
Next Saturday (4 p.m.), Lincoln City will play Peterborough United in the league, while Chelsea will face Brighton & Hove Albion two divisions higher at the same time.
