Arsenal FC emerged victorious once again in the second leg against Chelsea FC. Shortly before the final whistle, substitute Havertz sealed the deal and sent the Gunners to the League Cup final.
The Gunners and the Blues played five games each after Arsenal won the semi-final first leg 3-2 at Stamford Bridge. While Mikel Arteta’s team dropped points in Nottingham (0-0) and against ManUnited (2-3), Chelsea remained flawless in all five games.
Hincapie tests Sanchez
The atmosphere at the Emirates Stadium lived up to the significance of the London derby, but the action on the pitch did so only to a limited extent. Arsenal, who had played with substitute goalkeeper Kepa, Eze, and Gabriel Martinelli instead of Raya, Trossard, and Havertz (all on the bench) after their 4-0 win in Leeds, took control of the game early on but were initially unable to create any offensive threat.
The first notable chance finally came in the 18th minute, when Hincapie forced Blues keeper Sanchez into a flying save from the second row. The Spanish goalkeeper was once again in the starting line-up, unlike Badiashile, Palmer, Garnacho (all on the bench) and Gittens (injured). Fofana, Andrey Santos, Cucurella and Joao Pedro moved into the starting line-up compared to the 3-2 win against West Ham.
Few highlights before the break
As the game progressed, Liam Rosenior’s side balanced the possession, but they were unable to prevent the next good chance in the 34th minute. Gusto blocked a swivel shot from Gabriel Martinelli at the last minute.
The draw at half-time accurately reflected the course of the game so far, not least because the visitors had their first compelling chance shortly before the break. Fernandez tried his luck from around 16 meters, but Kepa saved the misplaced curling shot with ease (43′).
Chelsea mostly try their luck from distance
After Chelsea failed to create any chances in the opening quarter of an hour of the second half, Rosenior brought on both Estevao and Palmer (for Delap and Hato, 61′) as part of a double substitution and switched to a back four. This was a fundamentally offensive move, but it initially only resulted in harmless long-range attempts from Cucurella (64′) and Fernandez (65′).
Meanwhile, the yellow cards were piling up, starting with a warning for Gunners coach Arteta (53′). For a long time, referee Peter Bankes had managed without issuing any cautions, but after 71 minutes he had suddenly shown four yellow cards. The Blues gradually increased the pressure, but were lucky that Cucurella made a decisive block on a header from Gabriel (77′).
Havertz seals the deal
The visitors were the slightly superior team throughout the game, but were rarely able to create promising chances in the penalty area. They repeatedly tried their luck from distance – without success.
As Chelsea threw everything forward in stoppage time, gaps appeared in their defense. The Gunners took advantage of this through Havertz, who had come on as a substitute in the 69th minute. After a pass from Rice, the German rounded Chelsea keeper Sanchez and sealed the deal (90+7).
In the final on March 22, the Gunners will face the winner of the second semi-final, which will be decided on Wednesday evening (9 p.m.). Thanks to a 2-0 win in the first leg, Manchester City currently has the edge over Newcastle United.