Chelsea into Carabao Cup semi-finals after beating Newcastle on penalties

Chelsea advanced to the semi-finals of the Carabao Cup after beating Newcastle 4-2 on penalties. The win would not have been achieved without Mykhailo Mudryk coming off the bench to punish an error in stoppage time from Kieran Trippier, whose night went from bad to worse when he shot wide during the shootout.

It had seemed that Callum Wilson’s early goal would be enough for Newcastle to go through. In the end they left west London with more injuries and a second cup exit in the space of a week. Their race was run when Djordje Petrovic, making only his second start in goal for Chelsea, leapt to his left to keep out Matt Ritchie’s penalty and send Stamford Bridge wild.

Eddie Howe, who had lost more players to injury, could not believe it. Tempers were frayed when Pochettino celebrated Mudryk’s equaliser. Chelsea had dominated the second half against tired opponents and had missed several chances. It looked like being another frustrating evening and Pochettino was entitled to let it all out.

Chelsea began with the air of a side aiming to prove they were no pushovers. After being bullied by Newcastle in the league last month, there was something rather pointed about Moisés Caicedo immediately earning a booking for a nasty foul on Anthony Gordon.

Caicedo might have been off if VAR had been in use. Still, it seemed this was Chelsea telling Newcastle they were up for the fight this time. There had been one change from Pochettino, Mudryk making way for Enzo Fernández to add more structure in midfield, and a frenetic start almost brought an early reward, only for Conor Gallagher’s effort to hit the bar.

Not that the aggression intimidated Newcastle. They were depleted, 11 players absent through injury or suspension, but they were committed. Gordon soon responded, finding space on the left before seeing a deflected shot go wide, and it would not be long before their midfield trio of Bruno Guimarães, Lewis Miley and Sean Longstaff were working Chelsea over with the pace of their passing.

Newcastle’s desire to pick up the loose balls played a part in them breaking from a Chelsea corner to strike first in the 16th minute. So, too, did a slack pass from Levi Colwill to Caicedo. Wilson seized possession and from there it was a mess. The striker was isolated and although he bundled past Thiago Silva, it seemed the chance had gone when the ball ran away from him.

Benoît Badiashile was there to bail out his defensive partner. The 22-year-old, though, did not count on Wilson’s poaching instincts. Badiashile tried a turn, miscontrolled and watched helplessly as the ball bounced away for Wilson to prod past Djordje Petrovic.

Chelsea quickly grew frantic. Raheem Sterling chased an equaliser and went close after skipping past Emil Krafth. Armando Broja came on when Fernández limped off and Chelsea attacked again. Cole Palmer produced a cutback from the right and Sterling looked certain to score. Guimarães celebrated with the away end after blocking the winger’s shot.

Newcastle were throwing themselves in front of everything. Gallagher was driving Chelsea on but the frustration mounted. Colwill could have been punished after catching Krafth.

It had not been a good display from Colwill. The left-back had struggled against Almirón and was replaced by Malo Gusto at half-time. Even so there was a sense that the game was opening up for Chelsea. Newcastle also made changes, Dan Burn and Trippier replacing Krafth and Sven Botman at the back, and their injury problems grew when Gordon pulled up while trying to race through on the right.

Now it was a test of Chelsea’s ability to break down a low block. Ritchie came on for Gordon and cracks appeared in Newcastle’s defence. Jackson should have equalised, only to miss from close range. Martin Dubravka saved a low shot from Sterling.

Newcastle continued to chase everything, Tino Livramento catching the eye against his old team when he beat Palmer to a 50-50. Chelsea needed more guile. Axel Disasi was not overlapping enough from right-back. Broja kept getting caught offside. Guimarães, the game’s outstanding player, raced back to stop Sterling reaching Jackson’s flick.

Pochettino finally removed Jackson and gave the home fans what they wanted in the 69th minute. There was a huge roar when Christopher Nkunku, absent since injuring a knee in pre-season, came on for his belated debut. No pressure. The forward was soon involved, dropping back to receive possession, but in the next move Sterling was booked for diving.

There were more howls when Sterling overhit a pass to Nkunku. Pochettino thought an attempted clearance from Livramento was going in. Then Gallagher appealed for a penalty when Livramento challenged. No such luck – until Mudryk arrived to beat Dubravka.