Man City vs Chelsea: Carabao Cup final preview
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Manchester City retained the English League Cup by beating Chelsea 4-3 on penalties after a bizarre climax to the Wembley showpiece on Sunday which saw Chelsea goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga refuse to be substituted.
Nothing could separate the sides as the match finished 0-0 after extra time but it was City who claimed the season's first major silverware as they won the shootout.
Raheem Sterling fired the decisive spot kick past Spaniard Arrizabalaga to complete the first part of what could be a quadruple for Pep Guardiola's side.
Arrizabalaga minutes earlier been involved in surely one of the strangest incidents in a Wembley final when he defied Chelsea manager Maurizio Sarri's orders to come off in the closing minutes of extra time after appearing to be injured.
Sarri, who had told substitute keeper Willy Caballero to take over from Arrizabalaga, was left fuming in the technical area at the open show of mutiny by one of his players.
Show all 22 1 /22Player ratings from Chelsea vs Man City Player ratings from Chelsea vs Man City Kepa Arrizabalaga - 5 Responded to recent criticism with a solid performance, claiming everything in the box and saving when he had to. But when he went down at the end, and Sarri tried to take him off, he put extra pressure on himself to succeed in the shoot-out. And in failing to save Aguero's penalty, his refusal to be substituted will be further scrutinised.
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Player ratings from Chelsea vs Man City Cesar Azpilicueta - 7 A captain’s performance, representing a link with the gritty determination of Chelsea teams of the recent past. Won every tackle and held the line immaculately.
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Player ratings from Chelsea vs Man City Antonio Rudiger - 7 Will have been relieved to be saved by the linesman’s flag when Aguero put the ball in the net in the second half. One or two anxious moments but his physicality in the tackle was essential to Chelsea stopping City’s mobile front line.
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Player ratings from Chelsea vs Man City David Luiz - 6 This is what he can do when he concentrates. Back to his best at the back, he never gave Sergio Aguero an inch, winning everything in the box and showing the big-game leadership he has shown throughout his career. Undermined much of his hard work through a woeful penalty effort.
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Player ratings from Chelsea vs Man City Emerson Palmieri - 7 A marked improvement on Marcos Alonso, defending with solid physicality up against Bernardo Silva, strong in the tackle and rarely caught in behind. Should play more often, based on this evidence.
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Player ratings from Chelsea vs Man City N'Golo Kante - 8 Absolutely everywhere. Caused City problems with his attacking runs, but also with his canny anticipation and endless running. Nearly a complete performance, but when Hazard played him in he lacked the ruthless finish required.
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Player ratings from Chelsea vs Man City Jorginho - 6 Given more protection by his team-mates, he looked more assured than he has in the past, cutting out City’s attacks and starting ones for his side. Uncharacterstically took a shot in extra time, but it went wide.
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Player ratings from Chelsea vs Man City Ross Barkley - 6 More disciplined than usual in midfield, but helped to stem the flow of City attacks, which is far more than can be said of the Chelsea midfield in recent weeks. Final third precision still lacking, and Chelsea improved when Ruben Loftus-Cheek replaced him.
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Player ratings from Chelsea vs Man City Pedro - 5 Quiet all game and then Hazard gave him a great chance in the second half where he ducked the shot and passed instead. Looked like a man lacking confidence in front of goal.
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Player ratings from Chelsea vs Man City Eden Hazard - 8 Not a natural number nine but he ran so hard all afternoon to get in behind City, taking the attack to them single-handedly. Set up golden chances which Kante and Pedro wasted. A performance of bravery, skill and commitment.
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Player ratings from Chelsea vs Man City Willian - 6 Worked hard all afternoon, found it frustrating in the first half but helped to put City under more pressure as the game turned in the second half.
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Player ratings from Chelsea vs Man City Ederson - 6 Faultless in goal and with the ball at his feet. Unlike at Schalke last week, no last-gasp game-changing assist.
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Player ratings from Chelsea vs Man City Kyle Walker - 6 Could not be faulted for his running up and down all afternoon, especially when he had to cope with the movement of Hazard. But when City had the ball, he struggled to provide the attacking outlet that they needed .
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Player ratings from Chelsea vs Man City Nicolas Otamendi - 7 Recovered from his red card at Schalke on Wednesday with a big performance, including a crucial tackle on Eden Hazard early in the second half.
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Player ratings from Chelsea vs Man City Aymeric Laporte - 5 Caught out by one long ball and N'Golo Kante run in the first half, and never looked fully comfortable. Replaced by Vincent Kompany at the break, and City did miss Laporte’s passing from the back.
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Player ratings from Chelsea vs Man City Oleksandr Zinchenko - 5 Back into the team at left back, he was unpunished for an early foul on Kante but then settled into the job. But there were times when City could have done with a direct threat down that side.
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Player ratings from Chelsea vs Man City Kevin De Bruyne - 4 Still not quite looking himself after the long lay-off with knee injuries. Worked hard to show for the ball but the execution is still just a few degrees off, not least with a well-positioned free-kick towards the end.
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Player ratings from Chelsea vs Man City Fernandinho - 7 Given a real battle by Kante in the middle of the pitch, he was shackled by a booking and had to do far more defending in the second half than expected. Eventually succumbed to an injury that could be a big factor in the rest of the season.
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Player ratings from Chelsea vs Man City David Silva - 5 Always available, probing, trying to find a way through, but found himself up against a stronger Chelsea defence than he expected. Could never play the killer pass.
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Player ratings from Chelsea vs Man City Bernardo Silva - 6 Another City player who found it far harder to break through than he might have expected. Always jinking around for space but it was not there. Moved into a central role later on, and as always kept on running until the end.
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Player ratings from Chelsea vs Man City Sergio Aguero - 6 Shackled far better than he was when these teams met in the Premier League. Worked hard but kept bumping into Rudiger and Luiz. Denied a second-half goal by a marginal offside call. Kept running until the end but with no reward.
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Player ratings from Chelsea vs Man City Raheem Sterling - 7 Whether staying wide on the left or cutting inside, he always looked on the brink of something special, but every time he kept being snuffed out. Cut down by a cynical Jorginho foul late on in normal time. Won it for City with an exceptional penalty.
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"It was a big misunderstanding because I understood the keeper had cramp and was unable to go to the penalties. But it was not cramp and he could go to the penalties," Sarri said.
To compound matters Arrizabalaga then dived over Sergio Aguero's weak penalty during the shootout.
He did save from Leroy Sane but when Chelsea's David Luiz struck the post with his spot kick, it was left to Sterling to smash his penalty high into the roof of the net and send the City fans into delirium after a tense afternoon.
Re-live the action below:
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Key Points Manchester City clinch the trophy in penalty shootout Chelsea goalkeeper refuses to be substituted in extraordinary incident Show latest update 1551040511 Well that was dramatic. It's easy to forget that for 117 minutes this final was rather dull.
Anyway, Manchester City leave Wembley with another trophy as Pep Guardiola's side edge closer to a historic quadruple season. They couldn't...could they?
As for Chelsea, they leave with a rather dark cloud hanging over what was actually a good performance. It'll be interesting to see who starts in goal when they have the small matter of hosting Tottenham on Wednesday...
Jack Watson 24 February 2019 20:35
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