Sunday 1 March 2015

John Terry ensures Mourinho a Wembley winner again in the Capital One Cup

The Blues profited from two deflections to come out on top in an unexciting League Cup final, with John Terry grabbing the opener and a Kyle Walker own goal sealing it
 
Chelsea lifted the League Cup after a 2-0 victory over Tottenham in an unexciting final at Wembley.
John Terry gave Jose Mourinho's men the lead just before half-time when Spurs' poor defence of a free kick gave him the time and space to fire home via a deflection.
And the Blues cushioned that advantage soon after half-time when Diego Costa's finish was diverted in by Kyle Walker for an own goal.
Tottenham struggled to create genuine chances to get back into the game and the final drifted towards its conclusion as the Premier League leaders secured their first trophy of the season.
Mourinho made five changes from Chelsea's 1-1 draw with Burnley and saw his side make the brighter start as Terry headed over Willian's cross before Branislav Ivanovic's looping cross threatened Spurs' goal.
Hugo Lloris - making his first League Cup appearance of the season - dealt with the danger before Christian Eriksen rattled the woodwork with a 25-yard free kick. The Dane's opportunity came about after a foul on Harry Kane and the Spurs striker was next to go close with a low strike that tested Petr Cech.
Willian's raking pass set Eden Hazard away down the left, although his strike was blocked by Eric Dier, before Costa was involved in two flashpoints prior to the half-hour mark, having raised his hands towards Nabil Bentaleb.
A knock to Walker set the tone for a poor finish to the half for Spurs that was compounded when Terry made the most of lax defending on the stroke of half-time. When Chadli was caught out by a looping ball and fouled Ivanovic, a host of Spurs defenders failed to clear Willian's delivery, allowing skipperTerry to open the scoring from close range courtesy of a deflection off Kane.
Cesc Fabregas's overhead kick forced Lloris into a smart save shortly after the interval and Chelsea's positive start to the second half was rewarded when Costa looked to have scored his first goal since mid-January. A purposeful burst down the left was helped past Lloris by a Walker deflection - which was the crucial touch - 56 minutes in, with Pochettino opting to introduce Mousa Dembele and Erik Lamela to try and gain a foothold in the contest.
However, Chelsea demonstrated their defensive solidity to see out the victory with minimal fuss and collect the first of three potential trophies this season, while Spurs must focus on securing European qualification.


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