Liam Rosenior praised the fighting spirit Chelsea showed in coming from behind to stay in contention with Arsenal in their first EFL Cup semi-final match.
Arsenal won 3-2 at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday, despite Alejandro Garnacho’s second half.
Ben White, Viktor Gyokeres and Martin Zubimendi were all on the scoresheet for the Gunners, who take a slim one-goal lead into the second leg at the Emirates Stadium on February 3.
Rosenior became the seventh consecutive Chelsea boss to fail to win their first home game in charge (D5 L2), while Maurizio Sarri was the last to win at Stamford Bridge in August 2018.
But the 41-year-old remained optimistic about Chelsea’s prospects of reaching the EFL Cup final after the determination they showed in the second half.
‘It’s half time [in the tie]. I was very happy with the involvement, the commitment of the players,” Rosenior told beIN Sports.
“They gave everything. It was every open game. Disappointed to concede from a corner. Disappointed with the third goal too, because we were right back in the game and were on top at that moment.”
“We stopped with a restart through a central free kick, but I can’t blame the players. We have had illness in the team, we have taken a few blows this week, but what the team has shown is that they are willing to run for each other and fight for each other.”
Robert Sanchez was left in no man’s land for Arsenal’s opener from a corner, and he also left White’s center writhing under his hands, allowing Gyokeres to tap in their second goal.
However, he also made three saves, with Rosenior highlighting one in particular that could be crucial for Chelsea in the second leg.
“Rob is a very good goalkeeper,” he said of Sánchez.
“He made an excellent save at 3-1 to keep us level, so for me there are still a lot of things to improve, but I liked the overall attitude of the team. Hopefully we get a few bodies back for Brentford on Saturday.”
Garnacho, who scored with both shots on target after his debut in the 53rd minute, also scored twice from the bench to secure Chelsea’s victory over Cardiff City in the last eight.
He became the first Premier League player to score twice in both a quarter-final and semi-final in the same EFL Cup season since Edin Dzeko for Manchester City in 2013/14.
In total, he has scored five goals as a substitute in all competitions this season, more than any other player in the English top flight.
“I said he would be important from the bench, and he has proven that,” Rosenior said of Garnacho.
“I have an excellent team. What I need is for them to be involved, whether they start the game or come off the bench. Garna showed his quality.”
“I think Pedro Neto was great. Estevao was also excellent. We have to make sure that if we perform well individually, we don’t concede so many goals.”
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