Chelsea boss Liam Rosenior says costly mistakes proved decisive in a 3-2 League Cup semi-final first leg loss to Arsenal at Stamford Bridge.
LONDON: Chelsea manager Liam Rosenior said his side paid for costly errors after a 3-2 defeat to Arsenal in their League Cup semi-final first leg.
The loss in Rosenior’s first home game leaves Chelsea with a difficult task to overturn the deficit in the second leg at the Emirates Stadium in February.
Chelsea’s poor marking allowed Ben White to head Arsenal into an early lead before goalkeeper Robert Sanchez’s mistake gifted a second goal to Viktor Gyokeres.
Alejandro Garnacho pulled a goal back for Chelsea, but Martin Zubimendi restored Arsenal’s two-goal advantage following more lax defending.
A second goal from substitute Garnacho gave Chelsea late hope ahead of the return fixture.
“Disappointed to concede from a corner. Disappointed with the third goal as well because we were right back in the game and we were on top at that moment,” Rosenior said.
He refused to single out Sanchez, who made a crucial save at 3-1, despite the goalkeeper’s error.
“Rob’s a very good goalkeeper. He made an outstanding save at 3-1 to keep us in the tie,” Rosenior added.
The Chelsea boss took heart from his team’s fighting spirit despite being without several key players due to injury and illness.
Arsenal’s victory extends their unbeaten run to 10 games across all competitions as they chase a first trophy since 2020.
Manager Mikel Arteta praised his team but rued missed chances to secure a more commanding lead.
“We had two massive chances to score the fourth one and the result would have been very different,” Arteta said.
He emphasised that the tie remains finely balanced ahead of the second leg.
“It’s another step. It’s just half-time. We know the big fight we are going to have at the Emirates,” Arteta said.
