Chelsea fans turn on Torres & call for Demba Ba

Chelsea fans’ frustrations with much-maligned striker Fernando Torres appeared to reach boiling point on Wednesday night, with supporters booing the Spaniard and calling for Demba Ba during the Capital One Cup defeat to Swansea.

The Spanish striker started the game for the Blues but it was another Spaniard who left his mark on the game as Michu scored and helped the Swans to a superb 2-0 victory at Stamford Bridge.

Torres, who was making his 100th appearance for the Blues, managed 81 minutes but it was another disappointing performance, with the striker rarely threatening before being hooked in the second half.

Throughout the match Torres was targeted by sections of the Chelsea support, with boos audible, while chants for Demba Ba echoed around Stamford Bridge as the new signing watched on from the bench.

Rafa Benitez eventually gave in to the incessant crowd and introduced Ba with just under 10 minutes to go, and during that short cameo he made an impact, twice going close before having a goal disallowed for being marginally offside.

Danny Graham added a second for Swansea late on, while the Chelsea fans' annoyance towards Torres soon switched to Benitez as chants for Roberto Di Matteo rang out.


Source: Goal

Benitez unconcerned by mistakes

Chelsea manager Rafael Benitez refused to lambast his players despite their 2-0 defeat to Swansea in the first leg of their Capital One Cup semi-final.

Two shocking mistakes from Branislav Ivanovic gifted goals to Michu and Danny Graham, leaving Chelsea with a huge task to overturn the deficit at the Britannia Stadium in a fortnight.

Chelsea failed to convert dominance into goals, although Benitez was unhappy that Demba Ba's strike in added time was ruled out for offside.

Benitez said: "The team are doing well. You can lose a game and then analyse it, but if you play this game 10 times maybe you will win nine of them.

"I think the team were doing really well, had a lot of chances and could have scored two or three in the first half but we made two mistakes and paid for them.

"I can see any player making mistakes and it's not an issue. It's about trying to do things afterwards, and Ivanovic tried to do his best. We carried on and tried to do the right things."

Benitez insisted that Ba's late goal should have stood, and added: "The goal was a goal, he was level."


Source: SkySports

Laudrup remains cautious despite shock Chelsea win

Swansea manager Michael Laudrup insisted his side still had "a mountain to climb" to reach the Capital One Cup final despite their 2-0 win at Chelsea.

Michu and Danny Graham pounced on mistakes from Branislav Ivanovic to give the Swans a commanding advantage to take into the return leg of the semi-final in a fortnight.

But Laudrup warned against writing off the quality of Chelsea, who dominated throughout at Stamford Bridge but were unable to take their chances.

"We've had some historic results already this season but to win at the European champions is very special," Laudrup said.

"To be honest I'm delighted with the result.

"But there is still a mountain to climb. They have so much quality and we will have to play exactly the same; with the same intensity. They could still score three of four goals against us.

"But I am most happy about going into the second leg at home with a possibility to play a final at Wembley."

Chelsea dominated possession throughout at Stamford Bridge, but they paid a heavy price for failing to take any of their chances.

"I think we knew it would be a difficult game," Laudrup added. "The possession they had was much more than us - that's obvious. But to be honest they only had three big chances.

"They gave us two goals, but you have to score them. They are two mistakes but even if you take away the two goals they only created three chances. It was a marvellous fight."

Swansea skipper Ashley Williams added: "We stuck to our gameplan and defended really well.

"It will be a massive game at home. We're only half-way there in a massive tie. If we do get to Wembley it will be massive for everyone.

"We just wanted to get a result and bring them back top our place and try and finish the job. We just wanted to play our own game and not let the occasion get to us.

"We stayed calm and played the way we wanted to. The second goal is a bonus for us and gives us a bit of a cushion. They will come at us though."


Source: SkySports

Chelsea vs Swansea Capital One Cup Match Report

Chelsea slumped to defeat in the first leg of their Capital One Cup semi-final as goals by Michu and Danny Graham were enough for Swansea to claim victory at Stamford Bridge.

Rafael Benitez selected a strong side for the tie, although opted to rotate his attacking options with Fernando Torres replacing Demba Ba and Oscar returning to the starting line-up.

Swansea, meanwhile, made five changes, most notably Michu coming in with Danny Graham on the bench. The hosts dominated the early exchanges and took just 10 minutes to carve out a great chance.

A flowing move saw David Luiz and Eden Hazard combine beautifully to release Ramires into the area. The Brazilian took his time, but could only poke his shot tamely goalwards with an effort that did not trouble Gerhard Tremmel.

The goalkeeper was called into action again soon after, however. More slick approach work from the Blues saw Hazard again surging forwards before freeing Mata but the Spain international's side-footed shot lacked power and flew straight at Tremmel.

Minutes later and Mata was at it again, a clever backheel by Oscar left the Spaniard clean through on goal but he could only drag his shot wide when well placed.

Yet Chelsea were made to rue their missed chances when Swansea took the lead seven minutes before the break. A simple pass by goalkeeper Turnbull was miscontrolled by Ivanovic on the edge of the area, allowing De Guzman to chase the defender down.

However, the loose ball instead broke to Michu who took a touch before bending it superbly past the goalkeeper to open the scoring with a sublime finish.

The Blues were stunned but Ivanovic almost made amends just minutes before the break. The Serbian cut inside from the left before fizzing a shot goalwards which a diving Tremmel managed to push around the post.

The chances continued to come for Chelsea after the break with David Luiz wasting two free kicks before slamming a fierce shot straight at Tremmel, just shy of the hour mark.

With time running out Benitez sent on Frank Lampard for Ramires, much to the delight of the home fans. However, the midfielder will have been relieved to see the assistant referee's flag deny Michu a second, for offside, shortly after his arrival.

New signing Ba was the next to arrive, for a home debut, with 10 minutes to go in place of Fernando Torres and the former Newcastle man had two great chances within minutes of his arrival but could not find the back of the net, heading straight at Tremmel before heading another opportunity over.

His night then proceeded to get even worse as after being sent clean through on goal, he tangled with Tremmel, and with the crowd howling for a penalty, inside found himself booked for diving.

Again, the misses were to prove costly as Swansea doubled their lead in stoppage time, again through a defensive mistake by Chelsea.

For the second time in the match, Ivanovic was to blame. The defender's poor backpass to Turnbull was pounced on by substitute Graham who rounded the keeper before calmly slotting home.

Yet there was still time for more drama, with just seconds left on the clock, Ba smashed the ball home after good work by Lampard, only to be denied by the offside flag, to leave the Blues with a huge challenge ahead of them.


Source: Goal

Chelsea vs Swansea Capital One Cup Preview

PREVIEW

Chelsea and Swansea will be looking to establish a first leg lead in their Capital One Cup semi-final.

A busy season for the Blues has seen them compete for honours on seven fronts - Premier League, FA Cup, League Cup, Super Cup, UEFA Champions League, Club World Cup and Community Shield - but they are yet to get their hands on any silverware.

The Capital One Cup may not be the most glamorous of prizes, but Rafa Benitez would welcome the opportunity to pick up a major honour during his interim spell as Chelsea boss.

Adding to the Blues' enviable collection of trophies would aid his quest to land the managerial post at Stamford Bridge on a more permanent basis.

Swansea, though, harbour cup dreams of their own, with Michael Laudrup's troops hoping to take the trophy to Wales for the first time.

Cardiff made it to the final in 2012, and the Swans are determined to go one better than their arch-rivals this time around.

The men from the Liberty Stadium have seen off Barnsley, Crawley, Liverpool and Middlesbrough to make it through to the last four.


TEAM NEWS

CHELSEA

Chelsea boss Benitez has no fresh injury concerns to contend with ahead of Wednesday's cup clash.

Petr Cech (groin) and John Terry (knee) remain out, although the latter could play for with the Blues' U21 squad on Thursday.

John Obi Mikel and Victor Moses are also unavailable having left for Africa Cup of Nations duty with Nigeria.

SWANSEA

Gerhard Tremmel is set to start in goal for Swansea.

The German has played throughout the run to the last four, and manager Laudrup feels Tremmel has earned the right to keep his place ahead of Michel Vorm as Swansea chase a first appearance at a major Wembley final.

Angel Rangel should be available after a calf problem, while Pablo Hernandez, Ashley Williams and Michu should all return to the starting line-up at Stamford Bridge.

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Source: SkySports

Bradford goalkeeper hails 'unreal' Capital One Cup victory over Aston Villa

Bradford goalkeeper Matt Duke said the 3-1 win over Aston Villa in the League Cup semi-final first leg felt "unreal".


The 35-year-old pulled off a string of saves as the League Two side recorded a famous victory at Valley Parade.

"It is unreal. I can't believe we beat them. We thought we could get something but a 3-1 lead is fantastic," he said.

Bradford are seeking to become the first team from the fourth tier of English football to reach the final of the League Cup since Rochdale in 1962.

The Bantams, who beat Premier League Wigan and Arsenal on their way to the semi-finals, took an early lead through striker Nahki Wells.

Second-half headers from centre-halves Rory McArdle and Carl McHugh, either side of Andreas Weimann's goal for the visitors, gave Bradford a two-goal cushion to take to Villa Park.

Manager Phil Parkinson said: "We're absolutely delighted with the way we played, obviously, because from the first minute to the last the lads were tremendous.

"But equally we know we're only halfway there, we've got a very difficult job in a fortnight's time."

He said his team had played better than they had in their quarter-final win over Arsenal.

"Against Arsenal it was a great night for us but I think the all-round performance tonight was better," he said.

"Villa played a very attacking team and we had to defend well, and equally they left a lot of space on the pitch for us to play.

"Our quality players had to stay composed on the ball and they certainly did that."

Duke says a bright start in the return game in a fortnight will be key to their chances of reaching the final.

"We need to get a good start down there and get their fans on their backs," he added.

"They'll have tremendous support and we have to do what we did here tonight, but better.

"The main thing is we can't go there and be complacent because if we are then we will be punished. We haven't achieved anything yet."

On his own performance, the former Burton and Hull man added: "It was one of those nights where you fancy yourself to make some saves.

"I think it's up amongst my best games. I've played a lot of standards from Sunday league finals upwards and I'm just thankful that tonight was one of those nights where you are able to make saves.

"I have to give credit to the lads in front of me because they were brilliant too."

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Source: BBC

Aston Villa boss Paul Lambert 'really disappointed' by Badford defeat

Aston Villa boss Paul Lambert would not excuse his team's defending after their 3-1 cup defeat to Bradford.

The Premier League side were well beaten by their League Two opponents in the first leg of their Capital One Cup semi-final on Tuesday night at Valley Parade.


Goals from Naki Wells, Rory McArdle and Carl McHugh - all of them from set-pieces - leave Villa up against it despite Andreas Weimann's goal and Lambert could not hide his disappointment.

"I'm really disappointed we lost the game," Lambert told Sky Sports. "We are in a game now, that's for sure.

"We knew what was coming - set-pieces - and we never defended them well at all. That's definitely what's hurt us but that's certainly not good enough.

"We had a lot of the game and yes they were set-pieces but set-pieces are a vital part of the game and you've got to defend them. We didn't do that.

"But it's half-time and we've got time to retrieve this. We'll see what happens in a fortnight's time.

"We know what we've got to do and we've certainly got to do a lot better than that."

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Source: SkySports

Bradford vs Aston Villa Capital One Cup Match Report

Bradford City's Wembley dream is alive after beating Aston Villa 3-1 in the first leg of their Capital One Cup semi-final.


The League Two side went ahead through Nahki Wells and Rory McArdle and while Andreas Weimann pulled one back late on, Carl McHugh extended the Bantams' lead with minutes remaining.

Villa started brightly with Charles N'Zogbia enjoying plenty of space to run at the Bradford defence and Christian Benteke wasting a wonderful opportunity as he headed wide from a corner.

But the home side always looked a threat through the strength of James Hanson, trickery of Zavon Hines and pace of Wells so it wasn't a huge shock when the latter opening the scoring inside 20 minutes.

Hines won a corner off Bennett and Benteke could only clear to the edge of the box. When the shot came in the ball deflected to Wells who showed composure to tuck the ball past Shay Given.

Bradford only grew in confidence after that goal and there were chances for Hanson to double the lead, particularly when he saw his header from a corner cleared off the line by Fabian Delph.

But Paul Lambert's men started the second half in fine style as they piled pressure on Bradford without finding the breakthrough with goalkeeper Matt Duke in remarkable form.

Firstly Barry Bannan crossed for Benteke to head on goal from close range and then the Scot put another ball over for Gabriel Agbonlahor to fire goalwards but Duke was equal to both efforts.

Lambert sent on Darren Bent in the hope of finding an equaliser only for the England striker to add to the list of misses when he headed over from point-blank range after following up N'Zogbia's shot.

And Bradford made the visitors pay in the 78th minute when Gary Jones found McArdle with a left-wing cross and the defender headed the ball past Given at his near post.

Villa did reduce their arrears five minutes later when Weimann finally beat Duke after racing onto Bent's deflected flick-on but there was a sting in the tail for the Premier League side.

Jones swung in a corner from the right and McHugh beat Benteke in the air to cap a memorable night for the Bantams and they will have high hopes of holding onto their lead at Villa Park in two weeks' time.

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Source: SkySports

Aston Villa reaching Capital One Cup final would be 'phenomenal', says Paul Lambert

Aston Villa boss Paul Lambert says reaching the Capital One Cup final would be an "absolutely phenomenal" achievement for his young side.


Villa's squad - the youngest in the Premier League - have had a rollercoaster ride in Lambert's first season in charge.

They are two places above the relegation zone after a wildly inconsistent season, but they are also through to the semi-finals of the Capital One Cup and the fourth round of the FA Cup.

They take on League Two Bradford in the first leg of their semi-final on Tuesday and - regardless of the level of opposition - Lambert says reaching the final would be huge for the club.

"For this club to get to Wembley again would be extraordinary," he said. "In a one-off game there you just never know what could happen.

"To get there I think every player would tell you would be absolutely phenomenal."

Asked whether it would surpass any of his previous achievements, the former Scotland international said: "I think it would, yes.

"I never view it as any great achievement on my own behalf. It's the players and the fans.

"I never really look at myself and think 'I'm going to do that' because it is irrelevant. The important thing is what happens to this club and the players."

Tuesday's hosts Bradford, who have already knocked out Arsenal and Wigan, are without a win in their last three games but Lambert expects a tough night.

"Of course it will be," he said. "It will be a different team to the one that got beaten by Barnet at the weekend. You have to withstand that and be ready for it.

"The Bradford lads will give it everything they have got to try to turn us over. If we do what we have been doing that of late and match that then we'll see what happens.

"It's always tough. Bradford have got nothing to lose and everything to gain. Obviously it is a two-legged affair. We'll go up there and we know it will be a really good atmosphere.

"I've been up there before and it will be a tough game for us. But if we play we have been of late, we'll see."

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Source: SkySports

Chelsea's Frank Lampard revels in win over Leeds United

Frank Lampard admitted Chelsea 'had a word' before a second-half comeback knocked old rivals Leeds United out of the Capital One Cup.

Chelsea had trailed to a Luciano Becchio strike in their quarter-final at Elland Road but they turned the match around.

Goals from Juan Mata, Branislav Ivanovic, Victor Moses, Eden Hazard and Fernando Torres did the damage and booked a semi-final with Swansea City.

"We upped it," Lampard told Sky Sports. "In the first half, we weren't at our best, a bit slow with the tempo of the game and we gave away a silly goal that allowed them to score.

"Once we upped it with a bit of pace in our game, you could see a big difference.

"We had a word with ourselves at half-time."

Chelsea flew back into London from the Club World Cup on Monday but the journey from Japan did not appear to take any toll in the second half, especially once Mata equalised just a minute after the restart.

Lampard said: "We didn't make the greatest preparation but there's no excuse, we had to up it.

"The early goal gave us the impetus, we believed from then on and we didn't think we could lose the game.

"Some of the football we played, we opened them up and showed what we could do."

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Source: SkySports