CON IN 60 SECONDS
Gallagher comes off bench to grab last-minute winner and book a quarter-final clash with Leicester
CONOR GALLAGHER was the homegrown hero Chelsea were ready to sell in January.
But he came to Chelsea’s rescue yet again at Stamford Bridge and might have scored the goal which goes a long way to keeping Mauricio Pochettino in a job.
Supersub Gallagher grabbed the 90th-minute winner after coming off the bench to save his boyhood club and set up a quarterfinal tie with Leicester City.
It had been a painful 72 hours for Chelsea after losing the Carabao Cup final at Wembley, but no one can overlook Gallagher’s heart and passion for the cause.
No one will have hurt more than boyhood Blues fan Gallagher and no one wanted to save his team more than the England midfielder.
It was a night of nerves between the two bitter and fierce rivals, with their FA Cup history dating back to the brutal 1970 final replay.
This time, it was more about nerves and tension, even though promotion is still Leeds’ priority, and for Chelsea, it was all about saving their season. The pressure has been mounting on Pochettino and maybe the FA Cup is one piece of silverware and a route into Europe that could yet save him.
They looked tired and still hungover from 120 minutes of heartbreak after the defeat to Liverpool at Wembley when Leeds took the lead.
Chelsea got themselves into a terrible mess from a goal-kick.
Team-mates Axel Disasi and Moises Caicedo had a mix-up, Jaidon Anthony set up Mateo Joseph and the 20-year-old fired Leeds ahead with his first senior goal. It was a dream start after just eight minutes and the Leeds fans in The Shed end went wild, so much so that one fell from the top tier into the group of supporters below.
Medical staff and police rushed to the scene to help the injured fan.
And the early goal saw Pochettino turn away in disgust, before putting his hands together to pray.
But Chelsea woke up from their slumber and put together a slick move on the edge of the box before Caicedo’s through-ball released Nicolas Jackson and the Chelsea striker fired home into the far corner.
And they were ahead before half-time.
Malo Gusto’s pass released Raheem Sterling and his low cross was perfect for Mykhailo Mudryk to slot home a superb first-time effort into the bottom corner.
That should have been the platform for Chelsea to take charge – but the opposite happened.
Leeds were the better side after half-time, while, just like in extra-time at Wembley, Chelsea lost their way.
Enzo Fernandez got booked for dissent, which
means he will miss the quarter-final with Leicester.
And Leeds came back again as Anthony provided a lovely cross to split the Chelsea defence and there was Joseph again to head home his second of the night.
But still the only time the Chelsea fans began to turn was when Sterling was substituted. They booed him off and he is in danger of becoming the scapegoat for all of the club’s problems.
The Blues were looking increasingly tired as Leeds pushed forward, sensing a possible FA Cup fairy tale.
But when Chelsea need a hero, they can always turn to Gallagher. Fernandez drove forward and his pass set up the 24-year-old to fire home.
Gallagher fluffed his lines at Wembley and missed two gilt-edged chances, but there was no mistake this time. CHELSEA: Sanchez 5, Gilchrist 6 (Colwill, 74), Chalobah 6, Disasi 5, Gusto 6 (Chilwell, 61, 6), Fernandez 6, Caicedo 6, Sterling 6 (Palmer, 74), Mudryk 7 (Tauriainen 90), Madueke (5 Gallagher, 61, 7), Jackson 7. LEEDS UTD: Meslier 6, Firpo 7, Ampadu 7, Cooper 7, Rodon 7, Gray 7, Roberts 6, Anthony 7, James 7 (Gnonto, 79), Joseph 8, Piroe 6 (Summerville, 79).