TUCHEL IS THE SPECIALIST ONE
Thomas has turned the Blues into masters of the cups – not even Covid can halt his magic
CHELSEA
2 Azpilicueta 41, 105+1
Alonso PLYMOUTH
8
BY JOHN CROSS
THEY have become cup specialists under Thomas Tuchel.
And even in his absence, Chelsea survived an FA Cup scare and stayed on course for more history and silverware.
Tuchel had to relay messages to his assistants after testing positive for Covid, and the Blues boss will miss at least part of the Club World Cup, if not all of the trip to Abu Dhabi.
But the remarkable thing about Chelsea is their neverending ability to churn out trophies. They are reigning European champions, won the Super Cup and want to complete the full cup set.
They are in the Carabao Cup final, face Luton in the fifth round of the FA Cup with this win over Plymouth, remain in the Champions League and could be on course for an
unforgettable season even if they are miles behind in the league title race.
This time they were taken to extra-time by the League One visitors, with Kepa producing a last-gasp penalty save to stop the tie going to a shoot-out in a game where Chelsea were determined not to be on the wrong end of an upset.
Callum HudsonOdoi believes their winning mentality and single-minded focus on trophies can carry them to more glory in the Club World Cup, which can set up the rest of the season.
“We all know how big it is and it’s a difficult competition to win so we’ll go out there determined to make some history,” said the Chelsea winger.
“Every game will be very tough, but we must prepare well, make sure we’re focused and recovered well from this cup tie and hopefully get the result. For us, it’s major because we’ve won the Champions League, we won the Super Cup and it’s a huge thing.
“We want to make it three, make it really special for this team and to do it in the middle of the season is great because it’s good for our confidence as well and for what we can do in the rest of the season.
“We set our minds to winning as many trophies as possible and when we have the opportunity to play cup competitions we always try to get as far as possible.
“It’s so enjoyable to play cup competitions and win trophies which is why it’s a thrill to play in these matches.”
Plymouth gave Chelsea a scare, Macaulay Gillesphey heading Argyle in front.
But Cesar Azpilicueta’s clever flick got the home side level (below). Chelsea did not really click up front. There was no service for Romelu Lukaku, and Timo Werner could not inject anything different when he came on as as substitute, Plymouth taking the tie into extra-time in front of their 6,000 fans at Stamford Bridge.
But finally Marcos Alonso got Chelsea ahead by steering home Kai Havertz’s low cross in a game where Chelsea had 41 shots, hit the woodwork three times and had 20 corners, leaving no doubt who dominated.
But when Malang Sarr’s horrible mistake let in Plymouth striker Ryan Hardie, the Chelsea defender panicked and fouled him.
Hardie stepped up with a chance to take the tie to a shoot-out, only for Kepa to make a magnificent save.
It was far from fluid or convincing, with Chelsea’s front line still a concern as they are not playing to Lukaku’s strengths. Tuchel will have to sort it out, even if forced to do so remotely this week.