Chelsea were knocked out of the Carabao Cup by Jurrien Timber and Arsenal on Tuesday night.
After losing 3-2 at Stamford Bridge last month, Liam Rosenior’s side were trailing in their semi-final tie and could not turn things around at the Emirates.
They lost 1-0, with former Blue Kai Havertz scoring a late goal for Arsenal. It did not change much, though, as Chelsea needed a goal before the German’s strike.
Did Rosenior get his tactics wrong against Arteta? 🤔
Hindsight is a wonderful thing…
Rosenior had a gameplan, but it did not quite work. Nevertheless, Timber has still spoken positively about his London rivals.
- READ MORE: Mikel Arteta admits Chelsea impressed him during Arsenal win, credit goes to Liam Rosenior
Jurrien Timber thinks Cole Palmer and Estevao Willian are ‘amazing’
After the full-time whistle, Timber discussed Cole Palmer and Estevao Willian, who were brought on as second-half substitutes.
According to the Dutchman, the two Chelsea attackers are “amazing” footballers.
Speaking to the BBC, Timber said: “Chelsea are a great team. They have some amazing players. Bringing Palmer and Estevao on, they also have amazing players coming off the bench.”
Manchester United legend Gary Neville also spoke about Palmer, expressing his surprise over Rosenior’s decision to save the attacking midfielder for the second half.
Looking at how quiet Chelsea’s attack was against Timber and the rest of Arsenal’s defence, the Blues could have done with having Palmer on the pitch from the first minute.
Liam Rosenior had to start Cole Palmer or Estevao Willian
After a season of injuries, Chelsea want to manage Palmer carefully, while Estevao only recently returned from Brazil after being allowed leave for personal reasons.
With Chelsea being a goal down in the tie and needing to score, though, Rosenior should have started at least one of the two.
In the first half, the Chelsea head coach went with Liam Delap on the right, which was a waste. The 22-year-old is a centre-forward, and that was clear to see. He could not dribble with the ball or put in any good crosses like a winger.
Is Liam Delap not good enough for Chelsea or are we not playing to his strengths?🤔
While he prefers to play on the left, there was also no reason for not starting Alejandro Garnacho on the right if both Palmer and Estevao were not ready to be named in the first XI, especially after his two goals in the first leg. The above was easily the worst part of Rosenior’s gameplan at the Emirates.
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