'We believed until the end' | Chelsea knocked Newcastle out of the Carabao Cup
Jamie Carragher has called for the Carabao Cup set-up to be changed for the semi-finals of the competition. Currently, the rules state that the semis must take place over the course of two legs, but the ex-Liverpool star believes that the finalists should be decided by a single match instead.
Chelsea booked their spot in the final four of the competition on Tuesday night when they beat Newcastle on penalties in an action-packed encounter. After Callum Wilson put the visitors ahead early in the first half, the Blues never looked like finding their way back into the tie.
That was until Kieran Trippier’s 92nd-minute error saw the fullback misplace his back pass to Martin Dubravka, allowing Mykhaylo Mudryk to pounce and send the game to penalties. Further misery was then compiled on Trippier after he missed his spot kick, with Matt Ritchie also seeing his effort saved to send the Magpies packing.
Chelsea could face Fulham, Middlesbrough or Liverpool/West Ham – which will take place on Wednesday night – in the semi-finals. The next round will take place over two legs, with each club having the opportunity to benefit from home advantage.
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However, former England international Carragher is unhappy with the format and has taken to X/Twitter to plead for a rule change. After praising how the Carabao Cup has taken a step in the right direction by removing extra time, he responded to a follower calling for the competition to ‘lose’ two-legged semi-finals by writing: “Yes, one-off semi at a neutral ground midweek but not Wembley!”
Neutral grounds are currently not used in either the Carabao Cup or the FA Cup, though the format has previously been deployed with success in years gone by. Carragher also believes that all competitions should remove extra time from their formats due to how tiresome some encounters can become.
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He added: “Everton/Fulham and Chelsea/Newcastle straight to pens with no extra time, is a much better spectacle than an extra 30 mins of football when players are shattered & terrified of making a mistake. No more extra time in any competitions, please.
“There is more prestige in winning the FA Cup than the Carabao Cup, but the Carabao is a much better competition. No replays, no extra time, we know the draw right away, and the cup final is not competing with the end of PL season & CL final a week later.” It remains to be seen whether Carragher’s words of wisdom are taken on board or if the FA believe that the current Carabao Cup setup is fit for purpose.
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