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Catch up with all the action from the EFL Cup semi-final second leg in North London
Arsenal A 1-0 win sealed their place at Wembley Chelsea A 4-2 aggregate victory in a tense EFL Cup semi-final second leg at the Emirates Stadium, on Wednesday night.
The hosts came into the tie with a narrow aggregate advantage and, from the outset, appeared content to manage the game rather than chase an early breakthrough.
Chelsea, needing a goal to level the tie, took their cautious approach, setting up in a compact 3-5-2 shape.
The first half was short on clear chances. Arsenal dominated possession but struggled to turn possession into meaningful openings, with Victor Gyokares largely isolated up front.
Chelsea’s most promising moments came through Enzo Fernandez, who twice tested Capa from range, while Piero Hincapie forced Robert Sanchez into a smart save at the other end.
The goalless scoreline at the break reflected a largely contested contest between the boxes.
Chelsea showed more intent after the restart, gradually adding extra possessions as the second half progressed.
Fernandez continued to probe from distance, while late substitutes, including Cole Palmer and Alejandro Garnacho, were introduced in an attempt to inject urgency into the attack.
The key moment of the game came in the closing stages when Arsenal broke quickly and Gabriel Martinelli went down the field under a challenge from Trevoh Chalobah.
VAR reviewed the incident but ruled that the contact was natural, leaving Chelsea frustrated and still looking for a way back into the tie.
As Chelsea pushed the numbers forward in stoppage time, gaps began to appear. Which proved costly in the 97th minute.
Declan Rice made a quick counter-attack from midfield and dismissed Kai Havertz with a perfectly weighted through ball. The former Chelsea forward rounded Sanchez and curled the ball into the bottom corner to settle the tie.
Chelsea had little time to respond, and Arsenal saw out the dying moments to confirm their progress to the final.
While the performance was controlled rather than fluent, Mikel Arteta’s side did enough over both legs to secure a place at Wembley, where they will now look to add an elusive piece of silverware to their tally. the season
