09 January 2024 , 22:48
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Mauricio Pochettino was left to reflect on familiar failings after his Chelsea side suffered a dispiriting 1-0 defeat in the first leg of their Carabao Cup semi-final against Middlesbrough.
Chelsea struggled against their Championship opponents, with Cole Palmer spurning three great chances in the first half. His misses proved costly when Isaiah Jones latched onto a ball over the top of the defence and picked out Hayden Hackney to slot in the opening goal.
Boro were happy to sit in and look to hit the away side on the break and Chelsea simply didn't have the answers. They did not break down the deep-set defence and failed to score for the sixth time this season. It leaves them with work to do in the second leg at Stamford Bridge on January 23.
"Today the approach was good and the attitude, we cannot say nothing," Pochettino said. "Only that we made some mistakes in the first half. I think we gave the chances to score and then they were so aggressive and very tough. They play in transition, on the counter-attack and block really deep. It was difficult for us to break down this block.
"Then we had many chances to score, but we didn't score. That is football. Of course, we're really disappointed. But this is the first half of the tie, because after 90 minutes we have another 90 minutes at Stamford Bridge. I think we have to be positive."
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Asked about a lack of self-belief in his players, Pochettino replied: "No, I think it's about how we compete. We made some mistakes and we were punished for that. In football, that happens. You need to be tough and to keep pushing.
Cole Palmer missed three great chances for Chelsea (Chris Lee/Chelsea FC via Getty Images)"I am disappointed because, if we assess the performance, overall I think we were the better side, we created more chances, we had clear chances, but we didn't score, we were not clinical - and it has happened throughout this season. After six months it has happened a lot, so many games we didn't win because we were not clinical enough."
Chelsea boasted 72 per cent possession and attempted 18 shots on goal, but only five of those were on target. Palmer seized on a mistake by Jonny Howson but placed his shot wide when one-on-one with Tom Glover. He drew a save out of Glover with another good chance but volleyed over a rebound off the Boro keeper.
The Blues were without Nicolas Jackson, who is on international duty with Senegal at the Africa Cup of Nations, and Christopher Nkunku, who has picked up a hip injury. That left Palmer to play up front alongside Raheem Sterling and Noni Madueke, while Armando Broja and Mykhaylo Mudryk came off the bench, but none of them could find the back of the net.