23 January 2024 , 23:00
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Mauricio Pochettino was upset that his side's dominant victory could not come with a clean sheet after Chelsea defeated Middlesbrough 6-1 to secure a place in the Carabao Cup final.
The Blues arrived at Stamford Bridge with a one-goal deficit to overcome after Middlesbrough's first leg victory at the Riverside two weeks ago. Pochettino's side never looked like scoring on that occasion and put in a contrasting display on home turf.
Chelsea produced a clinical opening half, first forcing Jonny Howson into an own goal after a smart forward move, before Enzo Fernandez, Axel Disasi and Cole Palmer each put Middlesbrough to the sword. Noni Madueke joined the group on the scoresheet in the second period before Palmer added his second as Conor Gallagher found two assists.
The west London side were able to coast to an extent but that provided a moment that Pochettino was less than happy with. Morgan Rogers was able to cut onto his right foot and direct a shot from the edge of the box past Djordje Petrovic in the 88th minute.
Chelsea's head coach wants to see his side 'play seriously' for a complete game. It was an incident that put a small dent in his pleasure from the victory.
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"I was really upset because we need to learn from that," said Pochettino following the game. "We need to play seriously until the end. Sometimes it looks like you didn't finish the game and you lost a bit of focus.
"We are disappointed to concede the goal but we need to use every single second to improve. It didn't kill my happiness but I was a little bit disappointed with the finish to the game."
Mauricio Pochettino celebrates Chelsea's win over Middlesbrough (Darren Walsh)Pochettino believes that the match and progress to Wembley will provide a positive impact on the growth of his young team however. The 51-year-old was pleased to see his team capitalise on their chances, an area where they have been found wanting in the past.
He said: "It is really important. Sometimes we can think about the history of Chelsea and the missing players. We are young and we need to grow.
"These types of games are a good experience for young players and it is about now growing and it will help us to compete. We are building a very good team. The mentality is good. We have plenty but we need time.
"I think the performance, I was never disappointed with the performance - it was because we were not clinical. Today I think is our ninth game unbeaten and it is really good. It is a new project. We are building a team and sometimes it is normal to play worse. We played well and we didn't win but now it will be a big boost for us.
"We don't have much time to prepare for Aston Villa and also with many injuries, I think we are very happy. People need to believe and trust in us and we go to the final with the chance of winning the first trophy of the season."