Liverpool struck late to condemn Chelsea to another cup final defeat at Wembley. Virgil van Dijk headed home from a corner deep into extra time to settle the match before penalties.
Chelsea would have fancied their chances of beating a much-changed Liverpool side, but they couldn’t breach the backline. And when Chelsea did make a breakthrough in the game, VAR seemed to conspire against them.
Chelsea impressed in the first half
Cole Palmer should have opened the scoring for Chelsea, but his close-range finish was thwarted by Caoimhín Kelleher.
The Blues then had the ball in the net when Raheem Sterling converted a Nicolas Jackson cutback, but it was disallowed. Replays showed the decision was marginal, so Chelsea may feel very hard done by.
Liverpool then nearly delivered a gut-punch before the break, with Cody Gakpo hitting the post with a header.
Liverpool turned the tide
Chelsea had a goal disallowed in the first half, but it was Liverpool’s turn after the restart. Van Dijk headed a free-kick beyond Djordje Petrovic, but his goal was chalked off. Van Dijk wasn’t flagged, but Wataru Endo was deemed as offside and interfering on the replay.
It was then Chelsea’s turn to hit the woodwork after nearly conceding. Conor Gallagher steered a Cole Palmer cross against the post midway through the second half. The two sides couldn’t find a breakthrough in 90 minutes, so the game went to extra time.
Chelsea couldn’t hold on
Liverpool came close to scoring three minutes in, with Jayden Danns’ header forcing a save from Petrovic. Van Dijk rose highest from a corner and headed the ball to Danns, but he couldn’t pick out a corner.
The Reds would get their goal in the second half of extra time, with Van Dijk heading home another set piece. With only three minutes remaining, the Dutch international glanced a header beyond Petrovic to win the EFL Cup for Liverpool.
It’s the third time in two years that Chelsea have lost a domestic cup final to Liverpool. It’s also the sixth consecutive domestic cup final Chelsea have lost, so now they must focus on the league campaign.
In other news, here’s how Chelsea reached the final of the EFL Cup
