Chelsea ends cup fairy tale; Hakim Ziyech excels on birthday


Saturday, March 19, 2022 at 8:05 PM• Dominic Mostert • Last update: 20:27

Chelsea have made it to the FA Cup semi-finals. The Blues won 0-2 against Middlesbrough on Saturday evening. Hakim Ziyech graced his 29th birthday with a good performance, threatening the right wing and scoring the visitors’ second goal. The cup fairy tale came to an end for Middlesbrough, after Manchester United (on penalties) and Tottenham Hotspur (1-0 after extra time) were beaten in the previous rounds.

There was a lot to do this week for the match. Chelsea are banned from selling tickets due to Roman Abramovich’s ownership and suggested that the match be played without an audience, which would also prevent Middlesbrough from welcoming fans. That request was quickly withdrawn by Chelsea. Compared to the midweek Champions League match against Lille OSC (1-2 win), trainer Thomas Tuchel made the necessary changes to his basic setup. Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Mason Mount, Malang Sarr, Hakim Ziyech and Romelu Lukaku made their entrance, leaving Andreas Christensen, Marcos Alonso, N’Golo Kanté, Jorginho and Kai Havertz out of the starting lineup. Ziyech asserted himself in the opening phase with good passes to Mount on the right wing. The first time, Mount was unable to reach a fellow player, but the second time he enabled Lukaku to score from close range: 0-1.

Lukaku did not celebrate the party exuberantly, but could use the goal well. He has been surpassed by Havertz in the Chelsea league table, having started on the bench in Chelsea’s previous four official games. Not much later, Lukaku seemed to make his second when he passed goalkeeper Joe Lumley and wanted to finish, but Dutch defender Anfernee Dijksteel cleared the line. After half an hour, Chelsea expanded the score. Mounted space in midfield, Mount served on the right-hand side Ziyech, who drew in along the box and lashed out devastatingly in the left corner.

Middlesbrough was only dangerous before half time from a free kick by Marcus Tavernier, but Édouard Mendy had an answer to that. In the second half, Middlesbrough seemed to sense that the battle was not yet over. The Championship number eight was often found in Chelsea’s half, although big opportunities were rare. On the other side, defender Sol Bamba prevented Timo Werner from making the 0-3 with a hanging leg. At Chelsea, Kenedy joined Ziyech in the squad. Chelsea goalkeeper Mendy still had to intervene after a hard shot by Joshua Coburn into the short corner and kept the zero.