Thomas Tuchel made one mistake. He brought on Chelsea’s specialist penalty expert. Not only did Kepa Arrizabalaga not save one of Liverpool’s 11 efforts from the spot – meaning the entire team put one past him, including goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher – he then sent his own spot-kick, the 22nd of the match, into orbit halfway up the Liverpool end. And so Jurgen Klopp and his players landed the first domestic trophy of the season, after a particularly fine goalless draw, which Chelsea shaded on scoring chances but, like Arrizabalaga, could not finish.
Mason Mount missed two sitters, Christian Pulisic one and there were four goals disallowed – three for Chelsea, one for Liverpool. Left to their own devices the players then found the net 21 times before Arrizabalaga – who had been introduced with a minute of extra-time remaining, as Chelsea’s specialist penalty saver – skied his effort to gift the spoils to Liverpool.
Tuchel had made the same call in the UEFA Super Cup final at the start of the season, with different results against Villarreal. The irony is that, until his late removal, Edouard Mendy, Chelsea’s first-choice goalkeeper, had been the best player on the field. He made two double saves, one in each half, that were quite stunning. He had battled on through injury. His only area of weakness was a couple of kicks that went astray. Against that, Arrizabalaga with the ball at his feet, cost Chelsea the game. Would Mendy have kept out just one from 11? It might have been all that was needed. We will never know.
As for Arrizabalaga, it was here at Wembley where he had previously blotted his Chelsea career, refusing to be substituted in this match against Manchester City in 2019, when appearing to be injured. Now this could well be his final act in a Chelsea shirt, with a move likely in the summer. The world’s most expensive goalkeeper, as he remains, cannot exist as an understudy for a third season. And he may be glad of a clean break after this.
For what is plain is that Tuchel did no err when selecting his starting XI and preferring Mendy. If there was a tiny recess in his mind that was still deliberating his decision, with Arrizabalaga having played the previous rounds, it probably cleared on 30 minutes, when his number one made arguably the save of the season.
Naby Keita shot from a good 25 yards out and Mendy parried – that was a decent stop. Yet as the ball rebounded out, Sadio Mane came onto it first and tried to finish at the second attempt from close range. Somehow Mendy diverted it over the bar – and that was a quite brilliant save.
He did it again in the second-half, first from Luis Diaz, then Andrew Robertson. There was another save at the feet of Diaz soon after. Kelleher, Alisson’s shadow, who Klopp preferred throughout was excellent, but he was not called upon as frequently as Mendy. Chelsea’s series of match-winning chances were mostly spurned, not saved. Mount in particular will have as many nightmares about this game as Kepa.
The difference, arguably, is that Klopp knows Kelleher will be at Liverpool next season and sees the value in keeping him sweet. If Arrizabalaga is on the way out, Tuchel had more freedom to disappoint.
It was the same when Chelsea reached the Club World Cup final and Mendy was immediately elevated despite coming directly from competing in the Africa Cup of Nations. Tuchel is neither sentimental or indulgent of feelings. He picked the best. And Mendy needed to be at his best, in those periods when Liverpool’s pressure was at its most intense. In one spell between minutes 20 and 35, they had eight goal attempts without reply.
Yet while Liverpool had the quantity, Chelsea’s quality was better. Three times they had the ball in the six-yard box with only Kelleher to beat, and on each occasion they wasted it. The first should have given them the lead after just six minutes. Cesar Azpilicueta, Chelsea’s captain and always a threat on the overlap came down the right and picked out Pulisic bursting late into the area. He took it on his left foot but hit his shot directly at Kelleher. It was a fabulous opportunity.
Then in the final minute of the first-half Azpilicueta made another strong run, more central this time, feeding Kai Havertz whose cross found Mount in a similar position, only to shoot wide. From the first attack after half-time, Mount missed again. Pulisic put him through and Liverpool’s back line was static, caught out, leaving him with only Kelleher to beat. He slipped the ball past him only to see it hit the post. On the touchline, Tuchel fell to his knees and beat the ground with the palm of his hand in despair.
Liverpool did not enjoy the same weight of chances, mainly due to Chelsea’s stout resistance. Block after block. Tackle after tackle. Thiago Silva looked to have incurred some rib damage but carried on after a few squirts of magic spray.
In the second-half, a kicking error by Mendy – a rare mistake – saw the ball come back, Mane to Mo Salah who was suddenly speeding towards goal. He went for a delicate chip and somehow Silva sped past two team-mates to clear off the line. Where he derives the energy at his age, who knows?
We’ve had the Matthews Final, the Gerrard Final, now this was the Disallowed Goals Final. Four of them. One chalked off by VAR, three by a linesman’s flag. Two that were obvious, two that required a little rationalisation.
Taking them in order. In the 67th minute, Trent Alexander-Arnold delivered a free-kick that was met by Mane at the far post. He headed the ball down, it bounced up and Joel Matip got in front of Silva to head into an empty net. And then, as is the modern way, we waited. Something had turned up in forensics. A push? An offside? Both? Stuart Attwell was summoned to the sidelines and, on review gave the signal beloved of killjoys everywhere. Van Dijk was just offside and while he hadn’t touched the ball had impeded his man, meaning Mane could make his run unchecked. No goal. Chelsea then also had one disallowed for offside but that required less explanation. Timo Werner. Nuff said.
Might Chelsea then have taken the lead in extra time? It certainly looked so. Romelu Lukaku – on as a 73rd minute substitute and looking sharper for his break – got away, checked inside, then shot low past Kelleher. Once the ball was in the net, the flag went up for offside. But was it? Replays seemed to suggest it was desperately close. Yet Attwell again got a signal to say the gods of VAR were satisfied.
The problem with this technology is that, increasingly, it seems to mean whatever the powers want it to mean at that moment. Havertz also scored in the second period of injury time, but that was clearly offside in the way we would all define it.
Chelsea would have won if in the fifth minute of second-half injury time, Lukaku had scored with a deft flick, kept out by Kelleher’s legs. Later, he would use them more conventionally to place the pressure on Arrizabalaga. At both ends, he did the trick. Some might argue that makes him something of an expert.
Source: DailyMail
