Sunday’s 1-0 extra-time defeat by Liverpool means Chelsea’s losing streak in domestic cup finals is now half a dozen games, with the Blues missing out on yet another trophy.
Mauricio Pochettino’s men fell to a late goal from Liverpool’s Virgil van Dijk. The Dutchman rose highest to head home a winner in the 118th minute, as Jurgen Klopp’s injury-hit side overcame what Gary Neville called Chelsea’s “blue billion-pound bottle jobs.”
Neville’s reference to Chelsea’s spending under new owner Todd Boehly will be particularly cutting for Blues fans.
Since American businessman Boehly took control of the club in May 2022 after Roman Abramovich’s departure, they have spent more than £1 billion on signings.
And yet the atmosphere at Stamford Bridge has been nothing short of toxic this season. Fans are calling for Pochettino’s resignation, with Chelsea sitting 11th in the Premier League.
After finishing 12th last year, they haven’t had any Champions League or Europa League football to worry about, yet they are still miles off the top four.
With 35 points, Chelsea are closer to Sheffield United in 20th than Liverpool at the top. And with the Reds inflicting a painful defeat at the weekend, it’s now half a dozen straight losses for Chelsea in domestic cup finals, an unwanted record.
Chelsea Losing Streak In Domestic Cup Finals
The Blues’ latest final defeat is the sixth in a horrible run of domestic final losses stretching back to 2019. On that occasion, they took Manchester City to penalties in a 0-0 tie at Wembley, before losing the shootout 4-3.
Chelsea's record-breaking losing streak in domestic cup finals continues 📉 pic.twitter.com/B0pJ4IsM55
— CBS Sports Golazo ⚽️ (@CBSSportsGolazo) February 25, 2024
A year later, they would lose 2-1 to Arsenal in the FA Cup final, with two goals from Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang cancelling out Christian Pulisic’s 5th-minute opener.
In 2021, they reached the FA Cup final once more, this time Losing 1-0 to Leicester City thanks to a screamer from Youri Tielemans.
But it was in 2021/22 that Chelsea’s losing streak would really pick up the pace. In a season where they won the Club World Cup and European Super Cup, the reigning Champions League winners had six possible trophies to aim for.
Reaching the finals of both domestic cups, it was Liverpool who took the glory, winning both matches on penalties after goalless draws.
And thanks to this year’s Carabao Cup loss, Chelsea have also lost three straight finals against Liverpool.
When Did Chelsea Last Win A Domestic Final?
It’s been six years as well as six finals since Chelsea last won silverware in an English cup competition. The 2017/18 FA Cup final was played between Chelsea and Manchester United on 19 May at Wembley Stadium.
In the first FA Cup final to use VAR, Eden Hazard’s 21st-minute penalty secured a 1-0 win after the video assistant ruled out Alexis Sanchez’s equaliser for offside.
Man of the match went to Blues centre-back, Antonio Rudiger, in front of a crowd of 87,647. The only surviving member of Chelsea’s match day squad still playing at Stamford Bridge is Trevor Chalobah. The defender was an unused substitute in the 2018 final.
Chelsea do have one more shot at breaking their losing streak this season, though. They face Leeds United on Wednesday in the FA Cup fifth round, though of course it’s a long way to the final, even if they do beat Leeds.
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