HAYDEN HACKNEY sunk wasteful Chelsea to give Middlesbrough a 1-0 lead for the Carabao Cup semi-final second leg.
And another solid night for Thiago Silva in the Blues’ defence contrasted with more misery in midfield for record signing Moises Caicedo.
Levi Colwill also struggled, while Cole Palmer missed two of the clearest of Chelsea’s many chances against their injury-hit but extremely resilient Championship hosts.
Mauricio Pochettino’s Blues will surely need to improve in the Stamford Bridge return on January 23 to make the final.
And the Argentinian clearly has plenty of selection posers for Saturday’s home Premier League clash with Fulham.
Here’s how Poch’s misfiring men performed at the Riverside Stadium.
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DORDE PETROVIC – 6
Let down by those in front of him, Petrovic could do nothing about Middlesbrough’s opener. A largely quiet night otherwise for the Serbian stopper.
MALO GUSTO – 5
Hardly comfortable at right-back but had a blinder compared to Levi Colwill on the other side. Loves a step-over going forward but his crossing from promising positions was poor.
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AXEL DISASI – 4
Some good, some bad and quite a bit of ugly.
Made a brilliant start to bail out team-mates a couple of times but looked more and more uncomfortable as the night wore on.
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THIAGO SILVA – 6
The 39-year-old’s lack of pace was exposed down Chelsea’s left channel alongside the targeted Levi Colwill, but the Brazilian was probably the best of a shocking bunch.
LEVI COLWILL – 3
Played out of position at left-back again, the centre-back was shown up time and time again during this woeful showing.
A huge gaffe within seconds of kick-off should have been punished before Colwill was run ragged by Isiah Jones for Boro’s opener.
Surely Mauricio Pochettino’s experiment using him at full-back is over.
MOISES CAICEDO – 3
When you spend £115million on a defensive midfielder, the first thing you expect is for them to be bothered to track midfield runners.
Instad, whether careless or just pure lazy, Caicedo allowed Hayden Hackney to ghost in for Boro’s opener.
Lost a number of 50/50s in the middle of the park too on a night he just didn’t seem up for at all.
ENZO FERNANDEZ – 4
Solid yet unspectacular or, if being harsh, simply anonymous.
For £100million, Chelsea fans really aren’t asking for much in expecting the Argentine to have an impact against a second-tier side.
CONOR GALLAGHER – 4
Worked hard as ever but the Blues skipper struggled to make any impact in the number 10 role.
Offered virtually nothing other than a bit of hustle and bustle.
COLE PALMER – 4
Started through the middle as a false 9, showing by half-time that he is certainly no striker.
Dragged a great chance wide early on before butchering one at 1-0 before the break, skying a simple chance well over after it was put on a plate for him by the Middlesbrough keeper.
NONI MADUEKE – 4
A poor first touch let him down time and time again early on when in promising positions.
Looked dangerous when in full flight on the right wing but those occasions were far too fleeting, and the final ball was too often lacking.
Forgot his hooting boots as well, spurning a couple of decent half chances.
RAHEEM STERLING – 4
Far from alone but another in blue who struggled to make anything happen against Championship opposition.
Turned the ball over regularly and his crossing was more miss than hit, while the shooting – like every Chelsea flop – was wayward.
Subs
ARMANDO BROJA (On for Fernandez, 63) – 5
Described by Mauricio Pochettino as one of Europe’s best young strikers at the weekend, Broja could do nothing to drag Chelsea back into it.
MYKHAILO MUDRYK (On for Madueke, 63) – 5
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Saw a curled effort parried but that was about it in a quiet cameo.
ALFIE GILCHRIST (On for Guston, 90) – 5
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
