Jose Mourinho is back on the trophy trail with
Chelsea after a 2-0 win over Tottenham on Sunday
sealed League Cup success at Wembley.
Chelsea celebrated their first trophy in Jose
Mourinho’s second spell as manager as goals from
John Terry and Diego Costa defeated Tottenham
2-0 to seal the League Cup final at Wembley on
Sunday.
On a day when Premier League title rivals
Manchester City were beaten at Anfield by
Liverpool, goals either side of the break
secured Mourinho’s first silverware since returning
to Stamford Bridge in 2013 on a hugely positive
afternoon for Chelsea.
Spurs came from a goal behind to win the last
League Cup final meeting between these teams in
2008, but even in-form Harry Kane – who struck
twice in January’s 5-3 league win over Chelsea –
was unable to haul his side back into the contest
after Terry’s opener.
In a competitive first half that saw Christian Eriksen
strike the crossbar with a curled free-kick and the
feisty Costa heavily involved in a number of
flashpoints, Terry’s 45th-minute strike sent Chelsea
in ahead at the break.
Costa then got on the scoresheet 11 minutes into
the second half, courtesy of a hefty deflection off
Kyle Walker, with Chelsea able to successfully shut
out the likes of Kane despite Kurt Zouma having to
slot into a makeshift midfield due to Nemanja
Matic’s much-discussed suspension and John Obi
Mikel’s injury.
In the heavy rain at Wembley, Mauricio Pochettino’s
hopes of ending Spurs’ seven-year trophy drought
drained away as Mourinho’s side look ahead
to Premier League and UEFA Champions League
challenges.
Mourinho made five changes from Chelsea’s 1-1
draw with Burnley and saw his side make the
brighter start as Terry headed over Willian’s cross
before Branislav Ivanovic’s looping cross
threatened Spurs’ goal.
Hugo Lloris – making his first League Cup
appearance of the season – dealt with the danger
prior to Eriksen rattling the woodwork.
The Dane’s 25-yard set-piece came about after a
foul on Kane and the Spurs striker was next to go
close with a low strike that tested Petr Cech.
Willian’s raking pass set Eden Hazard away down
the left, although his strike was blocked by Eric Dier,
before Costa was involved in two flashpoints prior
to the half-hour mark, having raised his hands
towards Nabil Bentaleb.
A knock to Walker set the tone for a poor finish to
the half for Spurs that was compounded when Terry
made the most of lax defending on the stroke of
half-time.
When Chadli was caught out by a looping ball and
fouled Ivanovic, a host of Spurs defenders failed to
clear Willian’s delivery, allowing skipper Terry to
open the scoring from close range courtesy of a
deflection off Kane.
Cesc Fabregas’ overhead kick forced Lloris into a
smart save shortly after the interval and Chelsea’s
positive start to the second half was rewarded
when Costa scored his first goal since mid-
January.
A purposeful burst down the left was helped past
Lloris by a Walker deflection 56 minutes in, with
Pochettino opting to introduce Mousa Dembele and
Erik Lamela to try and gain a foothold in the contest.
However, Chelsea demonstrated their defensive
solidity to see out the victory with minimal fuss and
collect the first of three potential trophies this
season, while Spurs must focus on securing
European qualification.
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