Chelsea progress to FA Cup final after Fernandez winner against Leeds

 Slick Chelsea shut down Leeds but super-clubs’ FA Cup final is symptom of wider game’s malaise

07:10 , Flo Clifford

For an FA Cup semi-final that didn’t offer much to talk about beyond Enzo Fernández scoring the winner, Chelsea’s 1-0 win could provoke a lot of other discussion. Some of it served to quieten even this raucous Leeds United crowd by the end.

By that point, you wouldn’t have thought an FA Cup final appearance was at stake, given how quickly Wembley emptied. Another debate could, of course, be had about staging semi-finals here. Still, there’s something rather sorry about even the Leeds players saluting scores of empty seats.

Chelsea beat Leeds to make FA Cup final

Scheduling conflict strikes again

04:00 , Flo Clifford

With the FA Cup final set to be played on 16 May, Chelsea’s Premier League home game with London rivals will have to be moved from its current slot on 17 May.

Calum McFarlane on facing Man City:

03:09 , Flo Clifford

He continues: “You can come with a plan, but they're an exceptional side in really good form. It's going to be a massive challenge. We seem to raise our level, we saw that against PSG in the Club World Cup. It's more about the character.”

Calum McFarlane on interim charge:

02:08 , Flo Clifford

Calum McFarlane tells TNT Sports on taking interim charge: “I did it for a week before, so I kind of knew what I was stepping into. It's easier this time because I have a relationship with the players and I've worked with them for three or four months now.

“I've been a part of the backroom staff, so I had a feel for what they needed psychologically. It's been intense.”

On the gameplan, he says: “We wanted to be really clear with how we wanted to set up and play against Leeds. We knew they'd think we were vulnerable. We wanted to give Robert [Sanchez] the option to go direct because we knew we were in a bit of a vulnerable place. We started to take control of the game.”

Daniel Farke: 'The boys were a bit too nervous'

01:06 , Flo Clifford

Daniel Farke tells Match of the Day: “It was a tight game. They were able to find the back of the net. I think we nearly dominated at least one statistic, more shots on target, more expected goals, more big chances missed. But it's also fair to say that the football in the first half we didn't have our best days. You could feel the boys were a bit too nervous today to be at their free-flowing best and for that we had a few unnecessary loss of the balls and assisted more or less to their two or three chances in the first half.

“We were not played out of the park even though it wasn't our best game in the first half. Credit to my players. We went for it and pressed higher and dominated more. Of course, you always have to be switched on for counter attacks. But the goalkeeper was able to get two great saves. And the defensive flow of Chelsea was there, it was top defensive behavior. They always had an answer to all our questions that we asked. It's hard to take anyhow, but nevertheless, I'm proud of the cup run.”

Chelsea interim boss Calum McFarlane on Enzo Fernandez:

Monday 27 April 2026 00:00 , Kieran Jackson

“He likes scoring at the back post for me! The timing of his runs and his ability to get good distance on his heading. He’s a winner, he’s got so much fight - the best thing about Enzo is he can do a bit of everything, he was exceptional today.

“He’s changed position a lot, He’s such a threat in the box but the higher up he plays, he can really cause opposition problems.”

Chelsea face Man City in final

Sunday 26 April 2026 23:00 , Flo Clifford

So Chelsea will take on Manchester City in the FA Cup final, held at Wembley on 16 May.

It’s a case of eight-time winners the Blues against the seven-time winners, with inexperienced interim manager Calum McFarlane taking on the might of Pep Guardiola.

He took a point off City in their Premier League outing earlier this season - can he go one better this time?

Leeds boss Daniel Farke:

Sunday 26 April 2026 22:00 , Kieran Jackson

“We come away disappointed, we gave our supporters so much to dream about. After a loss in a tight game, it’s always disappointing. It was a very tight game.

Expected goals, we were the better side but it’s also fair to say we weren’t at our free-flowing best, some unnecessary losses of the ball and sometimes a bit clumsy in the build-up, the players were a bit nervous. It was not the case that we were played off the park.

“Our deliveries, crosses and set-pieces were not that tidy today. You have to give credit to them.”

Slick Chelsea shut down Leeds but super-clubs’ FA Cup final is symptom of wider game’s malaise

Sunday 26 April 2026 21:05 , Flo Clifford

For an FA Cup semi-final that didn’t offer much to talk about beyond Enzo Fernández scoring the winner, Chelsea’s 1-0 win could provoke a lot of other discussion. Some of it served to quieten even this raucous Leeds United crowd by the end.

By that point, you wouldn’t have thought an FA Cup final appearance was at stake, given how quickly Wembley emptied. Another debate could, of course, be had about staging semi-finals here. Still, there’s something rather sorry about even the Leeds players saluting scores of empty seats.

More from Chief Football Writer Miguel Delaney at Wembley: