Cardiff vs Chelsea live: Enzo Maresca’s strong substitutes come to rescue in Carabao Cup quarter-final | OneFootball

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'The worst 48 hours!' - Maresca furious with lack of support from fans

Chelsea’s substitutes came to Enzo Maresca’s rescue against League One side Cardiff with goals from Pedro Neto and Alejandro Garnacho sending the Blues into the Carabao Cup semi-finals.

The Bluebirds, who had come through four rounds of the competition so far defeating Swindon Town, Cheltenham, Burnley and Wrexham, brought the game to Chelsea throughout the first half and were unfortunate to fall behind after the restart, with substitute Garnacho punishing a mistake from Dylan Lawlor.

The hosts managed to get on terms thanks to a stunning header from David Turnbull on 75 minutes but Pedro Neto, who also started on the bench, put a dagger to the heart of Cardiff fans just seven minutes later, firing into the far corner to put Chelsea back in control.

Garnacho tucked away his second in stoppage time to seal the victory, sending Chelsea through to the last four and keeping Maresca’s hopes of winning his first piece of domestic silverware alive.

Next up in the Carabao Cup

That’s all for tonight - but the Carabao Cup quarter-finals are only just getting started.

Manchester City take on Brentford while Newcastle face Fulham in two all-Premier League clashes tomorrow, before next week’s rescheduled meeting between Arsenal and Crystal Palace.

Until then!

Will Castle16 December 2025 23:30

Brian Barry-Murphy: 'It's the hope that kills you'

"It was evident the players gave everything for the club, and it was an incredible atmosphere and a memorable night,” Cardiff boss Barry-Murphy told Sky Sports.

“I guess it's the hope that kills you when we scored the goal through David Turnbull, probably all got carried away, myself included, trying to get that second goal.

"I couldn't be prouder of the players. The way they played the game from the first minutes, exactly in the identity we want from this club, and the supporters really revel in that and got behind us."

Alejandro Garnacho focuses on team after brace

"They brought me on and I tried to help the team,” Garnacho told Sky Sports. “Me, Pedro and the rest of the players did that. We are really happy.

"As a group we are doing really well. Sometimes you have to start games and sometimes you have to help from the bench. We don't focus on this, we just try to help the team.

"We'll try to compete for everything, and the semi-final is the next one so we'll try to win."

Alejandro Garnacho, left, celebrates scoring Chelsea’s opening goal in their Carabao Cup victory at Cardiff (Nick Potts/PA) (PA Wire)

Pedro Neto reiterates Chelsea's desire to win trophies

“The manager said in the last 18 months this is the third semi-final we had, so we are really happy with that,” Neto told Sky Sports. “We got the win, so we are already looking for the next game.

"Sometimes we were under control but sometimes it's the small details that make the difference. Maybe we lost a bit of concentration because we had a lot of corners in the time in the game, and the first time they went up after the corners, they score.

“So it was a bit of a lack of concentration, but in the end we could go through, so we are really happy. It was the concentration. It was the will of winning this game. We wanted to win a lot this game.

“Then we had guys on the pitch who could make the difference and Garna (Alejandro Garnacho) today helped us a lot as well with two goals.

"We are Chelsea, we want to win trophies. Our mindset is to win all the games."

FULL-TIME! Cardiff 1-3 Chelsea

Chelsea’s substitutes came to Enzo Maresca’s rescue against League One side Cardiff with goals from Pedro Neto and Alejandro Garnacho sending the Blues into the Carabao Cup.

The Bluebirds, who had come through four rounds of the competition so far defeating Swindon Town, Cheltenham, Burnley and Wrexham, brought the game to Chelsea throughout the first half and were unfortunate to fall behind after the restart, with substitute Garnacho punishing a mistake from Dylan Lawlor.

The hosts managed to get on terms thanks to a stunning header from David Turnbull on 75 minutes but Pedro Neto, who also started on the bench, put a dagger to the heart of Cardiff fans just seven minutes later, firing into the far corner to put Chelsea back in control.

Garnacho tucked away his second in stoppage time to seal the victory, sending Chelsea through to the last four and keeping Maresca’s hopes of winning his first piece of domestic silverware alive.

(Chelsea FC via Getty Images)