Relief was the overriding emotion for Calum McFarlane after Chelsea beat Leeds United 1-0 in Sunday’s FA Cup semi-final at Wembley.
The last-four clash marked the first game of McFarlane’s second spell as interim boss following the sacking of Liam Rosenior on Wednesday.
Chelsea were vastly improved from the last game of Rosenior’s tenure, a dismal 3-0 defeat to Brighton and Hove Albion, and Enzo Fernandez’s first-half header settled the tie.
Leeds’ second-half showing was markedly better than what they produced in the first half, but Daniel Farke’s side rarely threatened Robert Sanchez in the Chelsea goal.
McFarlane relieved to shift Chelsea momentum
For Chelsea, the victory ended a run of three successive defeats since their 7-0 win over Port Vale in the quarter-finals. A streak of five successive Premier League games without scoring brought Rosenior’s brief tenure to a close.
Leeds were unbeaten in their previous seven matches in all competitions, with that difference in form a clear source of anxiety for McFarlane before the game.
“‘Relief’ is the correct word. We were confident going into the game – we had a really good three days leading into it – but you never know,” McFarlane told TNT Sports.
“We really wanted to shift the momentum. Our form hasn’t been great recently — I think that’s where the relief comes in.”
Asked about the experience of stepping into the role for a second time, McFarlane added: “I did the job for a week in January so I knew what I was stepping into. It’s actually been easier this time because I have a relationship with the players, I’ve worked with them for three or four months now, and I had a feel for what they needed psychologically. It’s been intense but not as crazy as the last time.
“We knew Leeds were at their most dangerous when we had deep possession, because they go man for man, so we wanted to negate that by going longer. Create a bit of fear in them, because we’ve got athletes in our top line, and then once they dropped we got space to play.”
Fernandez, who was suspended by Rosenior for two games earlier this month for comments made in the media, was the hero for Chelsea as he headed home Pedro Neto’s right-wing cross.
“I thought Enzo’s positioning was brilliant,” McFarlane said. “The way he pulled wider to pin the right-winger, so we had a spare man in the build-up and we took control.”
‘Nervous’ Leeds miss out
Farke, meanwhile, suggested nerves played a role as Leeds missed out on a first FA Cup final since 1973.
“First of all, congratulations for Chelsea for making their way to the final,” Farke told TNT. “It was a very tight game. We had more expected goals (xG), more shots, more shots on targets, more big chances missed.
“It could have gone both ways. But it’s also fair to say that we weren’t at our free-flowing best, especially in the first half. We didn’t create enough clear-cut chances, which we can criticise.
“Perhaps the lads were a bit nervous — so much was made of this game and we weren’t at our very best today. That’s football. In tight games, sometimes the better defence wins the game and congratulations to Chelsea for that.”
