How Chelsea Secured Their 17th FA Cup Final Berth by Overcoming a Lacklustre Leeds

In the 1970s, Leeds United were the dominant force in English football, while Chelsea, known as the ‘Kings of the King’s Road’, played an exciting brand of football that was as stylish as it was effective.

Matches from that era were fiercely contested, featuring tackles that would likely attract severe reprimands in the modern game.

No Rosenior for Chelsea

The Blues entered this encounter amid a five-match losing streak in the Premier League without a single goal, resulting in the dismissal of head coach Liam Rosenior, with Calum McFarlane taking over until the season’s conclusion.

Under the guidance of Daniel Farke, Leeds had reached their first FA Cup semi-final in nearly four decades and remained unbeaten in their last seven matches across all competitions.

Both teams had consistently scored in every FA Cup match this season, with Chelsea famously netting seven against Port Vale in the quarter-finals.

Their last meeting ended in a thrilling 2-2 draw at Stamford Bridge, where Joao Pedro and Cole Palmer scored for Chelsea, while Lukas Nmecha and Noah Okafor found the net for Leeds.

Leeds unbeaten in seven but Chelsea begin strongly

From the outset, the Elland Road side sought to impose themselves on the West Londoners, forcing the first effort on goal within just four minutes.

However, they soon retreated as Chelsea gained control of the match.

In fact, Chelsea dominated the first 15 minutes, holding the ball for an extraordinary 82% of the time.

This territorial advantage allowed their forwards to press high against the Leeds defence, largely pinning them inside their own half.

Enzo breaks the deadlock

Alejandro Garnacho demonstrated tenacity with seven touches in the Leeds penalty area during the first half, but his efforts yielded no tangible results, despite successfully advancing up the pitch.

Joao Pedro, Enzo Fernandez, and Pedro Neto were pivotal in attack, while Ethan Ampadu and Jayden Bogle were effective in midfield, each winning two out of three tackles to contain Chelsea.

Fernandez finally put Chelsea ahead in the 23rd minute after one prior attempt on goal, with Pedro hitting the post and both Garnacho and Neto having their shots blocked.

The goal was well-deserved for Chelsea, and alarmingly for Leeds, the Blues had not been beaten in the FA Cup during the 2025/26 season after scoring first.

Only Manchester City had netted more first-half goals than Chelsea’s seven in this cup run, and as the first half drew to a close, Leeds struggled to find an answer.

Even though players like James Justin (93.3%) and Jaka Bijol (89.7%) displayed effective passing to enable their teammates, they could not breach Chelsea’s defence.

Just a minute into the second half, Robert Sanchez made a spectacular save to deny Anton Stach, who unleashed a powerful shot headed for the top corner.

A fantastic Chelsea move shortly afterwards deserved a goal, but Pedro hesitated in the box, allowing the chance to slip away.

Only one attempt from Calvert-Lewin

Dominic Calvert-Lewin needed to do better with his initial shot as the game approached the hour mark, sending a header straight at Sanchez while unmarked.

This proved to be Calvert-Lewin’s only touch in the Chelsea box, yet when Farke introduced several attacking substitutions with around 15 minutes remaining, the England striker remained on the pitch, labouring alone up front.

Brenden Aaronson was the only Leeds player to show any semblance of attacking prowess, though with just three touches in the box and one shot on target, he too could have done better.

Remarkably, with under 10 minutes remaining, Leeds had actually registered more attempts on goal (10 to Chelsea’s seven) — their lowest tally of the season — and more shots on target (three to two).

While the momentum hadn’t fully shifted towards Leeds, they were at least creating pressure on Chelsea, causing the Blues to go without a shot on target for 30 minutes.

Caicedo holds firm against Leeds

Ampadu won more than half of his individual duels, as Aaronson matched Pedro’s eight successful contests with seven of his own throughout the match.

Substitute Palmer provided Chelsea with a fresh attacking option down the right flank, curbing Gabriel Gudmundsson’s forays and limiting the movement from Leeds’ midfield as they attempted to force extra time.

Moises Caicedo’s industrious play and impressive 90.3% pass accuracy were key factors in Leeds struggling to break through, as evidenced by their mere 12 touches within Chelsea’s penalty area.

Reflecting on what went wrong, Farke will likely conclude that his squad lacked the dynamism required at crucial moments.

Leeds cannot be faulted for their effort, with six players recording double figures in one-on-one duels over the course of the 98 minutes.

However, goals are decisive in football, and the Whites never truly looked poised to find the net, even as the balance of play tipped in their favour.

Consequently, Chelsea will now advance to the FA Cup final to face Manchester City, a side they have not defeated in any competition since their triumph in the 2021 Champions League final.

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