Chelsea’s nightmare after Christmas continues
Cole Palmer looks dejected following Chelsea’s FA Cup exit
When Chelsea last met Brighton in late September, they scored four goals. Cole Palmer got them all. Crucially, they were in the run of being the Premier League’s great entertainers.
Now the Blues’ output appears to have frozen. This was the fifth time since Christmas where Chelsea have taken a lead and not seen the win through. Leads have been chucked away for dropped points against Fulham, Crystal Palace, Bournemouth, Man City and now Brighton.
After their last defeat against City, Gary Neville accused Chelsea of missing an opportunity at the Etihad and their FA Cup exit followed the same story.
They faced a Brighton side who shipped seven last weekend, saw their goalkeeper chuck one into his net after five minutes on Saturday and even captain Lewis Dunk came off at half-time to destabilise the Seagulls’ backline even further. But Chelsea could muster just one shot on target – which came just four minutes in.
After scoring four in the last encounter between these two, Palmer was nullified. Christopher Nkunku’s rustiness was clear to see – his 33 touches was the second-lowest tally out of Chelsea’s starters. He also failed to have a shot all game.
Nicolas Jackson could come back for the next trip to Brighton on Valentine’s Day but even he has gone eight games without a goal. How Chelsea get out of this rut of not scoring enough and throwing away leads is unclear at the moment.
Sam Blitz
Man City survive scare – but at a cost
Nico Gonzalez came off injured on his Man City debut
Manchester City survived Leyton Orient’s scare from the first half to progress into the fifth round – but it came at a cost.
Their £50m Deadline Day signing Nico Gonzalez – who was dubbed as Rodri’s replacement as he continues his comeback from injury – lasted 22 minutes before limping off the pitch on his debut.
Prior to exiting the field with what looked like a hip or lower back injury, Nico was caught on the ball before Jamie Donley launched his shot from just inside the halfway line to give his side a shock lead.
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Pep Guardiola enjoyed the ‘really good’ atmosphere in Manchester City’s 2-1 FA Cup fourth round win against Leyton Orient at the Gaughan Group Stadium
A whirlwind debut for the 23-year-old, who has quickly learned what English football could have in-store for him.
“I think Nico understood immediately what the Premier League is and referees,” Pep Guardiola said after the game. ” I don’t know how hard the shot was but he couldn’t continue.”
Patrick Rowe
Dorgu is Man Utd’s shining light
Patrick Dorgu on his Man Utd debut vs Leicester in the FA Cup
Patrick Dorgu was the shining light in Manchester United’s dire first-half performance against Leicester.
The £30m signing from Lecce made his debut at Old Trafford although was unexpectedly deployed at right wing-back while Diogo Dalot played on the left.
“He played a lot of time at Lecce on the right and the left,” explained Amorim. “Sometimes you need a left foot on the right side to come inside and connect in a different way, and sometimes you need a right-footer to connect and cross more balls.”
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Manchester United boss Ruben Amorim says his side have plenty to improve on but admits sometimes you deserve a bit of luck after his side beat Leicester City in the FA Cup
Dorgu linked up nicely with Amad Diallo on the right and raided forward, albeit he couldn’t find a telling pass on one occasion when he got into the box.
“He was a little bit anxious in the first touch with the ball,” added Amorim, who substituted Dorgu at half-time. “It’s a different league for him, different speed of the game, but he did well.”
David Richardson
Newcastle boost chances of long-awaited Cup success
Callum Wilson celebrates with Bruno Guimaraes after scoring Newcastle’s second goal at Birmingham
It has been 70 years since Newcastle last lifted a major domestic trophy – they are on the right track to win two in one season.
Eddie Howe’s side backed up reaching the Carabao Cup final on Wednesday night by coming through a tough test at League One leaders Birmingham City in the FA Cup fourth round.
Newcastle made nine changes yet their second-string side showed character after falling behind inside the opening 40 seconds and mettle to match the hosts’ tough tackling in the second half.
The only blight on their evening was an injury to Dan Burn. “In the last couple of weeks, we seem to have picked up a couple. It would be the last thing [we need] to derail us,” said Howe.
For a club that’s waited 70 years for silverware, the next few months could be nothing short of historic.
David Richardson
