Alan Pardew has praised Chelsea’s performance against Leeds but believes Manchester City will ultimately have too much firepower in next month’s FA Cup final. Enzo Fernandez headed home what proved to be the winner as Chelsea – led by interim manager Calum McFarlane – edged past Leeds this weekend to reach the final for a 17th time in the club’s history. The hard-fought 1-0 victory came 24 hours after City prevailed to advance through to this year’s showpiece, with a pair of late goals from Jeremy Doku and Nico Gonzalez breaking Southampton hearts in a thrilling finish at Wembley.
McFarlane has taken over the reins at Stamford Bridge under extremely difficult circumstances in the wake of Liam Rosenior’s dismissal after only 106 days in charge of the Blues. The 40-year-old had also managed Chelsea as caretaker following Enzo Maresca’s sacking at the start of the year, failing to pick up a win from his two matches away to City and Fulham in the Premier League. But McFarlane could not hide his delight as the west London giants held firm against a late barrage from Leeds, with the Club World Cup holders aiming to lift the FA Cup for a ninth time in their history.
‘It was important to get the win,’ McFarlane told reporters shortly after the final whistle. ‘It was important to break the momentum and the form we were in. We were confident we would do that today and that changes the feel in the group.’ McFarlane added: ‘We want to win every game for the fans. It’s not worked out in other competitions. We want to win every game, like in any season, but it’s not extra motivation.’
Chelsea return to Premier League action at home to Nottingham Forest in just over a week’s time, where they will look to get back to winning ways after a miserable five-match losing run under Rosenior. A tough trip to reigning champions Liverpool follows that, before attentions will turn back to the cup for what promises to be an intriguing encounter with a rampant City side at Wembley.
Former Crystal Palace and Newcastle manager Pardew can only see one winner from this year’s showpiece, though, with Pep Guardiola boasting an embarrassment of riches across every position. Asked if Chelsea have what it takes to beat City, Pardew told talkSPORT: ‘I don’t think so, no. Looking at Manchester City against Southampton yesterday, they’re in great form, their offensive players are on fire and Pep Guardiola has got such ammunition from the bench. He can change it and yesterday he started with the bench, you could argue, but they still put in some great performances. Mateo Kovacic, who hasn’t played all year, was absolutely terrific. They’ve still got some marvellous, marvellous players at that football club. Tijjani Reijnders has amazing quality and whenever he pulls it onto that right foot you’re thinking he’s going to get a shot off. And it wouldn’t have been a surprise if he got the winner yesterday. Great goals, great game, great atmosphere. By the way, well done to the Southampton fans, everyone who turned up there, great support. Manchester City fans were great, too, but they got the win. It’s a little bit easier when you get the win!’
Pardew is pleased to see a young English coach like McFarlane given the opportunity to test their mettle on the big stage – but feels Chelsea were helped by a lack of oomph from Leeds in Sunday’s semi-final. ‘Calum has had to do the rounds but he finds himself at Wembley and in a cup final,’ Pardew, who managed West Ham in two FA Cup finals, added. ‘You can have games where you want more from your team and I sense that Leeds did play okay, it wasn’t like they put in a really poor performance, they had chances, but there was a lack of real push. It was sporadic moments from Leeds, there wasn’t a real 10-15 minute period of, “Come on, let’s get something over the line here”, and I think that’s what Leeds fans were wishing for.’
While Chelsea have indicated that McFarlane will remain in the role until the end of the season, the search is underway behind the scenes for Rosenior’s permanent successor. Andoni Iraola is one of a number of high-profile names being linked with the vacant position after it was confirmed he would be leaving as Bournemouth’s head coach in the summer. According to Pardew, the Spaniard should be deemed the best possible candidate at Stamford Bridge given his outstanding work on the south coast over the last three years. ‘They need a big-hitter in there,’ Pardew explained. ‘That’s how I’d advise them if I was around the football club. I would go for the best person out of contract in the summer and I think that’s Andoni Iraola.’
