Star subs rescue Chelsea as Alonso 'takes blame'

· BBC-Football

Chelsea get the better of Leeds in a cup thriller, but Blues boss Xabi Alonso has food for thought after needing rescue act from his star substitutes.

Amid jubilation that followed the final whistle at Stamford Bridge, where Chelsea recovered from 2-0 down to progress as 6-3 winners in the Carabao Cup, it was easy to forget that Alonso's side were booed off at half-time.

Supporters witnessed arguably the worst first half of Alonso's short tenure to date, with Chelsea fortunate not to be further in arrears after the head coach made nine changes to his line-up.

The team's rhythm was disrupted. Leeds made eight changes themselves, but Daniel Farke's side took control and were threatening to surge into the fourth round.

Defender Tarik Muharemovic opened the scoring before Brenden Aaronson doubled Leeds' lead shortly after the break.

Alonso had responded to Chelsea's out-of-sorts start by making four substitutions at half-time. On came Cole Palmer, Morgan Rogers, Pedro Neto and Reece James, and together they changed the game.

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