Chelsea dramatically beat a spirited Southampton team in a penalty shootout to reach the quarter-finals of the Carl-Fort Cup. Before Will Smallborn's missteps and Reece James' conversion proved the difference in the game, the two sides were tied at normal game time.
As you might have guessed, Chelsea dominated the early stages of the game, almost taking the lead through Saul in the sixth minute. The midfielder/right-back/winger/wherever he's asked to play, he can do his job and cause trouble for Fraser Foster.
Next up was Kay Havertz, who also nearly opened the scoring for the home team, making a brilliant shot close to the goalpost at the edge of the penalty area, and 10 minutes later he shot directly at Foster from a small angle. However, after not switching those opportunities, Southampton began to (surprisingly) blend in into the game, turning Chelsea's five-back penalty area into their own free for a period of time. When Stuart Armstrong shot the ball from the right side of the penalty area, the Saints were on the verge of getting their reward. However, after deviating from Marensal, Kepa then caught the shot well.
Just before half-time, the Blues took the lead when Havertz beautifully headed the ball into the bottom right corner from Hakim Ziyage. Just after the first half, Southampton rightfully equalised with Che Adams. The Scotland international slammed the ball into the net from two yards away after Kepa had Kyle Walker Peters' shot squeeze into his feet. The goal energized the game and Havertz almost recovered after a few minutes, but was unfortunately blocked by the feet of the outstanding Foster. Southampton also counter-attacked, scoring their threatening shot of the night through Adam Armstrong, only to be blocked by Kepa's arm.
With 15 minutes remaining, Chelsea missed a few more chances when Saul deflected a shot from the edge of the penalty area before seeing Southampton Goalkeeper No. 1 shoot a curling shot 30 seconds later. The final chance of the game fell on the away team, with the headers of both Southampton centre-backs being saved by Kepa, meaning the game would be decided by penalties.
Both teams scored penalties before Theo Walcott and Mason Monte saw their saves. Cho and Sean Lang then scored, which put pressure on Smolborn to score a penalty on his first appearance after a serious knee injury. The young midfielder made a huge effort on the crossbar to get Reece James to step up and score the winning kick.