Wasteful Chelsea bow to Middlesbrough in Carabao Cup semi-final first leg

Middlesbrough took a surprise 1-0 win against Chelsea in the first leg of the Carabao Cup semi-final on Tuesday.

The result leaves Chelsea with a challenging task in the return leg at Stamford Bridge on January 23.

The only goal of the match came from Hayden Hackney, who capitalized on a defensive lapse from the visitors to score for Middlesbrough in the 37th minute.

The home team had an early scare when Axel Disasi’s challenge on Emmanuel Latte Lath went unpunished by VAR just 40 seconds into the game.

However, they managed to keep Chelsea at bay despite missed opportunities by Cole Palmer before the halftime whistle.

Chelsea will now hope to show a strong performance in the second leg to overturn the loss and secure a spot in the Carabao Cup final.