Chelsea Player Ratings vs. Leeds: Outcasts Come to the Fore in FA Cup Semifinal Win

The Blues will take on Manchester City in the FA Cup final next month.

Chelsea earned a hard-fought victory over rivals Leeds United. | Chris Lee/Chelsea FC/Getty Images

Chelsea progressed into the 2025–26 FA Cup final after beating rivals Leeds United 1–0 at Wembley Stadium on Sunday afternoon thanks to Enzo Fernández’s goal and Robert Sánchez’s goalkeeping.

Calum McFarlane was on the touchline for the Blues after Liam Rosenior’s midweek sacking, and the interim manager was able to oversee a balanced Chelsea performance that offered early attacking exuberance and resilience in the second half.

It was a far cry from Tuesday night‘s scandalous showing against Brighton & Hove Albion.

A close-ranger header from Fernández, back with the captain’s armband having been banned by the club for their previous FA Cup outing, proved the difference between the two sides, and Leeds will undoubtedly rue the golden opportunities they squandered. Sánchez also came to the fore for the Blues amid sporadic bursts of Leeds pressure, and Chelsea will now be involved in their 17th FA Cup final.

Manchester City await.

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One Thing We Can’t Ignore

Sánchez came up big between the posts. | Gaspafotos/MB Media/Getty Images

Is Robert Sánchez sucking Chelsea supporters back in again? Surely not, but he deserves plenty of praise for his performance under the arch.

The Blues never succumbed to unrelenting Leeds pressure despite their second-half improvement after Daniel Farke ditched the back three, but they still crafted a couple of key moments that could’ve drastically altered the semifinal.

The most notable was Brenden Aaronson’s opening in the 15th minute, as he found himself one-on-one with Sánchez after a quick transition. His effort was destined for the bottom corner, but Sánchez’s big right boot ensured the American didn’t break the deadlock. An early favorable game state for Leeds would’ve played into their hands massively, given their capacity to soak up pressure and counterattack.

Chelsea were comfortably superior in the first half, especially after Aaronson’s chance, but Leeds were improved after halftime. The returning Anton Stach came ever so close to restoring parity following his entrance, but Chelsea’s goalkeeper was on hand to deny the midfielder’s fierce drive with a superb stop.

Sánchez was called upon infrequently, which perhaps renders his performance more impressive. This time, he didn’t allow his concentration to waver, and Chelsea are in the FA Cup final as a result.

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Chelsea Player Ratings vs. Leeds (4-2-3-1)

Fernández headed home the opening goal. | Chris Lee/Chelsea FC/Getty Images

*Ratings provided by FotMob*

GK: Robert Sánchez—8.5: The Spaniard certainly didn’t let Chelsea down at Wembley. Sánchez made several big stops at key moments to help the Blues into the final.

RB: Malo Gusto—7.3: A distinct threat early on, with his willingness to break forward from right back almost catching Leeds off guard. Gusto was put under pressure by Noah Okafor in the second half and was helped by the Swiss international’s premature exit.

CB: Trevoh Chalobah—7.5: A mixed bag in possession, with a loose pass in the opening exchanges leading to Leeds’ best moment of the first half. Still, Chalobah was sturdy defensively.

CB: Tosin Adarabioyo—7.5: Welcomed back into the fold by McFarlane, the rather unpopular Tosin did his job. Saw plenty of Dominic Calvert-Lewin, and stuck to his task well.

LB: Marc Cucurella—7.1: Offered little by way of attacking endeavour, and had a few hairy moments defensively, as poor technique and his eagerness were taken advantage of.

DM: Roméo Lavia—6.5: Neat and tidy for the most part. His combinations with midfield partner Moisés Caicedo were efficient, and Lavia also took up some clever positions to bypass Leeds pressure.

DM: Moisés Caicedo—7.4: Struggled for form this calendar year, but looked more like himself on Sunday afternoon, with a booking inevitable. Caicedo was snappy at Wembley, and he was a handy playmaker early on in proceedings.

RW: Pedro Neto—8.1: The Portuguese wide man was an unrelenting source of energy down both flanks, and he produced a moment of quality in the first half to tee up the opening goal.

AM: Enzo Fernández—8.5: Chelsea’s captain on the day took command of the semifinal in the opening 30 minutes, with his influential start to proceedings culminating in the opening goal. There was less playmaking brilliance for the final hour, but the Argentine nonetheless showed his class.

LW: Alejandro Garnacho—6.6: Can’t deny his usefulness as an exuberant outlet who penetrates in behind, but the former Manchester United man struggled to execute the decisive action throughout.

ST: João Pedro—7.2: So unlucky not to have gotten on the scoresheet, but his work as a facilitator was often superb. Effective on the half-turn to escape the Leeds defense.

SUB: Andrey Santos (66’ for Lavia)—6.8: Helped stabilize Chelsea’s midfield as Lavia faded.

SUB: Cole Palmer (71’ for Garnacho)—6.1: Didn’t offer much in possession, but Palmer’s effort without the ball must be commended.

SUB: Liam Delap (90+8’ for Pedro)—N/A

Subs not used: Teddy Sharman-Lowe (GK), Jorrel Hato, Josh Acheampong, Wesley Fofana, Dário Essugo, Jesse Derry.

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What These Ratings Tell Us

Garnacho was an unpopular figure at Wembley. | Cameron Smith/The FA/Getty Images

• Tosin Adarabioyo was trusted by McFarlane at Wembley, with the center back making his first appearance since the quarterfinal victory over Port Vale. He wasn’t fancied by Liam Rosenior, but McFarlane seems to trust the experienced center back, who also started against Fulham during the interim manager’s first brief spell. Tosin certainly didn’t hinder his stock here against Dominic Calvert-Lewin, doing a good job at ensuring the striker was merely a bystander for much of the semifinal. The erratic Wesley Fofana may have a limited role to play down the stretch, especially if Levi Colwill returns from his long-term knee injury soon.
• Chelsea’s dire wide play has been a contributing factor to their historically bad Premier League run, and there were contrasting fortunes for the two that started on Sunday. While Pedro Neto recorded an assist and worked his socks off for the duration of the game, Alejandro Garnacho was withdrawn from proceedings having failed yet again to deliver a critical action. He’s an infuriating operator who was mightily unpopular at Wembley, given his former Manchester United allegiance.

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The Numbers That Explain Chelsea’s Semifinal Triumph

McFarlane is back for his second interim spell. | Ben STANSALL/AFP/Getty Images

• Chelsea won Sunday’s semifinal despite registering a lower xG, as well as recording fewer shots and shots on target.
• The Blues notched just two shots and 0.06 xG in the second half, as they merely aimed to see out their lead.
• Daniel Farke’s half-time tactical change helped shift the dynamic of the contest, as Leeds finally matched up with Chelsea in midfield and were able to enjoy more of the ball. Chelsea had 65% possession in the first half, whereas Leeds had 57% after the restart.
• Brenden Aaronson’s chance in the 15th minute was the highest-quality in the match, tallying 0.36 xG. But he missed it.

Statistic	Chelsea	Leeds
Possession	54%	46%
Expected Goals (xG)	0.33	0.89
Total Shots	8	10
Shots on Target	2	3
Big Chances	2	2
Pass Accuracy	86%	81%
Fouls Committed	14	13
Corners	6	4

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