Chelsea 2-1 Arsenal (2006-07 League Cup Final)
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| 2007 Carling Cup Final | |
| |
| Scoreline | Chelsea 2-1 Arsenal |
| Date | 25th February 2007 |
| Competition | League Cup |
| Referee | Howard Webb |
| Stadium | The Millennium Stadium,Cardiff |
| Attendance | 70,073 |
Chelsea and Arsenal contested the 2007 League Cup Final at the Millennium Stadium on 25 February 2007. It was the first all-London final in the competition's history, and the second time the clubs had met in a major cup final, the other being the 2002 FA Cup final. Chelsea won the game 2-1, with both Chelsea goals coming from Didier Drogba after Theo Walcott had opened the scoring for the Gunners. The match was an eventful affair which included a sickening injury to John Terry and three red cards following a late fracas involving most of the players. This was the fourth major trophy that Chelsea won under José Mourinho.
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Match review
Arsenal fielded a young side, with an average age of 21, and started the match well, with Júlio Baptista forcing a fine save from Petr Čech in the 11th minute before Walcott gave Arsenal the lead shortly afterwards with a composed finish. Didier Drogba equalised 8 minutes later, racing on to a ball from Michael Ballack before side-footing the ball under Arsenal goalkeeper Manuel
Injury time
A record seven minutes of stoppage time were added to the match due to the injury suffered by John Terry, and stoppage time was extended by an extra five minutes following a fracas that resulted in Arsenal captain Kolo Touré and striker Emmanuel Adebayor and Chelsea midfielder John Obi Mikel being sent off for violent conduct and Frank Lampard and Cesc Fàbregas shown yellow cards for unsporting behaviour. The full-time whistle eventually blew in the 103rd minute of play.
After the initial bookings of Touré and Mikel, referee Howard Webb consulted with an assistant referee, and Adebayor was sent off, allegedly over striking Wayne Bridge. Adebayor was irate and had to be calmed down as he was escorted off the field by fellow striker Thierry Henry, who was not chosen for the match because he had not participated in the Carling Cup run. After the game, Bridge told reporters that he had been punched by Emmanuel Eboué – not Adebayor, whom he suspected to be a victim of mistaken identity. The next day Arsenal and Chelsea submitted claims for wrongful dismissal of Adebayor and Mikel, respectively, to the FA. The FA denied both appeals, also stating that Adebayor's claim "was not a claim for mistaken identity." The FA statement charged Arsenal and Chelsea with misconduct concerning their inability to control their players. As a result Eboué was charged with violent conduct for striking Bridge; Adebayor was charged for his behaviour after being sent off. Terry's injury and Touré's sending off meant that neither side's captain finished the game. After each player had left the field the captains' armbands were given to Lampard and Fàbregas respectively. The match was also interrupted by incidents of Chelsea fans throwing celery in the direction of Arsenal players.
Match details
| 25 February 2007 15.00 | Chelsea | 2 - 1 | Arsenal | Venue: Millennium Stadium, Cardiff Attendance: 70,073 Referee: Howard Webb |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Drogba  20', 84'
| Walcott 12'
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Road to the Final
| Season | Day | D | M | Year | Round | Opposition | Venue | Result | Score | Additional information |
| 2006-07 | Wed | 25 | Oct | 2006 | 3rd Round | Blackburn Rovers | Away | Won | 2-0 | |
| 2006-07 | Wed | 8 | Nov | 2006 | 4th Round | Aston Villa | Home | Won | 4-0 | |
| 2006-07 | Wed | 20 | Dec | 2006 | 5th Round | Newcastle United | Away | Won | 1-0 | |
| 2006-07 | Wed | 10 | Jan | 2007 | Semi Final 1st Leg | Wycombe Wanderers | Away | Drew | 1-1 | |
| 2006-07 | Tue | 23 | Jan | 2007 | Semi Final 2nd Leg | Wycombe Wanderers | Home | Won | 4-0 | (5-1 aggregate) |
Post-Match Reaction
Frank Lampard on BBC Radio Five Live : "It looked terrible when John Terry went down. We're devastated for John and we'll lift up the cup for him. Regarding the pitch scuffle, the whole thing just escalated, but it happened because both sets of players wanted to win the trophy so much."
Didier Drogba on BBC Radio Five Live :"I am very happy, but I'm thinking about John Terry. We've had some news that he's feeling a bit better. I was near him when it happened. It was a shame about the fight at the end, this was not in keeping with the game."
Jose Mourinho on BBC Radio Five Live :"It was a pity about the pitch fracas. I do understand it's emotional and I understand how the players are feeling. Arsenal were losing the final so it was understandable their emotions took over. But it was a great game between two teams with two different styles. But history will show we have taken the cup home.
Match reports
Images
 Match ticket |
Match programme |
 Injury time fracas |
 Chelsea Celebrations |
Highlights
| League Cup |
| Seasons:1960–61 • 1961–62 • 1962–63 • 1963–64 • 1964–65 • 1965–66 • 1966–67 • 1967–68 • 1968–69 • 1969–70 • 1970–71 • 1971–72 • 1972–73 • 1973–74 • 1974–75 • 1975–76 • 1976–77 • 1977–78 • 1978–79 • 1979–80 • 1980–81 • 1981–82 • 1982–83 • 1983–84 • 1984–85 • 1985–86 • 1986–87 • 1987–88 • 1988–89 • 1989–90 • 1990–91 • 1991–92 • 1992–93 • 1993–94 • 1994–95 • 1995–96 • 1996–97 • 1997–98 • 1998–99 • 1999–00 • 2000–01 • 2001–02 • 2002–03 • 2003–04 • 2004–05 • 2005–06 • 2006–07 • 2007–08 • 2008–09 • 2009–10 • 2010–11 • 2011–12 • 2012–13 • 2013–14 • 2014–15 • 2015–16 • 2016–17 • 2017–18 • 2018–19 • 2019–20 • 2020-21 |
| Finals: 1965 (1st leg • 2nd leg) • 1972 • 1998 • 2005 • 2007 • 2008 • 2015 |
