Liverpool 1-0 (aet)

Independent:

Branislav Ivanovic seals classic encounter with extra-time header to send Blues to Wembley
Chelsea 1 Liverpool 0 (aet; Chelsea win 2-1 on aggregate)

Sam Wallace

It just about summed up the tension on a night when the modern rivalry between these two clubs was born anew with a great snarling tear-up of open attacking football, and random acts of violence provided by Diego Costa. Not so much random as deftly calculated: two stamps on Emre Can and Martin Skrtel, executed with the precision of the assassin and out of the scope of referee Michael Oliver’s vision.
He should have been sent off for both of them, he should also have had a penalty between the two incidents when Skrtel blatantly tripped him in the box. A hardman in a pair of club-issue woolly gloves, Costa has the unerring ability to get under the skin of even the most experienced players. Steven Gerrard thrust a forehead in his direction as it got really tense in extra-time.
Yet for all the bad feeling and animosity it was a wonderful cup tie that went to extra-time, the away goals rule only applicable at 120 minutes. It was from a foul on Eden Hazard, and there were a few of them, that Chelsea won a free-kick that Willian struck for Branislav Ivanovic to head home. It is Chelsea who will go to Wembley on 1 March for what they hope will be the first trophy of Mourinho II.
In the aftermath, Mourinho described the two stamps by Costa as “absolutely accidental” and, sensing the spectre of retrospective action from the Football Association, launched one of his counter-offensives with the intention of drawing attention away from the main show. He railed against Sky Sports pundit Jamie Redknapp and even chastised Brendan Rodgers – this was a strange one - for not adequately praising Thibaut  Courtois in his post-match interviews.
This was Mourinho at his diversionary best, lashing out at all in the hope that he could shift the argument away from Costa although that is surely where it will lie over the next few days. He was not the only offender, Lucas Leiva and Jordan Henderson were both fortunate to escape second yellow cards. Yet no-one quite matched Costa for the kind of understated aggression that makes you wince just watching.
A breathless first half, and one in which Liverpool made just about all the running. Darting, incisive and pressing Chelsea to within an inch of their lives in midfield, they looked a world away from the team that stumbled through the first few months of the season.
If Liverpool had a fit striker to finish the chances that were created then Chelsea might have been buried by half time, yet as it was they were alive at the break. There had been some moment of living dangerously, not least when Raheem Sterling exposed Kurt Zouma with his explosive running from deep.
That first time, Zouma recovered to make the covering tackle. Then, on half an hour, the excellent Philippe Coutinho deceived the young Frenchman with a twist of the hips to the extent that the Chelsea man was heading in the direction of Fulham by the time he realised the Brazilian had plotted another course.
Zouma was in for Gary Cahill, dropped by Mourinho after an indifferent few weeks and having struggled with the pace of Sterling in the first leg draw at Anfield. Zouma is quick but no-one on the pitch was as quick as Sterling and it took a change of direction by the Liverpool man in the 17th minute to allow Zouma the time to recover and make a good covering tackle.
The two big moments of the first half both revolved around Costa who should have had a penalty on 22 minutes when he was clearly tripped by Skrtel down by the byline. The frothing sense of injustice on the Chelsea bench was not tempered by the fact that their assassin-faced centre-forward should have been sent off 11 minutes earlier.
The stamp, or rather the vicious, sly tread, on the right leg of Emre Can was, sadly, straight out the Costa playbook. A glance to locate his grounded opponent and then a boot thrust down on Can as pushed off to chase the ball. It was a mean, dangerous thing to do and he should have been sent off. One wonders whether that realisation flashed through the mind of referee Oliver when he later denied Costa the penalty.
Around the half hour, Courtois came to the rescue of his defence twice, once when Alberto Moreno was played in by a superb curling ball to the left from Steven Gerrard, then again when Coutinho broke away from Zouma. In midfield, Liverpool swarmed all over their opponents, especially Gerrard on Nemanja Matic.
Chelsea had fewer good moments in attack although they are always just a heartbeat away from a goal. It was notable how little Cesc Fabregas was on the ball before the break, and also how much Matic found himself forced to run with it – not the Serb’s greatest strength.
Fabregas lasted less than five minutes of the new half before a collision with John Terry seemed to resolve in his mind his own fitness issues. He was replaced by Ramires. As per the first half, the pace of the game was unrelenting, so too the theatrical sense of injustice on the Chelsea bench for whom conspiracy existed everywhere.
There was even a moment after the hour when Mourinho found himself pushing Rodgers in an attempt to get to Colin Pascoe, the Liverpool assistant, who it seemed, had the temerity to do as much appealing as the Chelsea bench. All thoroughly entertaining stuff and then, just to calm things down, Rodgers sent on Mario Balotelli.
It was already pretty damn heated by then.  Costa had carried out his second surreptitious stamping, this time on Skrtel as they chased a ball after the whistle had already been blown for a foul by Lucas Leiva on Oscar. It was that sort of game. The captains were called aside by Oliver to cool it down. How the referee kept missing Costa’s studdings, only he will know.
Chelsea attacked more after the break. Around the hour Hazard jinked from right to left and shot wide. Costa had an effort saved and then was deftly tacked by Simon Mignolet when a sloppy pass from Henderson had played the striker in.
Henderson, always in the thick of it, had been booked in the first half and there was outrage among Mourinho and his staff when he did not get a second yellow for a handball. A booking for a handball is at the referee’s discretion, and to say that this one divided opinion was putting it mildly indeed.
And so to extra-time when Lucas’ foul on Hazard gave Chelsea the free-kick that Willian crossed for Ivanovic to head in. Mourinho said afterwards that the defender ended the game with one boot filled with blood from an injury, and promised to have the boot in question on display in the club’s academy. He was on a roll by that point of the post-match press conference.
Rodgers sent on Rickie Lambert for the second period of extra-time but in truth, Liverpool ran out of ideas. The stage was set for Balotelli but he looked miles off the pace. A decent centre-forward is the minimum requirement to beat Chelsea, who were too strong in the end.

Chelsea (4-2-3-1): Courtois; Ivanovic, Zouma, Terry, Filipe Luis (Azpilicuet,a 78); Matic, Fabregas (Ramires, 49); Willian (Drogba, 118), Oscar, Hazard; Costa.
Liverpool (3-4-3): Mignolet; Can, Skrtel, Sakho (Johnson 57); Markovic (Balotelli 70), Henderson, Lucas, Moreno (Lambert 105); Gerrard, Sterling, Coutinho.

Booked:
Chelsea Terry, Ivanovic, Costa, Oscar
Liverpool Henderson, Lucas, Gerrard, Can, Skrtel
Referee: M Oliver
Rating: 9/10
Man of the match: Coutinho

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Guardian:

Branislav Ivanovic heads Chelsea into final with late win over Liverpool
Daniel Taylor

There was a point here when the heat of the battle had brought the two managers together on the touchline, one-time colleagues and friends straying dangerously close to a full-on confrontation. That clash between José Mourinho and Brendan Rodgers seemed emblematic of a thrillingly spiky night when Chelsea reached Wembley, the undercurrent of bad feeling between the two teams frequently spilled into open combat and Diego Costa went far enough the Football Association may feel compelled to act.
It was a breathless encounter full of incident and drama, including some outstanding goalkeeping from Thibaut Courtois and Simon Mignolet, and probably encapsulated by the way Mourinho did not even see the decisive goal from Branislav Ivanovic, four minutes into the first period of extra time, because the Chelsea manager had turned his back to the pitch for one of his regular little expeditions to air his grievances with the fourth official, Phil Dowd.
It was after one of those forays, gesturing that the referee, Michael Oliver, needed spectacles, that Rodgers grumpily intervened and used his arm to lever the Chelsea manager away, before opposite number flicked out his own arm in retaliation. Mourinho’s little black book of perceived injustices – some credible, others much less so – has some new additions because of the way Costa was denied an obvious first-half penalty and two of Liverpool’s players, Jordan Henderson and Lucas Leiva, escaped being shown a second yellow card.
Henderson might have taken the game to a penalty shoot-out with a headed chance eight minutes after Ivanovic’s goal and the awkward truth for Michael Oliver is that even in a season rife with inexplicable refereeing, his performance stood out for all the wrong reasons.
Not that the players helped, of course. John Terry and the substitute Mario Balotelli had to be pulled apart. Martin Skrtel clashed with Courtois and had a running battle with Costa, with reports also indicating the Liverpool player made an offensive gesture to the crowd. Costa, that formidable wind-up merchant, went after Emre Can and Steven Gerrard – anyone, in fact, wearing a red shirt. His provocation was almost unremitting but more seriously there were two incidents when his studs landed on players who were on the ground – on both occasions almost certainly accidentally on purpose.
Costa is so accomplished in the dark arts of his trade that he managed to get away with the first one, stamping on Can’s ankle, even though Dowd was standing a few feet away. The second was also expertly disguised, this time bringing down his foot on Skrtel, and the repercussions could be considerable if the FA’s disciplinary department rules either was violent conduct, with the possibility of a three-match ban or even longer, and a first-against-second encounter with Manchester City to come on Saturday.
Mourinho, who also lost Cesc Fàbregas and Filipe Luís to injuries, appeared to be trying a diversion technique when he complained bitterly about an unnamed Sky pundit (almost certainly Jamie Redknapp), insisted it was “absolutely accidental” from Costa and then aimed a few barbs at Rodgers in a diatribe that revealed much about the current state of their working relationship. He did, however, have legitimate complaints about the refereeing and particularly the moment in the first half when Skrtel clearly tripped Costa inside the penalty area and was given the benefit of the doubt. Once again, the Chelsea manager talked of the “campaign” that has earned him his own disciplinary charge from the FA.
In addition, there was a punch of the air in his post-match interviews and a cry of “let’s go to Wembley”. It seemed like a release of tension bearing in mind Liverpool had continued where they left off from the first leg, when they had often excelled in a 1-1 draw, passing the ball crisply and reminding us in brief passages of the slick, adventurous football they put together last season. What the visitors lacked was someone with Luis Suárez’s ability to finish off one of their chances when they were finding the same sort of gaps that Bradford City had exploited at the weekend. Coutinho’s ability to run with the ball was a prominent feature and Raheem Sterling was another difficult opponent for Chelsea’s defence. Yet Courtois was excellent and when Balotelli was introduced as a substitute it was a sorry contribution from the Italian.
Otherwise, Liverpool’s attackers made it a difficult occasion for Kurt Zouma on a night when Mourinho decided the 20-year-old should partner Terry and dropped Gary Cahill to the bench after a poor sequence of matches. Mikel John Obi, substituted against Bradford, did not even warrant a place on the bench but it was Cahill’s omission that delivered the clearest message that Mourinho was not going to tolerate his team being so generous in defence again. Zouma improved as the game went on but he looked raw early on and by half-time Chelsea were indebted to Courtois for keeping out Coutinho and Alberto Moreno.
Mourinho must have been startled that Mignolet was less occupied in the first 45 minutes but Chelsea did eventually start to play with the greater control and dominated long periods of the second half. Mignolet has been too vulnerable too often for Liverpool this season but there was a succession of fine saves during these moments, in particular when Costa fired in a low right-foot effort that took a sizeable deflection and could easily have wrong-footed him.
Henderson, booked for an earlier foul, should probably have been sent off when his arm blocked a pass from Eden Hazard and Lucas, with a yellow card already shown, was also fortunate after a trip on the same player. From the free-kick, Willian clipped the ball into the penalty area and the bad news for Liverpool was that Balotelli was marking Ivanovic. It was a mismatch and Ivanovic headed in the goal to ensure Chelsea will be at Wembley on 1 March.

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Telegraph:

Chelsea 1 Liverpool 0 (2-1 on agg):
Branislav Ivanovic scores extra-time winner to seal feisty semi-final win
Full-back heads Jose Mourinho's side to the final

Henry Winter

A two-hour adrenalin rush of a game finished with Chelsea at Wembley, with players and supporters gasping for breath and with Branislav Ivanovic’s blood-filled boot destined for the academy reception to remind youngsters of the commitment levels required. A compelling, contentious game also finished with Diego Costa at risk of investigation by the FA for two stamping offences.
Jose Mourinho, the Special One loving the Capital One, sought to deflect attention away from Costa’s excesses by railing against an unnamed Sky pundit understood to be Jamie Redknapp, who has been critical of Chelsea and, apparently, supportive of Liverpool. Even his name’s got red in it, the conspiracy theorists will note.
As for Costa, the FA’s meek disciplinary department will probably shirk the challenge. Nobody at the Bridge did. Lucas and Jordan Henderson should have been dismissed. Costa certainly should. Such was the frantic pace, and endless squaring up, that the game was briefly trending on Twitter in Rio, the home of the Beautiful Game probably trying to work out when football had become Rollerball.
Few matches this season have contained so much incident, from incompetent refereeing to a bout of goading between the benches that prompted Brendan Rodgers’ assistant, Colin Pascoe, to offer an angry Mourinho his glasses. These rivals’ latest confrontation also saw two fine goalkeeping performances from Simon Mignolet and particularly Thibaut Courtois, who was named man of the match, although other worthy candidates presented themselves in a magnificent match that cast a spell over a mesmerised audience of 40,659. Along with Mignolet, Philippe Coutinho was superb, while Emre Can continues to pick up the pace and physical nature of the English fray, even showing attacking intent with breaks from the back. For Chelsea, Ivanovic took his winner, an extra-time header, brilliantly and played on despite a cut in his foot.
Willian was tireless in his pursuit of the ball and creative in his use of it. Nemanja Matic patrolled midfield ably. Eden Hazard kept dribbling, kept taking the hits. Costa, for all his skullduggery, was magnificent in the second half of normal time and then the additional half-hour; he was the focal point and goal threat that Liverpool crave.
Liverpool can take pride by how close they pushed Chelsea, lacking only a finisher. Raheem Sterling ran hard and fast but Liverpool need Daniel Sturridge, who could return for Saturday’s Premier League game at home to West Ham United. Mario Balotelli’s behaviour, though, whether selfishly going for goal or selfishly heading down the tunnel at full-time, ignoring his team-mates and fans, again brings into question his future at Liverpool. On a night of surprises, Balotelli briefly played the peace-maker at one point.
This was a game of one goal and countless incidents. Mourinho was furious about Michael Oliver’s refereeing, particularly missing a clear penalty when Costa was fouled in the first half. Mourinho was so unhappy at the break that he sought out Oliver in the tunnel and the fourth official, Phil Dowd, had to intervene.
Mourinho’s concerns about a “campaign” against Chelsea began earlier in the season when Oliver cautioned Costa for simulation at Turf Moor when it looked like he had been brought down by the Burnley goalkeeper, Tom Heaton. “I hope he doesn’t get any more unfair decisions,’’ said Mourinho at the time.
Oliver is a talented referee, respected in Europe, but this should have been a game for England’s top official, Mark Clattenburg. Once again an important game was laced with a debate about English refereeing standards.
At least Clattenburg will be here on Saturday for the visit of Manchester City, who will be hoping that Chelsea are exhausted and that Filipe Luis (calf), Cesc Fabregas (hamstring) and Ivanovic (foot) fail to recover from injuries picked up against Liverpool.
Chelsea needed resilience throughout. When Kurt Zouma, who was preferred to Gary Cahill, misjudged a header, allowing Sterling to race down the inside-left, the young centre-half made amends for his mistake. As Sterling flew into the box, eluding John Terry, Zouma covered back to muscle him off the ball.
If Liverpool looked for the pace of Sterling, Chelsea were focusing on Costa. After 11 minutes, Costa planted his right foot into Can’s right ankle, incensing the German. Costa pleaded innocence, pointing out he had to put his foot somewhere.
Oliver was trying to play advantage, keeping a frenetic game flowing, but assorted incidents kept going unpunished. When Luis complained about a Lazar Markovic challenge, the Serb ran past him and grabbed him by the neck. Chelsea’s bench was like a manic toaster, popping up, fuming. Oliver did not spot the offence.
Chelsea’s bench went into meltdown after 22 minutes when Oscar angled a great ball through for Costa, whose right foot was caught by Martin Skrtel. The ball bounced towards the Shed and the decision was either for a corner or a penalty. Oliver decreed a goal-kick, further antagonising Chelsea who were convinced it was a clear penalty.
If controversy hung over one half, vapour trails floated over the other. Liverpool’s pacier players were charging forward. Alberto Moreno cut in but was thwarted by Courtois. Then Coutinho raced through the middle, sending Zouma the wrong way, before letting fly with a left-footed strike. Only Courtois’ response, stretching out his left foot, diverted the danger.
Oliver finally booked somebody, punishing Henderson for hounding Eden Hazard. As he walked towards the tunnel at the break, Oliver was greeted with caustic comments from the Chelsea fans. Mourinho also had a word at the break with the under-pressure referee. So much was going on, away from Oliver’s gaze. Mamadou Sakho gave the ball away early in the second half, passing crossfield, allowing Costa to nick the ball.
Oscar was painfully brought down by Lucas. Oliver tried to allow advantage which simply resulted in Costa again being careless with his feet, landing one on Skrtel, who responded with an attempted fly-kick before the routine squaring up.
Costa began parading his more positive side, twice raiding into the box but denied by Mignolet. As Oliver concluded normal time, Rodgers gathered his players in a huddle, so did Mourinho, who dropped on his haunches for his address. They responded strongly, Hazard going on another dribble, this one ended by Lucas. As Mourinho asked Dowd why another yellow card had not been waved at Lucas, Willian curled the ball over and Ivanovic headed powerfully home, exploiting laxness in Liverpool’s zonal marking.
Liverpool had to score anyway, because of away goals. The first half still had time for more drama, a tangle between Gerrard and Costa, bringing both bookings. Balotelli tried to curl the ball in à la Kanu, Henderson headed wide and Skrtel body-checked Costa before Oliver called time. It was all over bar the recriminations. In the dressing room, Mourinho’s son held a flag declaring “we’re on our way to Wembley”.

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Times:

Chelsea are taken extra mile before Ivanovic gives them the nod
Chelsea 1 Liverpool 0 aet; Chelsea win 2-1 on agg

Oliver Kay

When the moment came, four minutes into extra time, José Mourinho was not watching. He was too busy remonstrating with Phil Dowd, the fourth official, to see an unmarked Branislav Ivanovic head the only goal of an extraordinary evening at Stamford Bridge, sending Chelsea through to the Capital One Cup final.
The action was compelling throughout — fast and furious, breathless, end to end — but, when a game is played in this aggressive spirit, at this pace, at this intensity, seemingly too much for a young referee, controversies abound. Michael Oliver missed two deliberate-looking stamps from Diego Costa, ignored a a strong Chelsea penalty appeal and failed to punish second bookable offences from Jordan Henderson and Lucas Leiva. That it remained 11 against 11 was almost as astounding as the fact that it was still 0-0 after 90 minutes.
Mourinho was furious that Oliver did not send off Lucas, already booked, for a cynical trip on Eden Hazard in the opening minutes of extra time. He was still venting his anger at Dowd, with his back turned, when Willian swung over a free kick that was headed past Simon Mignolet by Ivanovic — so often the man with a big goal on the big occasion.
On an evening that saw some wonderful creative contributions — from Philippe Coutinho, Raheem Sterling and Hazard, among others — and required some top-class goalkeeping from Thibaut Courtois and Simon Mignolet, it felt almost disappointing that the only goal came from something as rudimentary as a dead-ball kick. It was a goal that summed up the difference between the two teams, though, with a combination of big-match temperament, ruthlessness and aerial threat swinging the tie decisively in Chelsea’s favour.
Mourinho was not the only one whose attention had wandered when the net bulged. When Willian crossed, both Glen Johnson and Mario Balotelli fatefully lost track of Ivanovic. For all their undoubted improvement since the dark days of the autumn, Liverpool still lack reliability in both penalty areas. At least, once Daniel Sturridge finally returns from injury, they should rediscover some composure and conviction in front of goal.
It says something about Liverpool’s lack of potency in attack — as well as the heroics of Courtois in the Chelsea goal — that they created so many chances in the first leg but scored only once. Last night they found chances harder to come by, with Chelsea the more impressive team after half-time, but still Brendan Rodgers is entitled to claim a little solace in defeat.
Tactically, Rodgers, with a 3-4-1-2 formation, seemed to get it about right against what is, ultimately, a stronger team. Where the Liverpool manager was wrong was in suggesting that there would be “a wee bit of trepidation” in the Chelsea ranks after their implosion against Bradford City in the FA Cup; given that Mourinho made nine changes to his starting XI, with his big-name players returning, the hangover theory did not wash.
Intriguingly, Gary Cahill was among those who dropped out of the starting line-up, with Kurt Zouma preferred alongside John Terry. Cahill’s recent form has been patchy, but it seemed an uncharacteristic — if refreshing — gamble from Mourinho to select a 20-year-old central defender with just 137 minutes of Barclays Premier League football under his belt. Zouma was one of the central figures in the first half, Courtois another, which says something about Liverpool’s attacking threat, but above all the eye was drawn to Costa. It very often is, such is his tendency to position himself at the centre of any drama and controversy.
Certainly the home team should have had a penalty when Martin Skrtel mistimed a sliding challenge on Costa midway through the first half, but the Chelsea forward was fortunate still to be on the pitch at that stage after what looked like a deliberate stamp on Emre Can in the 12th minute.
Chelsea had another penalty appeal rejected when the ball deflected on to Leiva’s arm, while Oscar fizzed a couple of efforts narrowly wide from the edge of the penalty area, but the clearest opportunities from open play were at the other end, where Nemanja Matic struggled initially against Steven Gerrard and the lively Coutinho.
On 17 minutes Zouma misjudged a high ball, allowing Raheem Sterling to race clear. Sterling was about to shoot when the ball was stolen off his toe by Zouma. Defenders who excel at the recovery tackle are not always to be trusted, but, after the initial aberration, it was quite a rescue act.
Ten minutes later Gerrard picked out Alberto Moreno, who became the latest opponent to be thwarted by Courtois, spreading himself well. Moments later Coutinho bamboozled Cesc Fàbregas and Zouma and bore down on the goalkeeper, but he too was denied.
Chelsea lost Fàbregas to injury, but Ramires gave them more bite. Hazard waltzed past a couple of challenges on the edge of the penalty area and shot just wide. Mignolet did well to save a deflected shot from Costa and then even better to tackle the forward, who was through on goal.
Henderson, recipient of a soft yellow card in the first half, was lucky to escape a second for a cynical handball, but the errors and injustices were all over the place, with Costa getting away with a second stamp, this time on Skrtel.
With Liverpool needing a goal to avoid elimination on the away-goals rule, Rodgers sent on Balotelli, who, as it transpired, was among those culpable for Ivanovic’s goal. It was his sloppy pass that gave possession to Hazard, who was fouled by Lucas — like Henderson earlier, lucky to avoid a second yellow card. From Willian’s free kick, Ivanovic was left unmarked to score with the header.
Even then, there was time for an angry flare-up between Gerrard and Costa and for Sterling to set up Henderson, who somehow missed the target with a header. A Liverpool goal at that point would have forced a penalty shoot-out, but Chelsea held firm. When it matters, they very often do.

Full back’s Midas touch
Branislav Ivanovic has scored his share of important goals for Chelsea
April 2009 Liverpool 1 Chelsea 3 (Champions League quarter-final, first leg): Scores twice with headers to overturn an early deficit
May 2013 Chelsea 2 Benfica 1 (Europa League final): Header in extra time gives Chelsea the trophy
Feb 2014 Manchester City 0 Chelsea 1 (Barclays Premier League): On target to draw Chelsea level with City in the title race

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Mail:

Chelsea 1-0 Liverpool (AET, agg 2-1): Branislav Ivanovic heads Blues into the Capital One Cup final in fiery contest... but should Diego Costa have been sent off after stamping on TWO players?

By Martin Samuel

In real terms, it did not make a whole heap of difference when Branislav Ivanovic scored. Liverpool went into extra-time needing to score and, even after Chelsea’s goal, that remained the requirement.
It had been a goal to win, now it was a goal to earn a penalty shoot-out. Yet it wasn’t the mathematics that mattered, but the psychology. Liverpool had given it their best shot, a magnificent shot, a full-throttle, engines screaming, maximum G-force ride of a shot.
And still it wasn’t enough.
Chelsea were first to the punch. As they had been at Anfield, as they were once again. At no time in 210 minutes of cup football did Liverpool lead this tie. They had done enough to win, they had the chances, they played some lovely stuff — but Chelsea found a way and Liverpool did not. So that Ivanovic goal, as meaningless as it must have seemed to the neutrals, will have really hurt them.
Brendan Rodgers rallied his players in the extra-time break, he introduced Rickie Lambert from the bench and was still giving Jordan Henderson instructions until seconds before the restart. It was all for nothing. Liverpool looked done by then.
Henderson had already missed the chance to level five minutes after Chelsea scored. He had a free header from a cross by Raheem Sterling, who had bamboozled Ivanovic on the left. It went yards wide.
Ivanovic’s chance, by contrast, had goal labelled on it from the moment Willian’s free-kick met his head. It helped that Mario Balotelli had assumed marking duties in the middle. He carried them lightly and Liverpool suffered the consequence. Steven Gerrard will have to find another route to Wembley, then — starting with a detour to Bolton Wanderers in the FA Cup next Wednesday. If selected.
Still, this was an outstanding game, as good as the crazy Champions League tie between these teams in the days of Guus Hiddink. That had goals, eight of them, but this had action.
There were thrills, there were spills — Cesc Fabregas off injured after 50 minutes, having collided in a tackle with his captain, John Terry — and there were bellyaches, mostly around Diego Costa, who was twice accused of stamping on the foot on an opponent and later booked after a scuffle with Gerrard. The first offence looked more nefariously motivated than his second, on Martin Skrtel after half-time, but there may be repercussions if referee Michael Oliver says he did not see the initial incident with Emre Can and the FA get involved. That may be his best defence, temporary blindness. It would certainly explain some of his poorer calls.
As well as what looked like a red card for Costa, Oliver missed an even more blatant penalty that should have been awarded to Chelsea and could have sent off Henderson for deliberate handball having already booked him. It was as if the sheer ferocity of the game overpowered him. He started shakily and quickly lost control.
Referees’ chief Mike Riley says the performances of his officials this season are better than ever but one has to wonder the name of the company he engages to compile such surveys. Rose Tinted Inc, perhaps?
In the first quarter of this game, Oliver made two huge errors. That the person who should have got the penalty was also the player who was fortunate to avoid the card, hardly compensated. We cannot look to karma to clean up the messes of referees. Two wrongs do not make a right. This, and no doubt a few other points, were being made by Jose Mourinho at half-time – when he waited in the tunnel for Oliver to come out of his room. This may get him into trouble with the FA, too – although the level of Oliver’s performance should also have repercussions, unless Riley has his spectacles on again.
Start with the decision that could have seen Costa dismissed. The ball went out and Liverpool defender Emre Can with it. Lying on the floor he attempted to delay Costa’s attempt to get it back into play. This was clearly mischievous but hardly the most despicable offence and certainly did not warrant what happened next.
Costa, in attempting to clamber over him, stood on Can’s leg – in fact he made little attempt to avoid it – and then appeared to use it as a springboard. Whatever Can’s initial provocation, Costa could easily have been dismissed and his escalation provoked what the Americans call a bench clearer. Over came the Liverpool players to confront Costa – and Can appeared to recover quite quickly from writhing around once reinforcements arrived, too – up jumped the Chelsea coaching staff to defend their man. 
The utter redundancy of the fourth official could be seen in that moment. Unless given the power to directly intervene – this had all happened three feet in front of him after all – what is his purpose? While Oliver may have missed Costa’s stamp, it is hard to imagine Phil Dowd did also, yet his only role was as the mediator between the warring sides. Worse was to come.
Worse, because in the case of Costa’s stamp there will always be those who claim it happened accidentally; in the case of his penalty claim, there is no grey area. Costa cut inside Martin Skrtel and he tripped him over. No doubt this time, no mitigation. Oliver pointed and Jose Mourinho wheeled around to face his coaches satisfied, at last, that Chelsea’s run of poor treatment by referees in the penalty area had ended.
He turned to see that Oliver had not in fact awarded a penalty but a goal kick – his gesticulations as accurate as his judgements – and it is fair to say the Chelsea manager was displeased. One might argue that justice was done. But it was a strange justice, a warped justice, justice that relied upon a pile-up of incompetence, each error somehow balancing the last. Don’t try this at home, folks.
The wacky world of Oliver aside, plus unseemly scuffles that broke out as frequently as on a stag weekend in Prague, this was a fine game – frantic, feisty, fiery and open. Eden Hazard was brilliant, so was Sterling, but the best chances fell largely to Liverpool. Chelsea had the bulk of possession, yet Liverpool often looked likelier to score – Sterling and Philippe Coutinho again causing Chelsea problems with their pace.
Gary Cahill had paid the price for the capitulation against Bradford City at the weekend and was dropped to the bench, replaced by Kurt Zouma, but Liverpool remained dangerous. In the 17th minute, Zouma got too tight, missed his header and Sterling tore through on goal. He beat John Terry but the old stager held him up sufficiently to allow Zouma to recover and make amends with a quite superb tackle.
Ten minutes later – and in the middle of the standard disparaging chorus about that slip and its consequences –Gerrard played a simply wonderful pass into Alberto Moreno on the left whose low shot forced a fine save from Thiubaut Courtois. Just three minutes later, a great run by Coutinho split Chelsea’s defence before Courtois saved again. Chelsea had more of it in the second-half when Hazard and Costa came close, but Liverpool will wonder how it is not them walking out at Wembley on March 1. They will surely win a trophy under Rodgers one day – but before you start, you’ve got to finish.

CHELSEA: Courtois 7.5, Ivanovic 6.5, Zouma 6, Terry 6.5, Luis 6 (Azpilicueta 78), Fabregas 6 (Ramires 50), Matic 6, Willian 7 (Drogba 119), Oscar 6.5, Hazard 8, Costa 7.5.
Subs not used: Cech, Ake, Drogba, Remy, Cahill.
Booked: Terry, Ivanovic, Costa, Oscar
Goal: Ivanovic 94
Manager: Jose Mourinho 7

LIVERPOOL: Mignolet 7.5, Can 6, Skrtel 7, Sakho 6.5 (Johnson 57), Markovic 6 (Balotelli 70), Henderson 7, Lucas 7.5, Moreno 7 (Lambert 105), Coutinho 8, Gerrard 6, Sterling 7.5.
Subs not used: Ward, Lovren, Lallana, Allen.
Booked: Henderson, Lucas, Gerrard, Can, Skrtel
Manager: Brendan Rodgers 7
Referee Michael Oliver (Northumberland)

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Mirror:

Chelsea 1-0 Liverpool: Branislav Ivanovic heads home extra-time winner to send Blues to Wembley

Dave Kidd

A breathtaking 90 minutes could no separate the two teams but the big defender headed home from a free-kick to give Jose Mourinho the bragging rights
After two hours of frenzied, lock-up-your-daughters football, Jose Mourinho was hardly in celebratory mood.
His side had ended a godforsaken week by heading to Wembley for the Capital One Cup Final but the Chelsea boss was fuming at Brendan Rodgers, referee Michael Oliver and, especially, Sky Sports pundit Jamie Redknapp.
And then Mourinho claimed that Branislav Ivanovic’s blood-filled boot should be displayed in the Chelsea Academy as testament to the brutal nature of this victory, after the Serbian defender had headed an extra-time winner.
Here you are kids, this is how you win a semi-final.
This was a match often dominated by Diego Costa, who might have been sent off for two separate stamping incidents, was denied a blatant penalty and epitomised Chelsea’s over-my-dead-body spirit with a menacing display.
This was some way for Mourinho’s men to ease memories of Saturday’s stunning FA Cup defeat by Bradford. It was a crash-bang-wallop match brimming with raw hostility, with the speedometer set to ‘breakneck’.
Liverpool were the better team over two legs, yet Mourinho now has the chance to win the first trophy of his second coming at Stamford Bridge.
He’d probably prefer the final to go to extra-time too because - like Phil Brown, only with medals – the old show-off seemed to love the theatre of giving an open-air team talk, as he knelt to deliver his instructions with his players circling him after 90 goalless minutes.
Afterwards he carpeted Redknapp and Rodgers for criticising Costa, and Oliver for failing to award a penalty. The dark conspiracy theories of a media bias against Chelsea refuse to go away but the siege mentality appears to work.
Mourinho must have felt like a man sweeping up the debris from a meteorite strike since the Bradford defeat but his side were determined not to subside again.
It was clear that Costa had the mark of the beast on him from the start and he won a shuddering shoulder-to-shoulder challenge on Emre Can before the flashpoint which threatened a night of pure naughtiness.
Can had tumbled by the touchline after a tussle with Costa, who responded with a stamp on the Liverpool player’s shin which would surely have earned a red had Michael Oliver spotted it.
Then it was Costa’s chance to suffer injustice as Martin Skrtel took his leg away for a stonewall penalty of Emperor Hadrian proportions.
Yet Skrtel reacted as if Costa had dived, Oliver was kidded and Chelsea - awarded an early spot-kick in the first leg - were denied one this time.
The Bridge was a bearpit, Steven Gerrard being taunted mercilessly on his first visit here since the April fall at Anfield which helped blow the title.
Yet the Liverpool skipper responded with class, picking out Alberto Moreno with a gem of a pass only for Thibaut Courtois to rush off his line and push away.
Liverpool were quicker, hungrier and never allowing Chelsea to settle.
Philippe Coutinho kippered Zouma with a turn and sprint, only for Courtois to save with his feet.
A dozy pass from Mamadou Sakho sparked the next eruption, when Lucas brought down Oscar, earning a booking, before Costa appeared to stamp on Skrtel after the whistle had blown.
Mourinho exchanged verbals with Liverpool assistant boss Colin Pascoe, then light shoves with Rodgers – ‘it was a big game, so The Chimp came out,’ said Rodgers, referencing his mind guru Dr Steve Peters.
Amid the mayhem, a little majesty from Eden Hazard, with a slalom run and a shot, whipped just wide.
Costa’s deflected shot saved by Mignolet’s legs, Gerrard testing Courtois, Mignolet denying Costa and Courtois saving at the feet of Sterling.
Henderson escaped a second yellow for a seemingly cynical handball, enraging Mourinho.
Rodgers chucked another Molotov into a riotous night by sending on Mario Balotelli, then Terry bulldozed Sterling and Gerrard blazed into the top tier of The Shed.
Mourinho gave his kneeling team talk, with his players encircling him.
And within three minutes, Willian swung in a free-kick from the right and Ivanovic, who’d been hobbling with his wounded foot, leapt to head home.
There was still time for Gerrard and Costa to wrestle and rut one another, both earning yellow cards.
A fitting end to a glorious night of violence.

Team line-ups and Dave Kidd's ratings

CHELSEA: Courtois 8; Ivanovic 7, Zouma 6, Terry 7, Luis 6; Matic 7, Fabregas 5; Willian 7, Oscar 6, Hazard 7; Costa 7.

Subs used: Ramires (49mins, Fabregas), Azpilicueta (77mins, Luis) Drogba (119mins, Willian).
Subs not used: Cech, Cahill, Ake, Remy.

LIVERPOOL: Mignolet 7; Can 6, Skrtel 6, Sakho 5; Markovic 5, Henderson 6, Lucas 6, Moreno 7; Gerrard 7, Sterling 7, Coutinho 8.

Subs used: Johnson (56mins, Sakho), Balotelli (70mins, Markovic), Lambert (105mins, Moreno).
Subs not used: Ward, Lovren, Lallana, Allen.
REFEREE: Michael Oliver 5.

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Express:

Chelsea 1 - Liverpool 0 (AET): Ivanovic heads Blues into League Cup final

Joe Short

Ivanovic rose unmarked to convert Willian's free-kick after 94 goalless minutes at Stamford Bridge.
Diego Costa twice spurned a chance to net the winner, while Alberto Moreno saw Liverpool's best effort palmed away by Thibaut Courtois.
The result sees Chelsea safely into March's final at Wembley against either Tottenham or Sheffield United, who play tomorrow night.
Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers named an unchanged XI that drew 1-1 with Chelsea in the first leg at Anfield last week, while Jose Mourinho opted to keep Kurt Zouma in his back four to cope with Raheem Sterling's pace.
And the game was uglied early on by a nasty stamp from Diego Costa on Lazar Markovic that went unnoticed by the referee.
The incident set the tone for a fiery opening that truly ignited when Martin Skrtel upended Costa in the box - only for referee Michael Oliver to wave away the Spaniard's theatrical protests.
Courtois was called upon moments later to superbly block Moreno's one-on-one effort from the left, before denying Philippe Coutinho with an outstretched leg as Liverpool tore through Chelsea's defence.
In return Oscar clipped a free-kick low and wide of Simon Mignolet's right-hand post as the first half dwindled to an end.
It didn't take the second half long to raise the atmosphere inside Stamford Bridge, however, when Lucas dived in late on Oscar during a Blues break, which earned the Liverpool man a yellow. In the melee that once again followed, Costa appeared to leave his studs in on Skrtel as the referee blew up for the original foul.
Just before the hour mark Eden Hazard had the crowd on its feet when he waltzed down the Chelsea right, cut inside and fizzed a shot just wide.
Chelsea's tails were up and only a brilliant reaction save from Mignolet prevented Costa netting the opener before the Belgian proved Liverpool's hero once again when Henderson diverted the ball into Costa's path, only for Mignolet to tackle the striker and clear the danger.
Henderson was somewhat lucky not to receive a second yellow for hand ball before Lazar Markovic exited the field for Mario Balotelli.
The change made little difference to Liverpool's forward intentions but the tempo deflated towards 90 minutes as both sides prepared for extra time.
Chelsea knew heading into the additional 30 minutes a 0-0 draw would see them through on away goals.
But Mourinho's men didn't need it, as Ivanovic rose high to nod his team in front from a simple free kick. Liverpool's zonal marking let them down - Ivanovic running unmarked into the box before powering past the helpless Mignolet from six yards.
The goal forced Liverpool to attack and Henderson squandered a great opportunity to head a leveller 10 yards out but it proved a rare foray forward, as Chelsea held on to make it through to Wembley.

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Star:

Chelsea 1 - Liverpool 0 (agg 2-1 AET): Ivanovic sends Blues to Wembley
Paul Brown

Branislav Ivanovic eventually sent Chelsea through to the Capital One Cup final with an extra-time header from a Willian free kick.
But boy did they have to work for it against a Liverpool side who arrived with a gameplan which came so close to paying off.
Ivanovic won the tie but Diego Costa was the story of the game as he picked up where he left off after his tunnel row with Jordan Henderson in the first leg.
Denied a penalty for a foul by Martin Skrtel, he was also involved in three bust-ups. First he sparked a melee by treading on Emre Can.
Then he provoked Skrtel by appearing to stamp on the Reds defender’s ankle – and he ended his night with a booking for going head to head with Steven Gerrard.
It may have been ugly. But it was also a thriller, with Belgians Thibaut Courtois and Simon Mignolet in superb form as chances came and went at either end.
So after the “disgrace” of losing to Bradford, Chelsea avoided what would have been the disaster of going out of a second cup in a week here.
But it’s another trophy gone for Liverpool, who didn’t last long on their return to the Champions League.
And while they can be proud of the way they played, Brendan Rodgers has still never beaten Jose Mourinho, whose side will now face Tottenham or Sheffield United at Wembley.
Liverpool survived an early penalty scare when Willian’s shot cannoned off the arm of Lucas – and then the argy-bargy started.
After Emre Can went down under his challenge, Costa stepped on his leg right in front of the dug-outs, sparking a furious response from the Liverpool player and some of his team-mates.
Costa was at the heart of it again in the 23rd minute when Skrtel hacked him down on the edge of the box. There was definite contact but referee Michael Oliver waved away the appeals.
Courtois then did well to deny first Alberto Moreno and then Philippe Coutinho, who beat Zouma far too easily and should have scored.
And Chelsea suffered a huge blow when Cesc Fabregas limped off just after half time after injuring himself going into the same tackle as John Terry.
Soon after that the handbags came out again. Lucas was booked for hacking down Oscar and Costa was then involved in another ugly incident.
He jumped a tackle by Skrtel and then trod on the defender’s ankle, with the Reds defender then aiming a kick at him in retaliation.
It was bad tempered and ugly, but there were chances at both ends when the sides decided to focus on playing football, with Hazard missing a great one.
Mignolet then pulled off a superb save to deny Costa, whose shot took a wicked deflection off Skrtel – and he did even better to deny the Blues striker moments later with a last-ditch tackle.
Henderson was then lucky to escape a second booking for deliberate handball after receiving a yellow card in the first half for a tug on Hazard’s shirt.
Then it was Terry’s turn to ride his luck. His tackle on Sterling was late and from behind, and it failed to win the ball, but it only earned him a booking.
When the goal finally came you could sense the relief around the ground. But they had to wait until the fourth minute of extra time for it to come.
Lucas, who had already been booked, brought down Hazard and Willian swung in the free kick for Ivanovic to head home unmarked from six yards.
But the drama wasn’t over as Henderson somehow headed wide a brilliant Sterling cross and Costa went head to head with Gerrard.