Chelsea suffered a heartbreaking defeat in the Carabao Cup final as a late header by Virgil van Dijk secured victory for Liverpool in extra time.

Raheem Sterling appeared to have given Chelsea the lead in the first half when he tapped in at the far post. However, Nicolas Jackson was deemed offside in the build-up, and the goal was disallowed after a lengthy VAR review.

A similar situation occurred on the hour mark when Van Dijk headed the ball past Djordje Petrovic, seemingly giving Liverpool the lead. However, the goal was disallowed after the referee consulted the pitchside monitor due to an offside infringement.

Despite numerous opportunities, the game remained goalless after 90 minutes, necessitating extra time once again in a cup final between Chelsea and Liverpool.

In extra time, Van Dijk scored another header past Djordje Petrovic, this time counting as the winning goal. Here’s how the Chelsea players performed at Wembley:

Djordje Petrovic – Made a crucial save to deny Luis Diaz early on and showed alertness against a dangerous Liverpool attack. Produced an outstanding save to keep out Harvey Elliott deep into extra time. Rating: 7.

Malik Gusto – Looked solid defensively against Diaz but lacked attacking threat. Rating: 6.

Axel Disasi – Started nervously but grew into the game. Rating: 6.

Levi Colwill – Made a crucial goal-saving block but had some careless moments in possession. Rating: 6.

Ben Chilwell – Battled well defensively but couldn’t contribute much going forward. Rating: 6.

Moises Caicedo – Gave away too many fouls and lacked composure on the ball. Rating: 5.

Enzo Fernandez – Quiet performance with sloppy moments on the ball. Looked tired towards the end. Rating: 5.

Cole Palmer – Missed a big chance but improved in the second half. Rating: 7.

Conor Gallagher – Impressive off the ball but missed key chances. Rating: 6.

Raheem Sterling – Unlucky not to score and was substituted in the second half. Rating: 6.

Nicolas Jackson – Had a quiet game with limited service. Rating: 6.

Substitutes:

Christopher Nkunku – Looked bright and tried to make things happen. 

Mykhailo Mudryk – Couldn’t make an impact.

Noni Madueke – Bright performance with some promising runs and solid defensive contributions.

Trevoh Chalobah – Came on too late to make a difference.