Alonso has won three of his four matches for Chelsea, losing only to Arsenal in the week three Premier League fixture at the Emirates.
By Kehinde Okeowo
Chelsea manager Xabi Alonso has taken responsibility for the poor first-half display by his team during the third-round Carling Cup fixture played against Leeds on Wednesday night.
The Spanish tactician admitted he was at fault while addressing journalists after the match played at Stamford Bridge.
Chelsea fought back from two goals down to beat Leeds in a nine-goal Carabao Cup thriller, as substitutes Cole Palmer, Morgan Rogers and Pedro Neto inspired a remarkable turnaround.
Defender Tarik Muharemović headed the opener in the third-round tie as Leeds dominated the first half, before Brenden Aaronson doubled the visitors’ lead shortly after the break.
However, Blues manager Alonso’s changes at the start of the second half ultimately transformed the contest.
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Palmer scored from the penalty spot and curled home from the edge of the area in a pivotal two-minute spell before Neto added a third.
Rogers also played a key role, helping to create four goals from open play, with Danny Welbeck and Valentin Barco both benefiting, although Leeds got a third goal through Dominic Calvert-Lewin in the 75th minute.
Welbeck deflected Barco’s wayward strike into the net in stoppage time to add a sixth Chelsea goal, as Leeds were swept away.
Speaking after the match on going 2-0 down to Leeds, Alonso absolved his players and took full responsibility for what transpired on the pitch.
”I need to take my own blame and my own responsibility for the things that happened.”
”I need to be able to help them better for sure, so they are not responsible,” Alonso said via @peterrutzler.
