The goalkeeper was once again the hero in the penalties on Tuesday night, as Chelsea edged past Southampton.
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Kepa Arrizabalaga and his love affair with penalty shootout continued on Tuesday night in the Carabao Cup. He played a significant role in helping Chelsea edge past Southampton. After the thrilling win, Kepa was pleased to be able to play his part for his team, as he felt that the two teams cancelled each other out before the shoot-out. The Spaniard was in fine form, making good saves during the 1-1 draw. He then tipped Theo Walcott’s effort onto the post in the decisive penalty shoot-out. Notably, this is not his first shootout success with Chelsea this season. Having also denied Aston Villa’s Marvelous Nakamba from the spot in the previous round of the competition and made two saves in the shoot-out to decide the UEFA Super Cup this season, it is fair to say that Kepa is the man for the shootout.
“I am confident, I feel good, I like the penalties so I am happy,” Kepa was quoted as saying by the club’s website. “I am happy to help the team when I have the opportunity so I am really happy to go into the next round.” However, the goalkeeper did admit it had been a difficult tie for the Blues before the shoot-out. Chelsea had to dig deep against a fellow Premier League side, who were leaving no stone unturned.
He felt that Southampton mirroring the formation contributed to the two teams largely cancelling each other out during the 90 minutes. “The game was so tough from the beginning. They played one v one across the pitch, we had a lot of problems to take the ball, to step in with the ball at our feet so we played long balls, they played long balls and it was a really difficult game, but it finished in the best way,” he added.
“We expected something like this. From the first round we have been playing against Premier League teams so we expected this. Cup games are a little bit like this, both teams wanted to win so maybe we did not defend a couple of set-pieces in the best way but finally we are in the next round.”
Chelsea will discover the next Carabao Cup opponents on Saturday for the quarter-finals, which will be played on 21st and 22nd December. “Now we have time until the next round, so we have time to focus on the Premier League and the Champions League,” explained Kepa. “We know December and January here in England are so hard but we have a big squad, a lot of players with quality, so we are ready.”
Meanwhile, Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel was all praise for goalkeeper Kepa. He made another stop in the shootout – his eighth in a Chelsea shirt – to help the Blues prevail on penalties for the third time this season. “He produces. He is full of confidence. He has this experience now with us, and he has done it again and again,” he added.
“Just because you win a penalty shoot-out, does not mean you will do it again. Full credit to him. It’s a special thing in football and we were again concentrated and calm. Kepa was a big part of that.”
