Ethan Ampadu rues Leeds United's first-half display after loss to Chelsea and addresses team talk controversy
Ethan Ampadu reflects on Leeds United’s 1-0 FA Cup semi-final defeat to Chelsea
Ethan Ampadu admitted Leeds United could not afford to start their FA Cup semi-final against Chelsea in the sluggish manner they did.
Daniel Farke’s side crawled out of the traps at Wembley, playing with none of the swagger they had shown in previous Premier League fixtures.
Enzo Fernandez punished the Whites, heading home from a Pedro Neto cross after 23 minutes. Leeds were much-improved after the break but could not turn the tide and succumbed to a 1-0 defeat.
Ethan Ampadu assesses Leeds United’s Wembley heartbreak
Ampadu told TNT Sports: “If we’re brutally honest, obviously we’re disappointed but we weren’t good enough in the first half.
“When you play against a good team, they obviously have, maybe not too many great chances, but they’re capable of putting the ball in the back of the net.
“Obviously, it’s difficult from there. We pushed and showed more resilience in the second half but ultimately you can’t start a game maybe as nervous as we did. It might not be nerves but [it was] not to our standards.
“I don’t want to put it down to that (being overwhelmed by the occasion) because before the game, we said we prepared, which we were. No excuses, sometimes you’re not just not at it and we weren’t in the first half.”
When asked what message was put across by manager Daniel Farke after a lacklustre opening 45 minutes, Ampadu said: “Go back to being ourselves - free the shackles, play with that freedom, play as we have been in the last few weeks. We pushed and we pushed but we just couldn’t manage to get the equaliser.”
Team talk interruption
In the second half, Chelsea goalkeeper Robert Sanchez went down and the Blues’ interim boss Calum McFarlane used the opportunity to speak to his players.
Ampadu, a former Chelsea player, drew the ire of his old club when he went over to stand among the Blues players receiving instructions.
He said: “It’s happened to us a couple of times where we’ve had a bit of momentum and the ‘keeper’s gone down. I thought, this time, go over and just stand next to what they’re saying. If they’re going to do a little bit to create some different tactics, I’m going to go over and get a drink.”
Quest for Premier League survival
Leeds must put the disappointment behind them quickly, with four league games left to play and safety not yet secured.
The survival mission will resume on Friday (May 1), when already-relegated Burnley are due to visit Elland Road.
Ampadu said: “We have confidence that every game we go into, we are going to score goals, we are going to try and create to win the game, but we didn’t today. It’s a good lesson for all of us that we just have to be ourselves in every single game.
“Play a game, learn, look at what you did well and bounce back into the next one. This is going to be no different. We know there’s four games left in the season, we have to give absolutely everything to achieve what we want to achieve.”