Leeds United’s hopes of winning their first game against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge in 27 years suffered a rude shock on Wednesday night.
The away side went into the break 1-0 up through a Tarik Muharemovic goal, and Brenden Aaronson doubled their lead early in the second half.
Chelsea produced a stunning second-half performance, scoring six times to book their place in the FA Cup fourth-round draw, while Leeds were dumped out of the competition following a chaotic 6-3 defeat.
But Leeds debutant Michael Zetterer’s reputation is in tatters after the Stamford Bridge showdown, and the German will want to forget this evening quickly.
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Former Leeds star hammers Michael Zetterer
Zetterer was at fault in three of Chelsea’s six goals and could have done better in one more as Leeds crashed out of the tournament.
The defending wasn’t great, but the German goalkeeper was shocking between the sticks, and former Leeds defender Jon Newsome could not believe what he was seeing.
He stressed that the goalkeeper should have done better for Palmer’s second goal and insisted that he was too soft for Chelsea’s third and fourth goals.
Newsome said on BBC Radio Leeds: “I think you have got to be looking at your goalkeeper there.
“Not great by Leeds; they allow Rogers to get a little flick around the corner, and nobody tracks him.
“It’s not even gone in the far corner, has it? Maybe he was a little bit unsighted, and you can give him the benefit of the doubt, but I think the keeper has to do better than that.”
On Chelsea’s third goal, he added: “It seems a very, very soft finish to end in the back of the net.”
After Chelsea’s fourth goal, the former Leeds defender said: “That’s way too easy, isn’t it? Straight through the keeper.
Newsome added after Chelsea’s fifth goal: “This is another poor goal, isn’t it.
“A poor goal to concede, where there was too much time, too much space. He [Morgan Rogers] flashes it across the goal; the keeper [Michael Zetterer] goes down, not sure if he gets a hand on it, but it’s another one that they will be disappointed at.”
Zetterer is unlikely to play for a while
With Leeds out of the EFL Cup, the Whites do not have any cup commitments until January, when they will begin their FA Cup campaign.
After Zetterer’s performance at Chelsea, there is no chance he gets a look in for any Premier League game unless James Trafford picks up an injury.
The gulf in quality between Leeds’ first-choice and back-up goalkeeper is too big for comfort, and the Whites cannot afford for Trafford to sustain any knocks or injuries.
Zetterer will hope that he is better prepared if and when he gets his next chance in a Leeds shirt.
