The 6-3 defeat at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday night will continue to rankle Leeds United fans for a while, given the opportunity the team had at the start of the second half.
Leeds were 2-0 up early in the second half before Chelsea scored three goals in the next 17 minutes and added three more before the end of the game to hammer the Whites.
Daniel Farke conceded that debutant goalkeeper Michael Zetterer had a nightmare first outing in a Leeds shirt, and the nature of the defeat was concerning.
Leeds fans are still struggling to understand how the side capitulated after putting themselves in such a strong position in their EFL Cup third-round tie. At the same time, one player drew heavy criticism for his conduct during the defeat.
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James Trafford faces backlash after the Chelsea defeat
The club’s record signing was an unused substitute against Chelsea, and Zetterer’s performance means the club are desperate to ensure Trafford remains fit for the rest of the season.
However, the Leeds goalkeeper faced criticism after the final whistle for his conduct following the heavy defeat at Stamford Bridge.
He was spotted laughing and joking with former Manchester City teammates Cole Palmer and Morgan Rogers after the game, a sight that clearly did not go down well with sections of the Leeds fanbase.
“What a game of football we’ve just seen!” 🤯
Conor Coady reacts to Chelsea’s 6-3 win over Leeds 🔊 pic.twitter.com/arGmTIQwRz
— Sky Sports Football (@SkyFootball) September 9, 2026
Chelsea remain major rivals, and a section of the Leeds supporters were not pleased to see the club’s record signing palling around with two Blues stars after such a heavy defeat.
Some of the frustration boiled over online, and the goalkeeper faced some backlash from the Leeds supporters who were unhappy after a poor defeat in West London.
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Leeds supporters’ anger is natural, but Trafford did nothing wrong
The supporters were not in a good mood after just seeing Leeds concede six goals in one half to crash out of the EFL Cup at the hands of Chelsea.
They were dreaming of watching Leeds win their first game at Stamford Bridge in 27 years when Brenden Aaronson scored the second goal early in the second half.
The manner of the defeat and the result contributed to a horrible mood in the fanbase, and then watching Trafford joking around with two Chelsea stars obviously infuriated some fans online.
Trafford did nothing wrong in catching up with two old teammates and friends and sharing a joke with them at the end of a game, where he was an unused substitute.
In all walks of life, people would do the same, and the online reaction from a section of the Leeds supporters was justified but also not a big deal.
Trafford will be in goal when Leeds host Newcastle United at Elland Road on Monday night and given Zetterer’s performance, the Whites fans have to supporter the former Manchester City man more vociferously.
Oh for goodness sake give it a rest and stop poking the bear.
Leeds United now have in Trafford what may be the future England goalie. We need him.
So he had a chat and a few words with past team mates, they may have pulled his leg about the score. What do you want him to do have a strop and throw his toys out of the pram?
They may not have even considered talking about the score line, so unless you where involved in the chat stop making mountains out of mole hills. It’s both sets of fans that carry on this rivalry, if truth be told most of us are too old to do anything about it and the youngsters probably do not even consider there is a rivalry. Only the press keep that fuelling that fire.