Chelsea 1-0 Leeds United, FA Cup: Post-match reaction, ratings

TL;DR

Chelsea defeated Leeds United 1-0 in the FA Cup Semi Final, with Enzo Fernández scoring the only goal. The victory secures Chelsea's spot in the FA Cup final against Manchester City on May 16th.

Key points

Chelsea won 1-0 against Leeds United
Enzo Fernández scored the only goal
Chelsea reaches FA Cup final for sixth time in ten seasons
Next match is against Forest on May 4th
FA Cup final against Manchester City on May 16th

ChelseaLeeds UnitedManchester City

LONDON, ENGLAND - APRIL 26: Chelsea's Enzo Fernandez celebrates scoring his side's first goal during the Emirates FA Cup Semi Final match between Chelsea and Leeds United on April 26, 2026 in London, England. (Photo by Rob Newell - CameraSport via Getty Images) | CameraSport via Getty Images It was a somewhat shaky start for the Blues and Leeds United had a great early chance to take the lead, but thankfully Brendan Aaronson’s finish on the 1-v-1 counter lacked the quality to beat Robert Sánchez, who produced a solid kick save to preserve the game’s goalless status. Chelsea were starting to settle in by then, finding some joy by going long rather than always insisting on building from the back, and able to put together some pretty good passing moves on either flank. It was from one of those that we would take the lead, Pedro Neto picking out Enzo Fernández, who lost his man and nodded in expertly. The goal gave Chelsea the confidence to take control of proceedings, though we were unable to add to our lead before the halftime whistle. The teams traded excellent chances to score to begin the second half, with Anton Stach stinging the palms of an unsighted Sánchez and unable to get his shot away from inside the six at the end of a wonderfully flowing passing combination. But Leeds were dialing up their pressure and were starting to cause problems more consistently, both in and out of possession. Sánchez was called into critical action again as Calvert-Lewin found space for a header, as we started to sag back a bit too much, trying to see out the narrowest of wins. To our credit, we were able to reverse that trend for a while with about 15 minutes to go, before Leeds dialed things back up for their final push. But contrary to recent trends and expectations, we would preserve our clean sheet fairly comfortably, and reach our latest FA Cup final (sixth in the last ten seasons). Carefree.

Q&A

What was the final score of the Chelsea vs Leeds United FA Cup match?

Chelsea won the match 1-0 against Leeds United.

Who scored the winning goal for Chelsea in the FA Cup Semi Final?

Enzo Fernández scored the winning goal for Chelsea.

When is the FA Cup final match between Chelsea and Manchester City?

The FA Cup final is scheduled for May 16th.