McFarlane hails ‘winner’ Fernandez after Chelsea reach FA Cup final

McFarlane hails ‘winner’ Fernandez after Chelsea reach FA Cup final

Chelsea interim boss Calum McFarlane hailed Enzo Fernandez’s leadership after sending Chelsea to the FA Cup final by scoring the only goal of the game against Leeds.

Fernandez headed in from close range to hand Chelsea a 1-0 win at Wembley, setting up a final clash with Manchester City.

The Argentine midfielder was suspended for two games by the club earlier this month after comments made in interviews in which he expressed doubt about his future.

But McFarlane lauded the way he has bounced back.

“He does that really well,” McFarlane said on Fernandez’s goal. “He’s done it all year. It’s one of his biggest attributes that when you attack down the right, his timing of his runs, his ability to actually get good distance and height on his jump and his heading technique is really good.

“He’s a winner. He’s got so much talent. He’s got so much fight. He’s massive for this group and the best thing about Enzo is that he can do a bit of everything, but when it gets tough, you see the fight in him You see him driving the group on, you see him making tackles, you see him fighting for every loose ball.

“So he was exceptional today and deserved his man of the match.”

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Fernandez took his goal tally for the season to 13 with his header against Leeds and McFarlane says his ability to get into the box and finish is hugely important for his side.

“It’s something we rely on a lot,” he said. “That’s why he’s changed position a lot over the last few years. He’s played deeper, he’s played as a 10, he’s moved about, but I think he’s such a threat in the box the higher up you play him and he can drop down and he can drift, but the higher up you play him, he can really, really cause opposition’s problems in that left half space and attack the back stick.”