This year’s Carling Cup final will feature one of the two teams that played at the Millennium Stadium last year for the title- Chelsea. The other finalist last year, Arsenal, lost to bitter rivals Tottenham Hotspur, who will be making their first appearance in the final since 2002, when they lost to Blackburn Rovers.
This is Chelsea’s third Carling Cup final in four years, and the Blues had Joe Cole to thank for it. After beating Everton 2-1 in the first leg, Avram Grant’s side rode on the back of a goal from midfielder Cole to win the tie 3-1 on aggregate. A frantic search for Chelsea tickets will now begin for those eager to watch the second All London final in the history’s competition. Last year’s final between Arsenal and Chelsea was the first.
Tottenham drew 1-1 with Arsenal in the first leg at the Emirates stadium. Nobody would have predicted the result in the second leg, even with Emmanuel Eboue and Kolo Toure on AFCON duty. Spurs thrashed the Gunners 5-1, with goals from Jenas, Keane, Lennon and Malbranque. Nicolas Bendtner headed into his own goal, and the Gunners scored a consolation goal through Emmanuel Adebayor, whose Togo team has not qualified to play in the tournament in Ghana.