Xabi Alonso blames himself! Chelsea boss admits he made it 'too difficult' for Blues stars after chaotic nine-goal thriller against Leeds United

The Blues initially struggled after Alonso made nine changes from their weekend defeat against Arsenal. Leeds capitalised on a disjointed Chelsea display, taking a 1-0 lead into the break through Tarik Muharemovic before Brenden Aaronson doubled the visitors' advantage shortly after the restart.

Facing a shock Carabao Cup exit, Alonso introduced four half-time substitutes. The change in momentum was instant as Cole Palmer converted a penalty and added a second within two minutes to level the tie. Pedro Neto then struck to complete a remarkable six-minute turnaround, before Danny Welbeck extended the lead to 4-2 following an assist from Morgan Rogers.

Dominic Calvert-Lewin briefly gave Leeds hope, but Valentin Barco’s first Chelsea goal and a late second from Welbeck sealed a frantic 6-3 victory. Rogers proved instrumental off the bench, providing three assists during the second-half blitz.

Speaking after the match, Alonso refused to criticise his fringe players and instead pointed the finger squarely at himself. The Spaniard acknowledged that heavily rotating his starting XI left the team vulnerable.

"I take responsibility," the former Bayer Leverkusen boss said after the game. "No player to blame, it’s a decision that we took. First half things were not going the way we wanted. When you do not have time to work [with the squad players], it’s difficult to compete at this level. We need to analyse, but happy that we are going through, happy with the reaction.”

He added: "I will have a deeper assessment about how I can help players that aren’t playing that much to have a better impact, to have a better feeling.

"Today it was difficult for them. Maybe I made it too difficult. But you need to react and take decisions. The impact was good from the players that came on. I need to take my own blame and my own responsibility."

The chaotic nature of the victory raises immediate questions about Chelsea's squad depth. Despite integrating 10 first-team signings during the transfer window, the Blues' second string looked fragile and defensively brittle against Leeds.

When pressed on whether the performance highlighted a lack of reliable backup options, Alonso dismissed the notion. "I prefer not to take that cynical way," he insisted. "I know I probably haven’t taken the right decisions for them to show their best levels. It’s something I will analyse and learn from."

Chelsea join Bournemouth, Crystal Palace, Bradford City, Sunderland, and Newcastle in the Carabao Cup fourth round. The remaining third-round ties will conclude next week as teams battle for the final spots in the last 16.

The Blues will discover their next opponents when the draw takes place next Wednesday night, following the conclusion of Manchester United's clash with Brighton. In the meantime, Alonso must figure out how to balance his squad effectively as the domestic schedule intensifies.