Chelsea boss Xabi Alonso admitted the Carabao Cup was the "least important competition" for his side after they were knocked out in the fourth round by Liverpool at Anfield.
The Blues drew 1-1 after 90 minutes before losing on penalties, with Wesley Fofana missing in sudden death as his effort sailed into the Kop. The defeat ends Chelsea's first chance of silverware this season, but Alonso appeared unfazed by the missed opportunity.
Alonso tells Chelsea to move on
Speaking after the match, Alonso said: "It's a small setback in this competition. It's probably the least important competition for us in the year, so we need to move on. And as soon as we leave Anfield, our focus is Saturday's Premier League [game]. This is the main and the most important thing."
Alonso never won the Carabao Cup during his playing days in England. Chelsea have lifted the trophy only five times, the last coming in 2015 under Jose Mourinho.
Performance improvement noted
Alonso is still seeking consistency as Chelsea boss after a strong start lost momentum. At the weekend, they suffered a rare home defeat to Tottenham, who secured only their second league win of the season.
Despite the cup exit, Alonso believed he got the response he wanted from his players. "Well for sure the outcome is not what we wanted. It is not what we expected before the game," he said. "You know once you reach the penalties, there's going to be a sad side. This is us in that case. But I would say that the game we have played to a very good competitive level, good performance. We showed an improvement, I would say. That's what we wanted."
