• Liverpool 1-2 Chelsea, FA Cup

Chelsea clinch cup amid Carroll controversy

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Liverpool striker Andy Carroll's late header was controversially adjudged not to have crossed the line as Chelsea sealed a 2-1 triumph in the FA Cup final at Wembley.

Carroll, who found the target earlier in the match after being introduced from the bench, thought he had equalised when he met Luis Suarez's back-post cross, but the strike was not given - and so goals from Ramires and Didier Drogba won the day for Chelsea.

Liverpool were lacklustre until the introduction of Carroll, who completely altered the course of the game and was unlucky not to end up on the winning side. However, his contribution was too little, too late as Chelsea bagged a victory that boosts interim boss Roberto Di Matteo's chances of landing the full-time manager's job.

Drogba was preferred up front to Fernando Torres for Chelsea, while Liverpool's Craig Bellamy got the nod ahead of Carroll. Chelsea also recalled Frank Lampard, Juan Mata and Ashley Cole, while Liverpool brought back Steven Gerrard, Suarez, Jose Reina and Daniel Agger, with Jamie Carragher missing out.

Chelsea looked the more comfortable with the occasion in the early stages, and their positive start was rewarded with the opening goal after ten minutes as, following a misplaced pass from Jay Spearing, Ramires burst into the box from midfield and found the net with a near-post strike that Pepe Reina should have done far better with.

Liverpool, initially roused by falling a goal behind, almost produced an instant response - but Craig Bellamy's goalbound volley was blocked by Branislav Ivanovic, whose poor defensive header presented the chance to the Welsh forward.

However, that opportunity was not the catalyst for Liverpool's resurgence, and instead both teams were guilty of tamely surrendering possession - the Reds more so - in a claustrophobic midfield area. Dalglish's side were unable to get their two main attacking threats - Gerrard and Suarez - on the ball in dangerous areas, with the skipper sinking into deep positions to try and get himself on the ball.

Having created next to nothing in the first half, Dalglish reshuffled his pack, Bellamy moving up front to give Suarez some much-needed support. But although Liverpool looked a little more lively early in the second period, they soon found themselves two goals in arrears as Drogba became the first man to score in four different FA Cup finals.

His left-footed strike from inside the penalty area drifted between Martin Skrtel's legs and rolled in at the near post, with Reina unable to get even a finger to it. There had been nothing to suggest that a listless Liverpool side would mount a fightback, yet substitute Carroll gave the Reds some hope by halving the deficit.

Stewart Downing charged down Jose Bosingwa's attempted clearance and the ball bounced into the path of Carroll, who turned Terry inside the area before powering into the roof of the net from 12 yards. Carroll was reshaping the game, with Liverpool looking far more comfortable when given the safe option of looking to target the England international aerially - and Chelsea looking increasingly tired.

Carroll, harking back to the sort of form that convinced Liverpool to pay Newcastle £35 million for his services, next forced Petr Cech to conjure a world-class save that, in the eyes of the linesman at least, stopped the ball from crossing the line. Irate Liverpool players congregated around the assistant referee as their chances of victory, and salvaging a disappointing season, slipped away.

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