‘It was a really good night, hopefully we can create some more of them in the future. The boys were immense. They were disclipled, tactically smart and showed some real quality and composure to play. Everyone, literally, had to perform and absolutely empty the tank.

‘(It’s only half-time) but the players should still celebrate and applaud their effort. They’ve got to embrace it now. I keep saying, the next leg is a totally different one, a new challenge. We are ready for it, looking forward to it, and will embrace the challenge.’

Michael Carrick hailed Middlesbrough’s first-leg Carabao Cup semi-final advantage as the proudest moment of his managerial career so far

Hot property Hayden Hackney scored the game’s only goal in the first half (above)

Chelsea boss Mauricio Pochettino, meanwhile, said his side played OK but were punished by errors in both penalty areas. ‘We made some mistakes in the first half and we were punished for that,’ said the Argentine.

‘We created big chances but did not score, we were not clinical enough. It’s easy to explain. It’s only the first half of the tie and we are losing 1-0. In two weeks we have the second tie and we need to be positive, win the game and go to the final.’

Pochettino also downplayed a fracas in the away end that saw some Chelsea fans boo their own players, with half of the team not even going over to acknowledge the supporters for making the long journey on a Tuesday night just after Christmas.

‘Don’t be confused,’ said Pochettino. ‘Look, the fans were reacting with the Boro fans, not with our players. They are fantastic with us. Thiago (Silva) and some players were trying to calm our fans because there was a problem between fans. Be careful how you translate this.’

Chelsea boss Mauricio Pochettino, meanwhile, said his side played OK but were punished by errors in both penalty areas