It was Fernandez who led the Blues out as captain in Reece James’ absence for Sunday’s FA Cup semi-final, and it was also the midfielder who headed home the only goal of the game to book our place in the final.

Not for the first time, Enzo put in an impressive performance in a high-profile game, linking our attack with the midfield in an advanced role, ahead of Moises Caicedo and Romeo Lavia in the deeper central positions

Our No.8 netted his 13th goal of the season in all competitions – second only to Joao Pedro for Chelsea – as he continued to demonstrate what a dangerous presence he can be in the opposition box.

‘It's something we rely on a lot, that's why he's changed position a lot over the last few years,’ McFarlane reflected.

‘He's played deeper, he's played as a 10, he's moved about, but I think he's such a threat in the box that the higher up you play him – and he can drop down and he can drift – but the higher up you play him, he can really cause opponents problems in that left half-space and attacking the back stick.’

That was exactly what happened at Wembley on Sunday, as he drove into space to get between the defenders with a late run, perfectly timed to meet Neto’s delivery.

It is something we have seen him do in a Chelsea shirt on a number of occasions – including when McFarlane was previously sat in the dugout away at Manchester City in January – even if our interim head coach was quick to point out that Fernandez brings more than goals to the team.

‘I said to him at the end: "You like scoring at the back post for me!" and he just laughed,’ Calum added.

‘He does that really well; he's done it all year. It's one of his biggest attributes that when you attack down the right, the timing of his runs, his ability to get good distance and height on his jump, and his heading technique is really good.

‘He's a winner – he's got so much talent, he's got so much fire. He's massive for this group and the best thing about Enzo is that he can do a bit of everything, but when it gets tough, you see the fight in him.

‘You see him driving the group on, you see him making tackles, you see him fighting for every loose ball. So he was exceptional and deserved his man of the match award.’

McFarlane then discussed his defensive line against Leeds, highlighting the important role of Tosin in countering the Yorkshire side’s aerial threat, after he got the nod over Hato to partner Trevoh Chalobah at the back.

‘It was one of the most difficult decisions in the preparation for this game, because Jorrel Hato has been probably our best player over the last five or six games.

‘But I decided to go with Tosin, mainly down to the Dominic Calvert-Lewin threat, and Tosin probably being the best match-up to defend that. Also set pieces are a massive part of their game.

‘Tosin's a great leader, a great character, but I fully trust Jorrel and Jorrel could have played in this game, as could Wesley Fofana. So you make decisions as a manager and you hope you get them right, and I thought Tosin was exceptional.’