As It Happened:
In the 20th minute, Fernandez poked the ball through for Sterling. The winger’s effort was well saved by Woodman in goal. In the 22nd minute, a great ball over the top by Fernandez played in Palmer. The midfielder’s shot went just wide of the left-hand upright. In the 49th minute, Browne’s shot from the edge of the box went well over the crossbar. In the 58th minute, Gusto whipped in a cross from the left flank and picked out Broja in the box. The striker headed the ball into the right side of the net to give Chelsea the lead. In the 60th minute, Mudryk’s cross found Broja in the box. His header from close range clipped the top of the crossbar and went behind for a goal kick. In the 65th minute, Palmer’s inswinging corner was headed into the near post by Silva to double the hosts’ lead. In the 69th minute, Sterling fired his free-kick into the top-left corner to give Chelsea three-goal lead. In the 85th minute, lovely link-up play between Sterling and Caicedo allowed Sterling to find space in the box. Sterling clipped the ball into the path of Fernandez for an easy tap-in to seal the win for the Blues.
The first half was extremely underwhelming. I read somewhere that it was “45 minutes of Colwill and Disasi passing the ball to each other.” Chelsea upped their intensity in the second half, and once the first goal went in, they always looked comfortable, and they looked like they were going to score more goals. The crossing on the night was sublime. Some of the crosses were inch-perfect, and Preston failed to deal with any of them. With passage to the 4th Round of the FA Cup booked, Chelsea now set their sights on the first leg of their semi-final against Boro on Tuesday.
Player Performances:
- Đorđe Petrović had a very comfortable evening in goal.
- Alfie Gilchrist did not disappoint on his full debut. He defended extremely well and looked extremely confident with the ball at his feet. He played a role in creating one of the few chances in the first half.
- Axel Disasi had a couple of nervy moments on the ball, but he was never really troubled defensively.
- Levi Colwill showcased his ability to carry the ball out when he does play in the heart of the defense. He produced a couple of great challenges in a solid display.
- Malo Gusto was alert defensively and pushed upfield when he had the chance. He delivered a peach of a cross to Broja to open the scoring.
- Moises Caicedo was solid in the midfield. He linked up well with Sterling in the build-up for the fourth goal.
- Enzo Fernandez cruised in the midfield. He was able to dictate the play from the middle of the park. He produced a fantastic ball over the top to set up Palmer in the first half. He got himself on the scoresheet late on.
- Raheem Sterling was a constant threat at the attacking end of the pitch. He emphatically found the back of the net with his free kick in the second half.
- Cole Palmer squandered the best chance of the first half. He was rather quiet and failed to create as many chances as Chelsea fans have become accustomed to. His corner set up Silva for the second goal.
- Mykhailo Mudryk nearly got an assist after Broja headed his cross against the cross against the crossbar. Overall, he had a quiet evening.
- Armando Broja’s frustrating outing turned into a decent one after he found the back of the net with a header. He nearly bagged a second goal minutes later.
- Thiago Silva scored minutes after coming on with a thumping header. He wasn’t troubled defensively.
- Noni Madueke was full of running.
- Conor Gallagher was a solid addition to the midfield after coming on.
- Deivid Washington attempted to direct Madueke’s wayward shot toward goal with a header, but he put it wide.
- Michael Golding came on to make his debut for the club.
