Chelsea became the first team into the FA Cup semi-finals at Wembley when they comfortably beat Championship (second division) Coventry City 2-0 away on Saturday. Goals in each half by Didier Drogba and Alex made it six wins out of six under new manager Guus Hiddink. Chelsea were knocked out by Championship side Barnsley at the same stage last season but a repeat never looked likely.
Hiddink sent out a full-strength side despite the looming second leg of their Champions League last 16 tie with Juventus in Turin on Tuesday and though they looked dangerous from the start, they were gifted the opening goal in the 15th minute.
Ben Turner failed to get hold of his headed clearance of a long ball and Scott Dann then dithered and was muscled off the ball by Drogba. The Ivorian striker then went round keeper Kieran Westwood and did well to turn in his left-footed shot from a tightening angle. Coventry, seeking to reach the semi-finals for the first time since they won the Cup for the only time in 1987, struggled to build any pressure and it was no real surprise when they fell further behind after 72 minutes.
Alex and Drogba, who had both been off the pitch receiving treatment after a collision, came back on and immediately joined a counter-attack that ended with halftime substitute Ricardo Quaresma crossing for the Brazilian defender to sidefoot home. Chelsea enjoyed the added bonus of a first appearance since August for Michael Essien, who played the last 30 minutes having recovered from a knee ligament injury.
"We can be very satisfied with the win and the way we played," Hiddink told ITV. "I think we controlled the game very well and then made a beautiful goal to kill the game." The Dutchman, whose arrival appears to have given Drogba a new lease of life, said he was not surprised by the strikers turnaround from the moody figure he cut under Luiz Felipe Scolari. "Hes dangerous but hes good for the team as well," he said. "He can still improve and hes working on some special training sessions. He likes to do that and its paying off."
Comments
Comments are closed.