Chelsea defeated Palace to set up the Liverpool cup final
Key takeaways:
- Chelsea set up a second Wembley encounter with Liverpool this season as they crushed Crystal Palace's stubborn defense to reach the FA Cup final.
- Chelsea vs. Liverpool again in the finals.
Liverpool lifted the Carabao Cup final on penalties in February. Still, Chelsea will have the opportunity for vengeance as second-half goals from Ruben Loftus-Cheek, and Mason Mount highlighted their dominance.
Unlike the first semi-final between Liverpool and Manchester City, chances were at a tip till substitute Loftus-Cheek, on for the wounded Mateo Kovacic, broke the deadlock with a deflected attempt after 65 minutes.
Palace had their chances, Chelsea keeper Edouard Mendy saving well from Cheikhou Kouyate in the first half, but they could not reach back after Mount slipped a low finish past Jack Butland with 14 minutes remaining.
Chelsea has reached their third consecutive FA Cup final and will now expect to change recent history after losing the last two to Arsenal and Leicester City.
Since his appointment, manager Thomas Tuchel has a fantastic record in achieving domestic and European finals, and Chelsea will be tough competition for Liverpool. They are in quest of a historic quadruple.
Chelsea had to work hard to succeed, but they demonstrated patience, organization, and quality to take power after half-time.
By the end, Chelsea was in complete command. There was only some charity in front of the goal from substitute Romelu Lukaku, who hit the post when it seemed easier to score. The otherwise fantastic Timo Werner stopped a scoreline that would have been harsh on Palace.
Chelsea may be covered by turmoil amid the boycotts against owner Roman Abramovich. Still, a winning mentality continues, and the players showed decent healing powers following the blow of their Champions League quarter-final elimination by Real Madrid.