For the fourth time in five seasons, Chelsea have successfully navigated all of the tests laid before us on our path to the FA Cup final. But while our passage to the showpiece match against Leicester City may have seemed straightforward, with 11 goals scored and just one conceded in our six wins, things haven’t always run smoothly for the Blues who have faced several tests of character along the way.
Third Round - Chelsea v Morecambe
In our first-ever meeting with Morecambe, the League Two side went close to taking an early lead at Stamford Bridge when Adam Phillips’ surprise shot from the right flank was alertly kept out by Kepa Arrizabalaga.
However, Mason Mount marked his 22nd birthday by firing home from 25 metres and Timo Werner bundled in from close range to put the Blues two goals up at the interval before second-half strikes by Callum Hudson-Odoi sealed an emphatic 4-0 victory over the Shrimps.
Fourth Round – Chelsea v Lutron Town
Mount captained Chelsea for the first time but it was Tammy Abraham who stole the show with a hat-trick against Luton at the Bridge. The striker struck twice in the first 17 minutes with a clinical right-footed shot and a towering header off a Reece James cross but the Championship side made a game of it after pulling one back through Jordan Clark on the hour.
Kepa made a brilliant save to prevent Harry Cornick from equalising in the second half before Abraham turned in Callum Hudson-Odoi’s low cross from close range to round off a 3-1 win against the Hatters.
Fifth Round – Barnsley v Chelsea
Barnsley were beaten 6-0 when they visited Stamford Bridge in the Carabao Cup last September but the Championship club gave the Blues a much tougher outing when we visited Oakwell in February.
Callum Brittain's point-blank effort forced an excellent reflex save from Kepa in a first half dominated by the home side but Abraham broke the deadlock in the 64th minute, turning in Reece James’ low cross from the right.
The striker also made a crucial intervention at the other end late on with a headed goal-line clearance to deny Michael Sollbauer as the Blues hung on for a narrow 1-0 win.
Quarter-finals – Chelsea v Sheffield United
Fortune favoured Chelsea early on in our quarter-final clash against Sheffield United as Ben Chilwell’s 24th minute effort took a crucial deflection off Oliver Norwood to give us the lead.
But with Aaron Ramsdale making two crucial saves to deny Christian Pulisic, the Blades kept the deficit to one and threatened to force extra-time in the late stages with David McGoldrick and Rhian Brewster firing narrowly wide and Kepa keeping out an Oliver McBurnie shot.
We ultimately held our nerve though and sealed the win when Hakim Ziyech volleyed in our second in stoppage time.
Semi-finals – Chelsea v Manchester City
Chelsea’s biggest test in this season’s FA Cup run came in the last four when we faced a Manchester City side who had all but wrapped up the Premier League title and were in the hunt for a historic quadruple after reaching the Champions League semi-finals and Carabao Cup final.
The Blues were the better side for much of the game, however, and having been denied an early goal because of a close offside decision, Hakim Ziyech gave us a deserved lead 10 minutes into the second half when he turned in Timo Werner’s low cross on a quick counter-attack.
Pulisic also had an effort disallowed for offside but with City unable to muster up any real threat on our goal in the closing minutes, we put an end to Pep Guardiola’s quadruple hopes and booked our place in another FA Cup final.