Estevao shone in the match, and Chelsea ruthlessly thrashed Port Vale, who could do little to stop the London side’s attack. Now, Chelsea must wait to see who their opponent will be in the semifinals.
It took Chelsea little more than 60 seconds to break the deadlock. An inswinging corner kick delivered by Pedro Neto landed in a crowded six-yard box, and Port Vale goalkeeper Joe Gauci could only punch the ball clear to Jorrel Hato, who fired a low shot past several defenders on the goal line.
Midway through the first half, the Blues doubled their lead. Neto was again the protagonist, slipping past full-back Liam Gordon to receive a through ball from Andrey Santos, and laid it off to Joao Pedro, who controlled, turned, and scored from close range.
Chelsea scored a third just before halftime. Malo Gusto burst into the Port Vale area with a late run and saw Gauci parry his powerful shot, but Cole Palmer was there to deflect the rebound toward Jordan Gabriel, which was credited as an own goal.
Estevao should have made it 4-0 for Chelsea early in the second half, after his fellow Brazilians Pedro and Santos combined at the edge of the area before setting up the winger, whose shot crashed against the outside of the post.
But Chelsea’s next goal was not long in coming, arriving in the 57th minute from a second corner kick, with a cross from Gusto that Tosin Adarabioyo headed into the back of the net.
Estevao again hit the post for a ruthless Chelsea, determined to extend the lead, and the Brazilian set up Santos from a corner for the home side to make it 5-0 with 20 minutes remaining.
When Estevao finally found the back of the net, the goal was disallowed for a late offside call. Hato spotted Alejandro Garnacho’s run into a dangerous area, and although Garnacho hit the post, Chelsea’s No. 41 slotted home the rebound before the referee’s whistle. However, a VAR review confirmed Estevao was in fact onside, and the goal was eventually awarded.
Chelsea still had time to make it 7-0 when Tyler Magloire brought down Garnacho, who stepped up to take the penalty and sent Gauci the wrong way to complete the scoring.
Chelsea Player Ratings
R. Sanchez: 6.7
J. Hato: 8.0
T. Adarabioyo: 8.6
W. Fofana: 7.6
M. Gusto: 7.4
A. Santos: 8.5
R. Lavia: 6.7
Estevao: 8.9
C. Palmer: 6.8
P. Neto: 7.4
J. Pedro: 7.7
The ratings were generated by Sofascore’s statistical engine.
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