Chelsea survived an FA Cup upset to book their place in the fifth round at the KCOM Stadium, as they beat Hull City 2-1 on Saturday evening.
Hull City were hoping to reach the FA Cup fifth round for only the first time since 2018, where they were eventually beaten by Chelsea. The Blues on the other hand hoped to continue their pursuit of a ninth FA Cup, following a convincing 2-0 win over Nottingham Forest in the previous round.
Michy Batshuayi gave Chelsea the lead inside the opening six minutes, as the visitors got off to a rapid start. The ball fell nicely to him as he fired his shot goalbound, with a deflection lifting the ball above the goalkeeper and into the back of the net to put the Blues in control of the tie.
1-0! 驪驪驪@MBatshuayi #HULCHE pic.twitter.com/RPOxmZiMwT
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) January 25, 2020
MICHYYYYY YESSSSS AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAGA
— Nicolas (@BraveBatshuayi) January 25, 2020
Less than 6 minutes played and Batshuayi has given Chelsea the lead with their first shot of the game!#HULCHE pic.twitter.com/7EgR7xnMdQ
— 90min (@90min_Football) January 25, 2020
That was quick. Shame after a great start. #hcafc
— N_Whittingham (@N_Whittingham) January 25, 2020
Hull were on the back foot and struggling to contain the visitors, though goalkeeper George Long was doing well to keep the deficit down. The Tigers' shot stopper produced two very strong saves, keeping Ross Barkley and Mason Mount out to keep Chelsea's lead to just one goal.
George Long has been our best player by a mile so far. #HCAFC
— Alex Thurston (@althurstonsport) January 25, 2020
George Long is probably the best keeper outside the premiership #HULCHE #hcafc
— Marc Mead (@MarcMead3) January 25, 2020
Vital stops from Long and McKenzie as the Tigers look to keep the Blues at bay...
— Hull City (@HullCity) January 25, 2020
0-1 [34'] #HULCHE
With Hull mounting on the pressure and threatening to equalise, Chelsea found some vital breathing space when they made it 2-0. Barkley's free kick was excellently headed home by Fikayo Tomori, as the English defender gave the Blues the second goal they had been after since the start.
TOMORIIIIII!!!
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) January 25, 2020
0-2 ⚪️ [64'] #HULCHE pic.twitter.com/jMBQraxPAX
2-0 Chelsea. Tomori. Should be game over now. Chelsea score from a set piece shocker...#HULCHE
— Simon Johnson (@SJohnsonSport) January 25, 2020
FIKAYOOOOOOOO BEST ENGLISH DEFENDER
— ¥ (@CFCYagxn_) January 25, 2020
Yess Tomori 2-0 Let’s go
— Vivek | FL8 (@CFC_Vivek) January 25, 2020
Hull kept on going and managed to pull one back with 12 minutes to play, albeit with the help of a large deflection. Kamil Grosicki took the free kick having come off the bench, and a big deflection off Mateo Kovacic sent the ball into the net to set up a tense finish at the KCOM Stadium.
ONE BACK!!! COME ON!!!
— Hull City (@HullCity) January 25, 2020
1-2 [77'] #HULCHE #hcafc | #theTigers pic.twitter.com/VEqZeGIjlB
Yessss!
— James Lockwood (@EnfieldTiger) January 25, 2020
The fightback starts here #hcafc
They couldn't could they? Grosicki's deflected free-kick makes it 2-1.#HCAFC
— Stuart Rayner, Yorkshire Post (@sturayner) January 25, 2020
Nothing Caballero could do about that. Deflection.
— Yousaf (@Yousaf_S_1987) January 25, 2020
Hull are back at the KCOM Stadium in just three days, hosting Huddersfield midweek on Tuesday. Chelsea have a crucial match between third and fourth in the Premier League, when they make the trip to Leicester City next Saturday.
Source : 90min