Cardiff City 1-3 Chelsea: Alejandro Garnacho brace sees Blues into Carabao Cup semi-finals
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Chelsea have qualified for the semi-final stages of the Carabao Cup after beating League One side Cardiff City on Tuesday night.
Enzo Maresca made 11 changes from the team that beat Everton at the weekend, with the likes of Facundo Bounanotte, Jorrel Hato, Tyrique George and Marc Guiu being handed rare starts.
However, after a disappointing first half, Guiu and George were replaced with Chelsea in searching for a winner in the second period.
Summer signing Alejandro Garnacho broke the deadlock, but Cardiff struck late as the Bluebirds thought they'd taken the game to extra time after David Turnbull's header.
Fellow substitute Pedro Neto gave Chelsea and even later lead before Garnacho netted his second to send the Blues into their 17th Carabao Cup semi-final.
Victory sees Chelsea become the first team into the last-four of the tournament, with Maresca now waiting to see who his side will face in the next stage.
The first half was a fairly uneventful affair, with the hosts having the better chances.
The League One side showed no fear, going head-to-head with Maresca's men and attempting to counter-attack rather than sit behind the ball.
Guiu had the best chance for the visitors, with Moises Caicedo picking out the Spaniard, who took a touch before striking low at goalkeeper Nathan Trott.
A nervous first half saw the sides, who are separated by two divisions, go into the break level.
The introduction of Garnacho and Joao Pedro at half-time saw Chelsea begin to dominate, and it was Garnacho who fired his team ahead.
Buonanotte found his national compatriot, who did well to poke a strike past Trott and give Chelsea the lead just before the hour mark.
With 15 minutes to go, Cardiff hit back as Perry Ng's left-footed cross found the onrushing Turnbull who headed past Filip Jorgensen.
However, the Welsh side were unable to hold onto their lead as Andrey Santos picked out Neto in the Cardiff box and his strike took a deflection before finding its way into the bottom corner.
The half-time substitutes combined in added time to seal the win, with Joao Pedro picking out Garnacho, whose smart finish saw Chelsea into the semi-final.
Chelsea have qualified for the semi-final stages of the Carabao Cup after beating League One side Cardiff City on Tuesday night.
Enzo Maresca made 11 changes from the team that beat Everton at the weekend, with the likes of Facundo Bounanotte, Jorrel Hato, Tyrique George and Marc Guiu being handed rare starts.
However, after a disappointing first half, Guiu and George were replaced with Chelsea in searching for a winner in the second period.
Summer signing Alejandro Garnacho broke the deadlock, but Cardiff struck late as the Bluebirds thought they'd taken the game to extra time after David Turnbull's header.
Fellow substitute Pedro Neto gave Chelsea and even later lead before Garnacho netted his second to send the Blues into their 17th Carabao Cup semi-final.
Victory sees Chelsea become the first team into the last-four of the tournament, with Maresca now waiting to see who his side will face in the next stage.
The first half was a fairly uneventful affair, with the hosts having the better chances.
The League One side showed no fear, going head-to-head with Maresca's men and attempting to counter-attack rather than sit behind the ball.
Guiu had the best chance for the visitors, with Moises Caicedo picking out the Spaniard, who took a touch before striking low at goalkeeper Nathan Trott.
A nervous first half saw the sides, who are separated by two divisions, go into the break level.
The introduction of Garnacho and Joao Pedro at half-time saw Chelsea begin to dominate, and it was Garnacho who fired his team ahead.
Buonanotte found his national compatriot, who did well to poke a strike past Trott and give Chelsea the lead just before the hour mark.
With 15 minutes to go, Cardiff hit back as Perry Ng's left-footed cross found the onrushing Turnbull who headed past Filip Jorgensen.
However, the Welsh side were unable to hold onto their lead as Andrey Santos picked out Neto in the Cardiff box and his strike took a deflection before finding its way into the bottom corner.
The half-time substitutes combined in added time to seal the win, with Joao Pedro picking out Garnacho, whose smart finish saw Chelsea into the semi-final.
