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By Martyn Herman
LONDON, April 15 (Reuters) – Chelsea reached the FA Cup
final for the 11th time with a comprehensive, if controversial,
5-1 thrashing of London rivals Tottenham Hotspur at Wembley on
Sunday.
Goals by Didier Drogba and Juan Mata either side of halftime
put Chelsea in command before Gareth Bale replied for Spurs but
Ramires, Frank Lampard and Florent Malouda struck again for the
Blues who will meet Liverpool in the final next month.
Mata’s goal in the 49th minute proved a major turning point
as his shot appeared to have been blocked before crossing the
line only for referee Martin Atkinson to award the goal.
In the end the decision did not prove decisive as Chelsea
ran out easy winners to give themselves a boost before hosting
Barcelona in the Champions League semi-finals on Wednesday.
The one worry for Chelsea was an injury to central defender
David Luiz who went off on a stretcher in the second half.
Chelsea, winners of the FA Cup in 2009 and 2010, took the
lead against the run of play in the 43rd minute when Drogba
controlled Lampard’s lofted pass, held off William Gallas and
thrashed an unstoppable shot past Carlo Cudicini, one of three
former Chelsea players wearing Spurs shirts.
Before that Tottenham had twice gone close to taking the
lead, once when John Terry blocked Rafael Van der Vaart’s
goalbound header on the line and then when Van der Vaart’s
swinging pass evaded Spurs striker Emmanuel Adebayor and Chelsea
keeper Petr Cech but bounced off the post.
Tottenham began the second half groggily and Mata could have
made it 2-0 with a low shot brilliantly saved by Cudicini.
Chelsea did not have to wait long to double their lead.
GREAT SAVE
Cudicini again made a great save to deny Drogba and when the
ball broke to Mata he fired goalwards. The ball appeared to be
blocked by the keeper and Terry who was prone on the turf.
To the astonishment of Cudicini, the Spurs players and even
Terry, the referee Martin Atkinson awarded the goal.
“I thought Mata’s strike hit me and didn’t go over, but the
linesman’s seen it and given it,” Terry said.
“I honestly don’t think it went over the line but the
linesman gave it and there’s nothing we can do about that.
“Spurs are one of the best sides in the league. It was a
great performance and a great result.”
Tottenham’s goal also had a tinge of controversy.
Scott Parker put Adebayor through on goal and when he pushed
the ball past Cech he was sent tumbling by the keeper. However,
Cech escaped any punishment as Bale followed up to score into an
empty net.
Tottenham pressed forward but were dealt another blow after
77 minutes when Ramires got behind Benoit Assou-Ekotto and
finished coolly past Cudicini.
Lampard’s long-range free kick past Cudicini sent Spurs fans
streaming for the exits and Malouda completed the party for
Chelsea with a tap-in fifth.
With a Cup final booked on May 5, Chelsea now face a massive
week as they take on Barcelona in the first leg of their
Champions League semi-final before a Premier League clash with
Arsenal next weekend.
For Tottenham, a season that offered so much promise is
crumbling before their eyes and they are left with the sole aim
of trying to secure a top-four finish in the league.
(Editing by Alison Wildey)
