Chelsea Crush Port Vale 7-0 to Storm Into FA Cup Semi-Finals

Chelsea produced a devastating attacking display on Saturday, thrashing League One’s bottom club Port Vale 7-0 at Stamford Bridge to book their place in the FA Cup semi-finals.

The Premier League side wasted no time asserting dominance as Jorrel Hato opened the scoring early, hammering home a loose ball from a corner past goalkeeper Joe Gauci. João Pedro then doubled the lead after being set up by Pedro Neto.

Cole Palmer added a third before half-time, slotting in the rebound after Malo Gusto’s shot was parried into his path.

Chelsea continued their onslaught after the restart. Tosin Adarabioyo headed home a fourth from Gusto’s cross, and Andrey Santos nodded in from a corner to make it five.

Estêvão, who had twice hit the woodwork, finally found the net with a simple tap-in before Alejandro Garnacho completed the rout from the penalty spot after being fouled inside the box.

The victory extends Chelsea’s remarkable unbeaten run in FA Cup ties against lower-league opponents to 38 matches, dating back to the 2015/16 season. It also marked their seventh consecutive quarter-final win since losing to Everton in 2016.

Port Vale, who had reached the last eight for the first time since the 1953/54 season after knocking out Premier League Sunderland, were simply outclassed on the day.

Chelsea now look ahead to a Wembley semi-final, while Port Vale return to their battle against relegation from League One, having won only seven of their 38 league matches this season.