Chelsea cruised to victory in their EFL Cup Third Round tie as Charly Musonda, one of four debutants at Stamford Bridge, marked the occasion with his first goal in their 5-1 win over Nottingham Forest.
The comfortable win was supplemented with a proud night for the west London academy as, alongside Musonda, Ethan Ampadu and Dujon Sterling were handed debuts while Jake Clarke-Slater came off the bench for his home debut.
The Blues were off to a flyer early on as Brazilian Kenedy, brought back into the fold after his Chelsea career had looked to be in tatters following his sending home from a pre-season tour in Asia, finished smartly from Antonio Rudiger’s diagonal.The host’s lead was swiftly doubled as Michy Batshuayi scored his first, latching onto Eden Hazard’s deflected through ball before slotting it through the legs of Forest shot-stopper Stephen Henderson.
Before the interval there was time for Musonda to make it a night to remember as his driven effort into the far corner paved the way for a memorable night for the youth ranks.
Into the second half, Batshuayi grabbed a quick second to put the game well out of reach for Mark Warburton’s side when Hazard, having gone one-on-one with the ‘keeper, executed a smart turn and laid it on for his compatriot, who could not miss. With Conte’s side more than comfortable, the Italian set about dishing out some debuts as, one after another, Ampadu, Clarke-Salter and Sterling replaced Fabregas, Christiensen and Zappacosta respectively.
There was still time, though, for Batshuayi to bag his first Chelsea hat-trick, though he knew little about it. After another fine ball from Rudiger to Kenedy, the young wing-back rattled an effort against the bar, rebounding to strike the Belgian striker and hit the back of the net.
Having conceded five, with the last being rather unfortunate, the travelling fans were allowed a small cheer when, after a fine passing move, substitute Tendayi Darikwa slotted home in injury time.
Evenning Standard
