Hiddink makes it 6 out of 6 with Chelsea and manages to keep his positive FA Cup record intact after motivating his team into a solid second half performance. It wasn’t easy for Chelsea despite facing a very young and unexperienced City side which Pellegrini put together with the Champions League and the Premier League games in mind. Even so, the players who were sent on the pitch did a great job at causing trouble for Cahill and Ivanovic who were paired in the middle of the defense. Both teams had a few chances during the first couple of minutes but the Blues really dominated throughout the whole 90 minutes, ending the game with 62% possession and 19 attempts on goal.
Probably the second best news after the fact that Chelsea went through the next stage of the FA Cup is that Hazard finally had the chance to unleash the spirit that got him the title of Premier League’s best player last season. The Belgian got two assists, a goal and also contributed to Cahill’s goal. He was very active, he had a smile on his face and he finally managed to score which is something everyone was waiting for. Hopefully this game will help him bounce back for what is left of the season. Hiddink is clearly doing a better job at handling the players than Mourinho did as we see Pedro, Costa and Fabregas improving with each game. We also see players like Baba Rahman and Traore getting the chances they deserve, chances both youngsters take full advantage of as they impress during their time on the pitch.
According to the BBC both managers admitted to having different goals in mind regarding this FA Cup game. Here is what they had to say:
Hiddink: “Manchester City made changes but that doesn’t make it easy because the youngsters that came in were dangerous. It was key that we started well in the second half, got an early second and third goal.”
Pellegrini: “We were forced to select that team, we couldn’t play another day and didn’t have any more fit players. We knew it was a difficult chance to carry on in the FA Cup. We cannot do anything more. If we play on Saturday, it is better for us, then we play in the Champions League for England. We have six players injured and cannot take any more risks. We played against a very good team and that’s why they won.”
Regardless of the way this game was handled, Chelsea still get a massive boost in confidence which will hopefully be enough to get them through the games against Southampton, Norwich and Stoke. If Hiddink gets three out of three, the next match against PSG will not seem that intimidating. The times have certainly changed at the club very much for the better since Hiddink has arrived and now the season looks like it can still be viewed as a success once it is completed.
The reward for today’s win is a 1/4 final match against Everton at Goodison Park. This of course a repeat of the 2009 FA Cup final where Guus Hiddink led Chelsea to the win in his last game in charge of his first spell as Chelsea manager. I am sure all at Chelsea will be totally focused on repeating the feat and sending the much-loved Hiddink out on a high and after their past 2 matches where they have demolished their opponents 5-1 who would bet on the Blues not going all the way to Wembley.