Blues cruise to 5-0 win over plucky Morecambe in FA Cup rout
By Paul Lagan at Stamford Bridge
Chelsea v Morecambe
38,998
Tosin and Felix hit a brace apiece as Chelsea overwhelmed League Two outfit Morecambe 5-0 in the Third round of the FA Cup at Stamford Bridge – Christopher Nkunku, who earlier had a penalty saved was the other scorer.
This was a game that had no jeopardy at all and was mostly about the opposing fans trying to out sing each other. In that score Morecambe's contingent just about won the day.
On the pitch it was a completely different story.
Axel Disasi had the first chance, on three minutes, but from a Reece James free-kick, the defender headed over Harry Burgoyne's crossbar from close range.
Morecambe had a shot on goal two minutes later when Ben Tollitt, turned with the ball and left fly with a left-footer. Filip Jorgensen was at his near post and smothered the effort.
Tosin then smacked the ball against the angle of post and crossbar from a Pedro Neto corner.
Chelsea were given a penalty when Yann Songo'o handled a Joao Felix byline cross.
But Burgoyne decided to step off his line early and stop Christopher Nkunku's spot-kick.
With no VAR until the 5th round, the save stood.
Burgoyne was having 'one of those games' when he finger-tipped away an edge of the box shot by Felix on 29 minutes.
Seven minutes from the break and Chelsea scored – but it was a lucky one. Tosin was given the ball 10 yards outside the visitors' area. He took a touch and opted to shoot. A terrible deflection saw the ball zip past Burgoyne and smack the back of the net.
Tosin tried his luck two minutes later - this time no deflection and not on target either.
Malo Gusto, Marc Cucurella and Jaydon Sancho came on at half-time, off went James, Neto, and Lavia.
It took four minutes to double the lead when Nkunku made up for his penalty by sliding the ball home from eight yards out.
As if to prove to everyone that his first goal was not lucky, it was, Tosin decided to try for a third time. There was nothing lucky about this 25 yard effort, which saw the ball curled over the Morecambe defence and nestle into the right-hand corner of Burgoyne's net.
Number four was not close behind and it too was a relatively long-range effort – despite being closed down Felix managed to get his shot away, and it crept, low onto the same spot as Tosin's.
He exceeded that effort with a wonderful, curling right footer that had Burgoyne grasping thin air to make it 5-0 on 78 minutes.
And that was that.
Teams: Chelsea: Jorgensen, Disasi, Tosin, Neto, Felix, Nkunku, James, George, Guiu, Veiga, Lavia
Subs: Sanchez, Cucurella, Colwill, Enzo, Jackson, Sancho, Palmer, Gusto, Acheampong
Morecambe: Burgoyne, Hendrie, White, Stott, Edwards, Williams, Tollitt, Dackers, Tutonda, Songo'o, Jones
Scales, Lewis, Taylor, Macadam, Hope, Anglo, Slew, Lewis, Dobson
Referee: Andrew Kitchen
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