Chelsea have reached six finals since Thomas Tuchel took charge 15 months ago

Chelsea and Liverpool will be just the second pair of teams to contest both the FA Cup and League Cup finals in the same season, after Arsenal and Sheffield Wednesday in 1992-93.

Throughout his managerial career Thomas Tuchel has progressed from 11/11 semi-final ties (30 goals, 4 conceded).

Chelsea also are the first team to reach the men’s FA Cup final in three consecutive seasons since Arsenal between 2000-01 and 2002-03.

Chelsea earned a replay under the Wembley arch against EFL Cup winners Liverpool, winning 2-0 against a tenacious Crystal Palace side due to goals from Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Mason Mount in the second half. As a result, the ‘Blues’ have qualified for their sixth FA Cup final in six years. 

Soon after, Palace had a fantastic chance to break the deadlock when a free kick from the edge of the box found Cheikhou Kouyaté, who composed himself and shot hard and true, only for Edouard Mendy to make a fantastic save, inadvertently spilling the ball at the feet of an offside Jean-Philippe Mateta, who hit the post on the follow-up. 

Just after the hour mark, Palace were unlucky not to score from a corner, with Kouyaté headed wide following a superb delivery by Eberechi Eze. In the 65th minute, Palace paid the ultimate price for their error, as Chelsea broke away down their right flank thanks to a mistake from Tyrick Mitchell.

The ball found Havertz inside the box, and the UEFA Champions League winner had time to execute a stepover before an attempted square was diverted into the path of Loftus-Cheek, who hammered a first-time effort into the far corner of Palace’s net. 

Chelsea scored a game-winning second goal with 15 minutes remaining in normal time. Mason Mount snatched the ball after a sloppy pass in dangerous territory, and after a lovely one-two with Timo Werner, he ran through a large gap in the Palace backline to slip a low effort past Jack Butland. 

While the ‘Blues’ have every right to celebrate tonight, Thomas Tuchel’s side still have a lot of demons to face after losing two FA Cup finals in a row, a penalty shootout loss to fellow finalists Liverpool in February.

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