Match Report: Chelsea 4 PNE 0

Even though Preston North End did their best in the first half, Chelsea scored four goals in the second half and made it to the fourth round of the Emirates FA Cup.

PNE proved to be a worthy opponent for their counterparts from the Premier League during the first half of the game. It's possible that they could have even been winning at half-time if circumstances had been different.

Nevertheless, the playing field was equal and the home team seized control of the match in the latter part by scoring goals from Armando Broja, Thiago Silva, Raheem Sterling, and Enzo Fernández, which pushed Ryan Lowe's squad further behind.

From the very beginning, PNE had the support of almost 6,000 enthusiastic fans and they immediately made things difficult for Chelsea. The PNE team put a lot of pressure on Chelsea's defence by preventing them from playing out from their own half. Additionally, PNE players Brad Potts and Liam Millar made some successful attempts to break through Chelsea's flanks.

At the beginning of the game, Chelsea got a chance to score first when Alfie Gilchrist passed the ball to Sterling. However, Liam Lindsay was able to stop Sterling's shot from a short distance.

Just a minute later, Potts and Milutin Osmajic both managed to successfully head the ball in the air, which resulted in Will Keane getting the ball. Keane then used his chest to control the ball and hit it towards the goal, but the goalkeeper Djordje Petrovic was able to prevent it from scoring.

Shortly after, Freddie Woodman had to make a save to block Sterling's shot. He was then relieved when Cole Palmer failed to score from six yards, even though he had control of the ball and only needed to beat the goalkeeper.

Once again, Potts dominated the sky high challenge in the 27th minute by tapping the ball on for Osmajić to advance into the penalty box. Unfortunately, the Montenegrin's attempt at scoring was blocked from crossing the goal line.

During the first half, PNE remained a threat and had another opportunity in the 38th minute. Two headers were skillfully won in the air and although Keane attempted to score with a volley inside the area, he didn't quite make the connection.

Following the intermission, the team captain Alan Browne attempted to score from a distance of 20 yards but unfortunately missed by a small margin just above the crossbar. In a short while, Axel Disasi took a shot from the opposite side but the ball went over the bar.

In the 58th minute of the game, Chelsea began to have more possession of the ball and finally scored when Broja managed to flick in Gusto's cross from the left.

The attacker had the opportunity to increase his advantage at the hour point when he connected with a header from Mykhailo Mudryk. It was from around the same distance, but unfortunately, the shot hit the crossbar and went over.

Silva, who replaced another player, managed to score Chelsea's second goal at the 66th minute by heading the ball into the net from a corner taken by Palmer.

In a short time, the lead grew to three points as Sterling executed a magnificent free-kick from 20 yards away, sending the ball past the wall and straight into the top corner of the net.

Broja had a chance to score the fourth goal but Hughes made a fantastic defensive block. Broja managed to get past Woodman but when he tried to shoot, it seemed like the goal was left unguarded. Nevertheless, Hughes saved the day for his team with his impressive block.

With fifteen minutes remaining on the clock, North End were presented with a possible opportunity to score but unfortunately, Lindsay was unable to strike the ball decisively after a corner kick.

In the 85th minute, Fernández was able to score for Chelsea after the ball fell into his path in front of the goal, resulting in a tap-in. Although the goal was originally disallowed due to being offside, a thorough review from VAR resulted in the decision being reversed. This ultimately led to Chelsea winning the game 4-0.

Here is the Chelsea squad that played in the latest game: Petrović was in goal, with Gilchrist in defence who was replaced by Silva in the 61st minute, and joined by Disasi and Colwill, and Gusto was in the back line. The midfield saw Caicedo and Fernández, who was substituted by Golding in the 89th min. The attacking area included Sterling, Palmer who was replaced by Gallagher in the 76th min, and Mudryk who was replaced by Madueke in the 61st min. Broja, who was replaced by Deivid in the 76th min, was the sole striker. Unused substitutes are Bettinelli, Bergström, Maatsen, and Williams.

Here is how the team for PNE was composed: The goalkeeper was Woodman while Storey, Lindsay, and Hughes (Best, who came in at 74 minutes) were the defence. In the midfield were Potts, Browne, Whiteman (substituted by Holmes at 87 minutes), McCann (who was replaced by Ledson at 88 minutes), and Millar. The forwards were Osmajić (substituted by Riis at 64 minutes) and Keane (replaced by Evans at 64 minutes). The substitutes who did not get to play were Cornell, Cunningham, Frøkjær, and Woodburn.

Number of attendees: 39,705 (including 5,961 supporters of PNE).

Official: Mr. T Bramall.