Chelsea have cruised into the fifth round of the FA Cup after clinching a straightforward 4-0 win over local rivals Brentford in Saturday's fourth-round clash at Stamford Bridge.
The Blues were dominant from the off and duly took the lead in the 14th minute when Willian curled an unstoppable free kick over the Bees' wall and into the top corner past goalkeeper Daniel Bentley.
Pedro then doubled his side's advantage just seven minutes later, an impressive counter-attack culminating in Michy Batshuayi playing the ball into the path of the advancing Spaniard, who made no mistake with a low finish.
The seven-time FA Cup winners were rampant but were unable to add to their tally in the opening 45 minutes, although a contentious off-the-line clearance was not given as a goal, while Batshuayi got the ball into the back of the net, but the strike was disallowed.
Brentford also had Bentley to thank for keeping his side in the game and the visitors enjoyed a number of good chances of their own, but their resistance was snuffed out in the 69th minute when substitute Branislav Ivanovic drilled home a low shot following good work from Pedro.
Chelsea added a fourth for good measure in the 81st minute when Yoann Barbet felled Ivanovic in the Bees box to win a penalty, and Batshuayi made no mistake from the spot, sending Bentley the wrong way.
Giuseppe Labellarte
