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Loftus-Cheek's opener was his first goal of the seasonChelsea set up a second Wembley meeting with Liverpool this season as they overcame Crystal Palace's stubborn resistance to reach the FA Cup final.
Liverpool won the Carabao Cup final on penalties in February but Chelsea will have the chance for revenge as second-half goals from Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Mason Mount underlined their supremacy.
Unlike the first semi-final between Liverpool and Manchester City, chances were at a premium until substitute Loftus-Cheek, on for the injured Mateo Kovacic, broke the deadlock with a deflected shot after 65 minutes.
Palace had their opportunities, Chelsea goalkeeper Edouard Mendy saving well from Cheikhou Kouyate in the first half, but they could not come back after Mount slipped a low finish beyond Jack Butland with 14 minutes left.
Third time lucky for Chelsea?
Chelsea have deservedly reached their third successive FA Cup final and will now hope to reverse recent history after losing the previous two to Arsenal and Leicester City.
Manager Thomas Tuchel has a remarkable record in reaching domestic and European finals since his appointment and Chelsea will be formidable opponents for Liverpool, who are in search of a historic quadruple.
Chelsea had to work had for their triumph but they showed patience, organisation and then quality to take control after half-time.
By the end, Chelsea were in complete command and only some generosity in front of goal from substitute Romelu Lukaku, who struck the post when it seemed easier to score, and the otherwise excellent Timo Werner prevented a scoreline that would have been harsh on Palace.
Chelsea may be surrounded by turmoil off the pitch amid the sanctions against owner Roman Abramovich, but a winning mentality persists on it and the players showed admirable powers of recovery following the disappointment of their Champions League quarter-final elimination by Real Madrid.
And if the EFL Cup final between Chelsea and Liverpool earlier this season is anything to go by, the FA Cup equivalent will be a tightly-contested affair between two high-quality sides.
More to follow.
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Chelsea
Squad number16Player nameMendy
Squad number24Player nameJames
Squad number4Player nameChristensen
Squad number2Player nameRüdiger
Squad number28Player nameAzpilicueta
Squad number5Player nameJorginho
Squad number8Player nameKovacic
Squad number3Player nameAlonso
Squad number19Player nameMount
Squad number29Player nameHavertz
Squad number11Player nameWerner
Squad number6Player nameThiago Silva
Squad number7Player nameKanté
Squad number9Player nameLukaku
Squad number12Player nameLoftus-Cheek
Squad number22Player nameZiyech
Crystal Palace
Squad number1Player nameButland
Squad number2Player nameWard
Squad number16Player nameAndersen
Squad number6Player nameGuéhi
Squad number3Player nameMitchell
Squad number8Player nameKouyaté
Squad number18Player nameMcArthur
Squad number15Player nameSchlupp
Squad number10Player nameEze
Squad number14Player nameMateta
Squad number11Player nameZaha
Squad number4Player nameMilivojevic
Squad number7Player nameOlise
Squad number9Player nameJ Ayew
Squad number20Player nameBenteke
Line-ups
Chelsea
Formation 3-4-1-2
- 16Mendy
- 24James
- 4ChristensenSubstituted forThiago Silvaat 82'minutes
- 2Rüdiger
- 28Azpilicueta
- 5JorginhoSubstituted forKantéat 77'minutes
- 8KovacicSubstituted forLoftus-Cheekat 26'minutes
- 3Alonso
- 19MountSubstituted forZiyechat 77'minutes
- 29HavertzBooked at 38minsSubstituted forLukakuat 77'minutes
- 11Werner
Substitutes
- 1Arrizabalaga
- 6Thiago Silva
- 7Kanté
- 9Lukaku
- 10Pulisic
- 12Loftus-Cheek
- 17Saúl
- 22Ziyech
- 31Sarr
Crystal Palace
Formation 4-3-3
- 1Butland
- 2Ward
- 16Andersen
- 6Guéhi
- 3Mitchell
- 8KouyatéSubstituted forMilivojevicat 85'minutes
- 18McArthurSubstituted forOliseat 72'minutes
- 15SchluppSubstituted forBentekeat 72'minutes
- 10Eze
- 14MatetaSubstituted forJ Ayewat 55'minutes
- 11Zaha
Substitutes
- 4Milivojevic
- 5Tomkins
- 7Olise
- 9J Ayew
- 13Guaita
- 17Clyne
- 20Benteke
- 22Édouard
- 34Kelly
Referee:Anthony Taylor
Attendance:76,238
Live Text
Match ends, Chelsea 2, Crystal Palace 0.
Second Half ends, Chelsea 2, Crystal Palace 0.
Attempt missed. Timo Werner (Chelsea) right footed shot from the left side of the box is high and wide to the right. Assisted by Romelu Lukaku.
Corner, Chelsea. Conceded by Marc Guéhi.
Attempt blocked. Antonio Rüdiger (Chelsea) right footed shot from the left side of the box is blocked. Assisted by Hakim Ziyech.
Corner, Chelsea. Conceded by Tyrick Mitchell.
Attempt blocked. Hakim Ziyech (Chelsea) right footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked.
Romelu Lukaku (Chelsea) hits the right post with a right footed shot from very close range. Assisted by Timo Werner.
Ruben Loftus-Cheek (Chelsea) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Wilfried Zaha (Crystal Palace).
Marcos Alonso (Chelsea) wins a free kick on the left wing.
Foul by Michael Olise (Crystal Palace).
Substitution, Crystal Palace. Luka Milivojevic replaces Cheikhou Kouyaté.
Substitution, Chelsea. Thiago Silva replaces Andreas Christensen.
Attempt blocked. Jordan Ayew (Crystal Palace) right footed shot from the left side of the box is blocked. Assisted by Tyrick Mitchell.
Attempt saved. Hakim Ziyech (Chelsea) left footed shot from outside the box is saved in the bottom left corner. Assisted by Timo Werner.
Attempt missed. Joachim Andersen (Crystal Palace) header from very close range is too high. Assisted by Jordan Ayew following a corner.
Attempt missed. Jordan Ayew (Crystal Palace) header from the right side of the six yard box misses to the left. Assisted by Michael Olise with a cross following a corner.
Corner, Crystal Palace. Conceded by Reece James.
Foul by Ruben Loftus-Cheek (Chelsea).
English (US)