Chelsea stroll past Middlesbrough into FA Cup semis

March 19, 2022 Chelsea's Ruben Loftus-Cheek in action with Middlesbrough's Aaron Connolly Action Images via Reuters

Chelsea continued to make light of their off-pitch turmoil with impressive displays on it as they reached the FA Cup semi-finals with a 2-0 victory at Middlesbrough on Saturday.

First-half goals by Romelu Lukaku and Hakim Ziyech knocked the stuffing out of second-tier Middlesbrough who had eliminated Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur in previous rounds.

Lukaku tapped in Mason Mount's low cross after 15 minutes before Ziyech fired home 16 minutes later.

Middlesbrough were given raucous support inside the Riverside Stadium but never really looked capable of troubling the visitors who were always in control.

Chelsea, who are the subject of several bids to buy the club, are operating under a special licence from the British government after Russian owner Roman Abramovich was sanctioned following Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Only a few hundred Chelsea fans were inside the stadium -- a consequence of restrictions on them selling tickets -- but they could at least celebrate their team reaching the semis for the fifth time in six seasons.