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A Michy Batshuayi hat-trick helped Chelsea to a 5-1 victory over Nottingham Forest in the third round of the EFL Cup.
Kenedy and Charly Musonda also got their names on the scoresheet as the Blues breezed past their second-tier opponents to set up a fourth-round clash with Everton.
Tendayi Darikwa netted for Forest with virtually the last kick of the game, but it was nothing more than a consolation goal for Mark Warburton’s men.
1. Batshuayi will want to make the most of his starts like he did today
Michy Batshuayi would have hoped for more opportunities in his debut Chelsea campaign. The Belgian international, signed from Marseille in the summer of 2016, started just a single Premier League game last term, and although he has already equalled that tally in 2017/18, Batshuayi clearly remains a backup option behind main man Alvaro Morata.
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Hence, it is imperative that the 23-year-old makes the most of any opportunities that come his way this season. He did exactly that on Wednesday night, scoring a hat-trick to ease Chelsea through to the fourth round of the competition.
His first came after 19 minutes as he beat Stephen Henderson after being picked out by Eden Hazard. His second was also set up by his fellow Belgian, Hazard dancing his way through the Forest defence before laying the ball on a plate for his team-mate.
There was more than an element of good fortune to Batshuayi's third, but the striker nevertheless deserves credit for being in the right place at the right time.
2. Forest a little naive at the home of the Premier League champions
Forest actually started Wednesday's game brightly, passing the ball around crisply and looking to push men forward. Conceding twice within the first quarter clearly did not help Warburton's game plan, but it is hard to escape the feeling that the Championship side were a little naive at times.
One example came during Chelsea's second goal when Forest were caught out pressing high up the pitch when Chelsea were attempting to build play from the back. There were also instances of sloppy square passes in dangerous areas; while it should also be acknowledged that some of the visitors' passing triangles were impressive, they were guilty of playing themselves into trouble on more than one occasion.
Forest deserve credit for their willingness to try and play on the front foot when possible, but it may not have been the wisest approach against such a gifted opposition.
3. Musonda looks like one for the future
This was not the first time that Musonda has pulled on a Chelsea shirt, but he did not have much of a chance to impress in his official debut against Burnley when the youngster entered the fray in second-half stoppage time.
Wednesday's cup tie was, therefore, for all intents and purposes, his first meaningful appearance for the club. Musonda may have been nervous deep down, but he did not show it once he stepped over the white line; the 20-year-old was direct and purposeful in possession, running at defenders and eye-catching with his speed, trickery and balance.
The highlight of his evening came in the 40th minute when Musonda fired home Chelsea's third with a driven finish from inside the box. The Belgian was clearly delighted to score his first goal for the Blues and if his performance from tonight is anything to go by, it will not be his last.
4. Walker and Cummings work hard but to no avail
Nobody could fault the work rate of Forest's front two, Tyler Walker and Jason Cummings, at Stamford Bridge. However, the strikers were largely unable to affect the game- a product of both Chelsea's dominance and their own isolation.
Walker and, in particular, Cummings pressed the Blues' defenders and occasionally forced turnovers in possession, while they also ran the channels and looked to stretch Conte's three-man backline with some clever movement.
There were a few instances of good link-up play too, but all in all both players struggled to receive the ball in promising positions. Cummings had three shots on goal but two were easily blocked by Chelsea defenders while Tyler failed to register a single effort all evening.
5. Chelsea's youngsters step up to address Chelsea's squad depth issues
As many as 4 youngsters made their debut for Chelsea today. Kenedy who, many thought, would not get many chances this season opened the scoring for the Blues from an Anthony Rudiger diagonal. Another youngster Musonda also found the net, much to Conte's delight.
Ampadu, Clarke-Salter and Sterling all made their first appearances for Chelsea's senior team.
If Conte can extract similar performances from his youngsters, he could very well start hoping for the first domestic cup of his managerial career.
Conte won the Coppa Italia during his time as a Juventus player, but he was unable to repeat the feat when in charge of the Bianconeri. The league was everything to the former Italian international.
Although the Turin-based giants claimed three successive Scudetti under Conte's tutelage, they failed to win Italy's sole domestic cup competition.
Chelsea then reached the final of the FA Cup last term, but Arsenal ran out deserved 2-1 winners at Wembley. All of which means that Conte is yet to win a cup as a manager, and it will be interesting to see whether he is able to rectify that record in England's junior knockout tournament this year.
