A trip to Wembley awaits Chelsea and Mauricio Pochettino after the Blues came from 1-0 down to win 6-2 on aggregate against Middlesbrough in the second leg of the Carabao Cup semi-finals.
The home side opened the scoring early in the first half thanks to an own goal from Jonny Howson before Enzo Fernandez made it two with a composed finish. Chelsea weren't done there as goals from Axel Disasi and Cole Palmer put the Blues in cruise control.
Chelsea extended their lead after the restart thanks to another from Palmer and one from substitute Noni Madueke. Morgan Rogers pulled a goal back for Boro late on but the night belonged to the Blues, who will now face either Fulham or Liverpool in the final.
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Story of the match
Mauricio Pochettino made two changes from the win over West London rivals Fulham ahead of a crucial second leg at Stamford Bridge. The first change saw a return to the starting eleven for left-back Ben Chilwell, who started a game for the first time since the third round victory over Brighton in September.
Chilwell's return resulted in Levi Colwill moving to centre-back to partner the experienced Thiago Silva. The other change came in attack with Conor Gallagher dropping to the bench as Mykhailo Mudryk started alongside Raheem Sterling and Cole Palmer in attack. Armando Broja was the man to lead the line for Chelsea.
Meanwhile, for Middlesbrough, three changes were made by Michael Carrick from the first leg victory over the Blues. Matthew Clarke came in at right-back in place of the injured Alex Bangura whilst Morgan Rogers and Marcus Forss started in attack for the visitors.
Chelsea struggled to get going in the opening exchanges but did have the first shot on goal of the evening. Mudryk combined well with Enzo Fernandez before the Ukrainian's shot deflected wide for a corner but the home side were unable to make the most of the set piece opportunity.
Moments later, Chelsea came close again after Colwill's long ball was met by the head of Chilwell, whose looping header was inches wide. However, with 15 minutes on the clock, the Blues made the all-important breakthrough.
A brilliant through ball from Chilwell found Sterling, who unselfishly set up Broja to level the tie on aggregate. The final touch came off Boro captain Jonny Howson but nonetheless, it was an important goal for the Blues. Momentum very much shifted Chelsea's way.
Meanwhile, straight up the other end, Middlesbrough nearly levelled from a corner but Morgan Rogers' effort was comfortable for Djordje Petrovic. The Blues, on the other hand, continued to push for a second and on 28 minutes did exactly that.
Sterling combined with Axel Disasi, whose cross was flicked on by Broja and into the path of Fernandez. The Argentinian, in acres of space, slotted home from close range to double the West Londoners advantage. Fernandez almost scored again not long after but his shot was easy for Middlesbrough 'keeper Tom Glover.
However, Chelsea did not have to wait much longer to add to their advantage. Disasi won back possession on the halfway line before Sterling found the Frenchman inside the Boro penalty area, who had the simple task of scoring. Disasi's first goal for the Blues since the opening day of the season.
The home side added another on 41 minutes as Cole Palmer capitalised on a defensive error from Daniel Barlaser before rolling the ball into the bottom left corner. Chelsea went in at the break four goals to the good and 45 minutes away from a place in the Carabao Cup final.
Second half
Noni Madueke was introduced after the restart in place of Mudryk whilst for Middlesbrough, Marcus Forss made way for Anfernee Dijksteel. Despite leading comfortably, the Blues were determined to add to their emphatic advantage but Levi Colwill's strike drifted wide of the target.
With the tie all but over, Pochettino made another two changes midway through the second half. Ben Chilwell and Armando Broja departed the field with Alfie Gilchrist and Conor Gallagher entering the fray.
Gallagher almost made an instant impact as the midfielder was played through by Disasi but his shot was blocked. Moments later, Palmer spotted an unmarked Disasi inside the penalty area, who was unable to prod home.
Midfielder Carney Chukwuemeka was also introduced for the final 20 minutes as the youngster replaced Moises Caicedo. Sterling almost added a fifth after closing down defender Dael Fry but the Boro defender prevented the winger from scoring.
However, a fifth goal soon came to fruition for Chelsea after Gallagher set up Palmer on the edge of the six-yard box, who slotted home for his second of the night. Substitute Madueke soon made it six when he curled the ball home past Glover.
Pochettino used his final substitution to bring on academy graduate Leo Castledine for his Chelsea debut. Meanwhile, in the closing stages of the game, Morgan Rogers pulled a goal back to give the travelling Middlesbrough supporters something to celebrate.
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Player of the match: Cole Palmer
On what was an excellent team performance from Chelsea, picking a player of the match was no doubt a tough choice but the man that stood out the most was Cole Palmer.
Palmer continues to show he was worth every penny to the Chelsea faithful and having struggled in the first leg at the Riverside, the winger made amends with a brace. Both goals were excellent finishes and caused the Middlesbrough defence nightmares.
Having scored a stunner for Manchester City on his last visit to Wembley, Palmer will be hoping to repeat the feat in the blue of Chelsea in next month's Carabao Cup final.
