Chelsea setup a clash with Manchester United in the quarterfinals of the F.A. Cup after picking up a deserved 2-0 victory over Middlesbrough in the fifth round.
Second half goals from Ramires, via a deflection off Fernando Torres, and Victor Moses gave the Blues a much-needed win, following their forgettable performance against Manchester City at the weekend, and they will now face Manchester United in the quarterfinals.
Chelsea interim manager Rafa Benitez, who announced he would leave at the end of the season, made a host of changes to the side, with the likes of Yossi Benayoun, Paulo Ferreira and debutant Nathan Ake getting starts.
The first half at the Riverside saw plenty of Chelsea possession but Boro goalkeeper Jason Steele was rarely troubled.
The home team in fact, looked dangerous on the counter-attack, with Scott McDonald and Muzzy Bailey coming close.
However, a halftime talk from the manager seemed to do the trick as Chelsea cranked up the pressure in the final 45.
The goal came in the 51st minute when Oscar broke down the right before standing up a cross to the back post. Benayoun helped it back towards the edge of the box, with Ramires' strike on the half-volley taking a deflection off Torres and leaving Steele with no chance.
Benitez brought Hazard on for Benayoun and that seemed to open up a lot more chances for the away side. The Belgian played a one-two with Oscar, who was good throughout the game, before laying it off to Moses for a tap-in as the game was put to bed in the 73rd minute.
"I'm really pleased," Benitez said after the match. "We changed some players but I was confident we could do well.
"I was really pleased with Ake and Ferreira, both of them did a great job for the team, and I was very pleased with what was a professional performance, our mentality and the result.
"I had confidence because they were doing well and we knew we could keep the balance of the team.
"When you have two games in three days it's difficult to manage and you have to be careful but we did what we wanted to do."
