Chelsea’s match-winning pair Nemanja Matic and Eden Hazard spoke of their relief at beating Tottenham Hotspur to secure a spot in the Emirates FA Cup Final.
Hazard came off the bench to put the Blues 3-2 up in the second half, before Matic sealed it with a stunning strike to complete the scoring in a thrilling semi-final tie.
And both players paid tribute to their opponents for making it such a hard-fought London derby.
“It was a nice goal but first of all, I say that we are very happy because we are in a Final,” said Matic, whose thunderous left-footer was the pick of the day’s goals.
“It was very hard today but when you score four goals against them, you have to win the game, so I am very happy for the team.
“They are a great team. They are one of the best teams in [the] Premier League and as I said, this was very hard today.
“We score [the] first goal, they equalise, we score [a] second; they didn’t give up, so congratulations to them – they play good football and that’s why we are so happy today.”
And Hazard is now hoping Antonio Conte’s side can go one step further from here and win the competition, having last done it just a few months before the Belgian midfielder arrived at Stamford Bridge in 2012.
“It’s always good to win this kind of game, it’s a semi-final against a London team, so for the fans, it’s good.
“We reached the Final. It will be my first Final in five years in Chelsea for The FA Cup and I hope to win this Cup.”
