Chelsea Beat Tottenham Hotspur 4-2 in Spectacular FA Cup Semi-Final

Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur served up a spectacular FA Cup semi-final Saturday with the Blues winning 4-2 to qualify for the final.

Willian gave the Blues an early lead with a free-kick and restored the advantage from the penalty spot shortly before half-time. In between the two goals, Harry Kane had tied things up with a header, and Dele Alli again pulled his team level after the break.

Substitute Eden Hazard gave the Blues yet another lead, and Nemanja Matic doubled the advantage, safeguarding the win. Arsenal and Manchester City will meet Sunday to contest the second semi-final.

As shared by Goal's Nizaar Kinsella, Chelsea manager Antonio Conte made the shock decision to rest both Hazard and Diego Costa, while Spurs' starting XI also looked interesting:

Spurs made a solid start to the match but conceded after just minutes, with Willian curling home a free-kick goalkeeper Hugo Lloris perhaps should have dealt with better.

Former England international Gary Lineker hailed Conte's decision to field a changed XI:

The early goal gave the Blues a big boost, with Michy Batshuayi getting a few half-chances to add to the lead. Spurs seemed rattled, but Mousa Dembele and the defence did well to halt Chelsea's attack and avoid further damage.

BBC Sport's Phil McNulty noted Spurs' struggles but expected it wouldn't matter:

He was proved right shortly after sending that tweet. Kane positioned himself well to work a cross from Christian Eriksen into the net, per McNulty:

After the bright start to the match, the contest quickly turned sour. Both teams resorted to harsh challenges to break up the flow, with Spurs the worse culprits.

Dembele all but rugby-tackled Willian off the ball and somehow wasn't given the foul, and Alli went one step further by stepping on David Luiz's ankle. Joe.co.uk couldn't help themselves:

The many challenges took the pace out of the match, and chances became rare. Eric Dier threatened with a good header just before half-time, and a few hectic minutes followed, providing plenty of drama.

First, Spurs midfielder Heung-Min Son  made a rash challenge on Victor Moses inside his own penalty area, gifting the Blues a penalty which Willian converted. Men in Blazers weighed in on the tackle:

Shortly after, Chelsea were furious when Lloris appeared to handle the ball outside of his area, with both the official and linesman not responding to their appeals.

Spurs took control of the ball to start the second half, and their attacking approach was quickly rewarded. Eriksen reached Alli with a great ball in, and the young midfielder didn't miss from close range.

Bleacher Report's Nick Akerman was impressed:

Another controversial moment followed as Spurs wanted a penalty when Alli went down after a challenge from Nathan Ake. Replays showed the young defender made an excellent tackle, and official Martin Atkinson made a superb call.

With Spurs in the ascendancy, Conte introduced Hazard and Costa after an hour, hoping to snatch the win. Momentum remained with Spurs, however, with Victor Wanyama trying his luck from long range.

Spurs were the better team, but against the run of play, Hazard made it 3-2. The Belgian blasted home after a corner wasn't cleared properly. More from Lineker:

The goal seemed to break the spirits of the Tottenham players, and when Matic buried a long-range effort to make it 4-2, the match was all but over.

Costa should have added a fifth goal but missed badly with a close-range header, but it hardly mattered. Spurs played out the final minutes waiting for the official to end the match, and Chelsea easily held onto their lead.

Chelsea's next outing will be in the Premier League against Southampton, while Spurs take on Crystal Palace.