Chelsea 2-0 Blackburn: Raheem Sterling on target as Blues reach Carabao Cup quarter-finals

Chelsea reached the Carabao Cup quarter-finals as goals from Benoit Badiashile and Raheem Sterling were enough to beat Championship side Blackburn Rovers at Stamford Bridge.

Sterling doubled the lead with nearly an hour gone when he ran on to Cole Palmer’s interception and curled the ball into the far corner.

Blackburn’s best chance came in the final moments, when substitute Arnor Sigurdsson was played through but denied by a fine Robert Sanchez save.

Chelsea have struggled in the Premier League this season, sitting 11th in the table with just three wins from 10 games, but their Carabao Cup performances have been a positive and moving one step closer to some silverware will be a timely boost for Mauricio Pochettino’s side.

Pochettino will hope that end of injury crisis is coming

The sight of Reece James flying down the right as part of Chelsea’s attack is something supporters at Stamford Bridge have missed for most of this season.

The Chelsea captain was making his first start since the opening day of the Premier League season and was constantly threatening against Blackburn, having a good chance saved in the first half.

He was substituted after an hour but the minutes under his belt will give him a good chance of starting away at Tottenham in the Premier League on Monday.

Badiashile, a £35m January signing from Monaco, was in the treatment room before Pochettino arrived at the club and his performance on his return will have been a big positive for the Chelsea manager.

The 22-year-old put in a solid display before being withdrawn along with James, looking assured next to former Monaco team-mate Axel Disasi.

The goal and clean sheet will be a real bonus as he looks to put a long injury absence behind him.

The next challenge on his hands will be getting into the Chelsea side ahead of Levi Colwill who is also a left-sided centre-back.