A young second string created some fantastic football to overcome an experienced Birmingham side at St Andrew's on Wednesday night.
Jacob Mellis's strike deep in the second half was enough to seal the win as Chelsea played some beautiful football against a physical Birmingham side, which included seven first team regulars. Both sides ended the game with 10 men.
Maik Taylor, Gregory Vignal, Michel, Sebastian Larrson, Lee Carsley, Teemu Tanio and Chucho Benitez all started. Stuart Parnaby was meant to begin in the hosts' defence but illness forced him to miss the clash.
Meanwhile, Chelsea lined up in a 4-2-3-1 formation, with Sam Hutchinson leading from central defence. In front of him were Liam Bridcutt and Nemanja Matic.
Fabio Borini was the lone striker while Gael Kakuta, Josh McEachran and Jacob Mellis all lined up behind. Only five of our side had played first team football.
Regardless of the hosts' experience, Chelsea were first to attempt a strike. Gael Kakuta prospered from hard work by Fabio Borini on the right flank but the Frenchman's subsequent shot from the edge of the area went skimming past the post.
Continuing the offensive start, Kakuta soon produced another chance on goal while Nana Ofori-Twumasi received treatment on the sidelines for a knock on his ankle. The first 10 minutes were Chelsea's.
But as the hosts settled, the game became a more equal affair. Sam Hutchinson was called into action twice in central defence to diffuse Birmingham's attacks. Then, with 15 minutes played, Larrson forced a good save from Taylor with a freekick from 30 yards out.
Chelsea retaliated, with Van Aanholt twice delivering dangerous crosses into the box. The second was only inches away from Borini's feet before Josh McEachran nearly netted the stray ball in front of goal.
We'd claimed the best of the opening exchanges and before the half-hour mark arrived, Mellis, Kakuta and Matic had all created further chances.
Safe hands from Rhys Taylor denied Teemu Tanio's first shot of the game, a low drive towards the bottom left, before a Lee Carsley chance had the Welshman at full stretch to tip away for a corner.
The closest either side came to scoring in the first half was a Borini chance at the near post, which went spinning across the face of goal before narrowly heading wide.
As the second half got under way, there was a change made to the Chelsea defence. Conor Clifford came on for Hutchinson and took up a right-back role while Ofori-Twumasi moved into the centre.
Like the first half, the second began with a Kakuta chance from the edge of the box, an opportunity the young Frenchman sent screaming over the bar.
The first card of the game was brandished minutes later when Ofori-Twumasi slipped and handballed, stalling a Birmingham attack. Fortunately the eventual freekick from 35 yards strayed off target without ever threatening Chelsea's goal.
Van Aanholt continued to prove troublesome down the left, releasing one cross to the near post which Borini narrowly missed connecting with before the keeper gathered. Seconds later the Italian forced an acrobatic save from Maik Taylor.
Borini continuously hounded the Birmingham keeper, feeding off balls from Kakuta, Matic, van Aanholt and McEachran, but each shot was either parried away or sent over by the Italian.
But Chelsea were threatening and an away goal felt imminent. After Mellis and Ofori-Twumasi both received treatment at the same time following two separate challenges, the visitors won another freekick 25 yards out.
Van Aanholt, who'd put in a fantastic performance so far, sent a brilliant shot dipping over the wall before the keeper tipped over. McEachran took the corner, sending an awkward ball across the face of goal for Mellis to tap in with 76 minutes played.
With the lead established, Chelsea applied further pressure. Van Aanholt forced another good save from the Birmingham keeper when he smashed the ball towards the top right from 25 yards out.
But not neglecting his defensive duties, seconds later van Aanholt was back dispossessing substitute Akwasi Asante, who was at the tip of a Birmingham counter attack.
The dying minutes of the game were marred by a red card for Michel after a scuffle ensued following a Taylor save. Larrson was then shown a yellow for dissent.
Then, after some confusion, Ofori-Twumasi was also shown a second yellow, which ended his game prematurely.
The game finished 1-0, as both sides were left with 10. It was a tremendous performance from a young Chelsea side.
