Chelsea face Al-Hilal, but made life hard against Plymouth in FA Cup

Well, this wasn't in the script. With Chelsea's Club World Cup campaign starting on Wednesday, they didn't need a 120-minute intense workout.

They didn't need to fly out to Abu Dhabi without boss Thomas Tuchel, after he tested positive for Covid and entered isolation.

They didn't need key man Mason Mount to limp off with a muscle injury ahead of such a crucial period. And the last thing they needed was an FA Cup exit to go with their nearly-deceased Premier League title bid.

Luckily for them they avoided that. But only by the skin of their teeth.

League One Plymouth went into an early lead at the home of the European champions, took them to extra time and then nearly penalties. It took 106 minutes for Chelsea to go ahead and even then needed Kepa Arrizabalaga to save a 115th-minute Plymouth penalty.

So it would be wrong to say this was a disastrous day. Chelsea, finalists last year, are through and continue a pleasing cup-football run under Tuchel.

He was tuned in from home, thankfully with no severe symptoms, but he will have been given a sore head watching his side's performance here.

This was a strong Chelsea XI and their star man was Kepa, who stopped a spot-kick from Ryan Hardie, who had earlier forced the Spaniard into a string of saves.

The £72million man was ridiculed for his start to life in England but, with Edouard Mendy at the Africa Cup of Nations, he hasn't put a foot wrong.

Enough about Chelsea, though. This was just another day for the perhaps soon-to-be world champions. For Plymouth, it was a once-in-a-career moment. 

'My players can look back at the end of their career and say, 'That day we took the European champions right to the wire',' said Plymouth boss Steven Schumacher. 'They should be so proud.'