Chelsea crashed out of the FA Cup following a 2-0 loss to Everton at Goodison Park to leave their European hopes in tatters.
Guus Hiddink’s side arrived on the back of their Champions League exit midweek at the hands of Paris Saint-Germain and the Blues knew that the FA Cup remained their most likely route to securing European football next term.
However, former Chelsea man Romelu Lukaku came back to haunt his old side with a brace of goals to see Chelsea exit the competition and lose their last chance at silverware this season.
Hiddink will no doubt be upset that the team have exited before the semi-finals as the Dutchman will not be able to repeat his FA Cup success from his first interim spell at the club.
More worryingly is the proposition that now faces the Chelsea hierarchy as they now have to attract players to the club without the prospect of Europe while also attempting to keep those already in the squad, leaving prospective manager Antonio Conte with a huge task on his hands in the summer.
