Chelsea cruise into FA Cup fourth round, Maidstone United shock Stevenage
Mauricio Pochettino's men were bereft of attacking inspiration in the opening 45 minutes, but two headers from Armando Broja and Thiago Silva saw the Blues belatedly build up a healthy advantage before Raheem Sterling's free kick and Enzo Fernandez's tap-in put the icing on the cake.
Chelsea were one of two Premier League sides in action in the quartet of 5.30pm kickoffs, and Aston Villa needed a huge stroke of fortune to earn a 1-0 win over Middlesbrough, who succumbed to an 87th-minute strike from Matty Cash which took a wicked deflection off of Emmanuel Latte Lath.
Earlier in the day, Newcastle United came up trumps 3-0 over Sunderland in the Tyne-Wear derby, while Maidstone United produced one of the shocks of the day, sinking League One Stevenage 1-0 thanks to a Sam Corne penalty in first-half injury time.
Fellow Premier League outfits Brighton & Hove Albion, Sheffield United and Bournemouth also advanced to round four courtesy of away wins, with the Seagulls sinking Stoke City 4-2 despite initially going a goal behind.
Sheffield United make extremely light work of Gillingham, as William Osula and James McAtee both netted braces in a 4-0 win, while Bournemouth came from two goals down to sink Queens Park Rangers 3-2 thanks to a second-half flurry.
Few surprises were sprung elsewhere, although fifth-tier Eastleigh forced a replay with Newport County, holding the League Two side to a 1-1 draw despite playing the entire second half with 10 men, while Bristol Rovers and Norwich City played out their own two-goal stalemate.
Championship duo Hull City and Birmingham City will also
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