'Old Chelsea' - National media all say the same thing after Aston Villa and Pochettino display

Chelsea put on their best display of the season and saved it for just the occasion. Mauricio Pochettino, in the middle of his worst period in charge, saw his side cruise past an in-form Aston Villa to reach the FA Cup fifth round, setting up a fiery clash with historic rivals Leeds United.

The Blues dominated a first half that went against almost everything that has been on show in recent weeks. Goals from Conor Gallagher and Nicolas Jackson had them comfortably in the lead at the breakbefore a stunning Enzo Fernandez free-kick put a gloss on the performance.

Moussa Diaby grabbed a consolation for the hosts late on but the game had been won in a commanding way long before that. For Pochettino it ends a run of three games without a win that started with the 0-0 draw in the original tie at Stamford Bridge.

The manager has been at the centre of speculation surrounding his job near enough ever since. The 4-2 defeat to Wolves on Sunday was enough to send fans over the edge, especially after a hapless showing at Liverpool just four days prior.

Beating Villa here, and setting up a chance to get into the quarter-finals via overcoming Championship opposition next, keeps the hopes of an unlikely domestic cup double alive. Chelsea face Liverpool again later this month in the Carabao Cup final at Wembley.

They will need to be at their very best to compete in that game but laid a marker for how to do it at Villa Park. Such was the quality of the game from a Chelsea perspective, Roy Keane even compared it to the very thing Pochettino has been trying to distance himself from.

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