New Chelsea head coach Liam Rosenior promised more to come from his second string after they swept aside Charlton 5-1 at the Valley in his first match in charge.
It took a patient first half before the opening goal of the FA Cup third-round tie and of the Blues’ new era arrived from the unlikely boot of defender Jorrel Hato.
Rosenior made eight changes after watching Wednesday’s 2-1 defeat to Fulham and soon the players largely forgotten by former boss Enzo Maresca were firing, including Facundo Buonanotte’s cross for Tosin Adarabioyo to head home their second goal.
Not since Antonio Conte in 2016 had a new Chelsea manager won his first match in charge. No-one expects Rosenior to land a prize as illustrious as the Premier League trophy as quickly as the Italian managed at the end of his first season, but on this showing his team could fairly claim to have Wembley in May in their sights.
Teenage striker Marc Guiu made it three after Charlton had briefly rallied through Miles Leaburn’s strike, before Pedro Neto and Enzo Fernandez came off the bench to add seniority and two more goals.
Alejandro Garnacho and Jamie Gittens also impressed in rare starts out wide.
“I was delighted with the starting XI, I was delighted with the front three,” said Rosenior.
“I felt Ali (Garnacho) kept going in his one v ones, Marc Guiu was magnificent and deserved his goal. Jamie looked like he was going at the defenders, created a lot of moments.
“A lot of real positives and a good start.”
Amongst the senior players left out were Malo Gusto, Cole Palmer and Reece James, all of whom have suffered frequent injuries and had their game-time carefully managed.
Under Maresca, the club felt that the players were sometimes hurried back from injury against the advice of medical staff.
“Malo, Cole and Reece were precautionary,” said Rosenior. “I don’t want to take any risks at this stage of the season. They had minor tweaks or knocks.
“I feel like I’ve got such a good squad here that I don’t need to risk their health.
“I believe in this group. I believe in all of them. If we want have a really strong season, we need to use them. They’ve given me cause for optimism for the future.”
Rosenior now faces his first game game in charge against Arsenal in the Carabao Cup semi-final first leg on Wednesday before Brentford visit Stamford Bridge for his maiden Premier League fixture.
“Very happy with the attitude of the team even in the first half,” he said. “This (the Valley) is not an easy place to come. We controlled the game. Our press was very intense.”
Charlton boss Nathan Jones reflected on two soft goals given away by his side.
“For long periods we completed really well,” he said. “My biggest disappointment is the second and third goals. They killed us really. They are schoolboy. We can’t concede from that kind of set-play.
“We show them, we give them clear pictures about how to defend the edge of the box. That’s the frustration. We did something that cost us the game.”
