Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Mason Mount scored second-half goals to send Chelsea into their third consecutive FA Cup final with a 2-0 win over Crystal Palace at Wembley.

On a glorious Easter Sunday afternoon in London, substitute Loftus-Cheek's first goal of the season (65) and Mount's composed finish 11 minutes later were enough to book a meeting with seven-time winners Liverpool on May 14.

After a quiet and uneventful start, the best chance of the first half fell to Palace, Cheikhou Kouyate's volleyed drive forcing Edouard Mendy into a fine save before Joachim Andersen hit a post with the rebound but was ruled offside.

The tie needed a moment of magic and Loftus-Cheek, who had replaced the injured Mateo Kovacic in the 26th minute, delivered just that 20 minutes into the second period.

Player ratings

Chelsea: Mendy (7), Azpilicueta (7), Christensen (7), Rudiger (7), James (7), Jorginho (7), Kovacic (6), Alonso (7), Mount (7), Havertz (6), Werner (7).

Subs: Loftus-Cheek (8), Ziyech (n/a), Lukaku (n/a), Kante (n/a).

Crystal Palace: Butland (6), Ward (5), Guehi (7), Anderson (5), Mitchell (6), Kouyate (6), McArthur (7), Schlupp (7), Zaha (6), Eze (6), Mateta (6).

Subs: Ayew (6), Benteke (n/a), Olise (n/a).

Man of the match: Ruben Loftus-Cheek.

Palace left-back Tyrick Mitchell was caught on the ball and, after a couple of quick one-touch passes saw Kai Havertz advance into the box, his half-cleared effort was smashed home by Loftus-Cheek via a slight deflection for the opener.

The 26-year-old, who spent the 2017-18 season on loan at Palace, punched the air in celebration as he ended a Chelsea goal drought stretching back to May 9, 2019.

Eleven minutes later and Chelsea put the result beyond doubt. Timo Werner's simple square ball from the edge of the box was nicked past Andersen by Mount's first touch, the England international then burying a finish beyond Jack Butland with his second for his 12th goal of the campaign.

After losing to Arsenal in 2020 and Leicester last year, Chelsea will hope it is third time lucky at Wembley next month when they target a ninth FA Cup title. The result also capped a successful day for the club, with Chelsea Women having earlier progressed to their third FA Cup final in five years after beating Arsenal 2-0.

Loftus-Cheek: I always believed in myself

Loftus-Cheek told ITV Sport: "It's been a tough road, injuries and going on loan to find my form again, I always believed in myself and I always wanted to play for Chelsea.

"The reason I'm still here is my mentality. I still believe in myself. I said for many years my time will come.

"Everyone wants to play and I feel I've done well in the last couple of games and wanted to keep the momentum. The strength in depth in the squad is fantastic but I have to be ready to step in."

Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel said: "This is what he shows in training but it's not enough, you need to show it on the pitch.

"I think he hides his talent for a long time. This is the way to go and for him it's step-by-step and he can continue to grow in his confidence.

"It was not easy because we played three games in three different competitions. It was very challenging physically and we are the team with the most minutes in Europe.

"The performance was very controlled, very serious."

What's next?

Chelsea host Arsenal in the Premier League on Wednesday at 7.45pm - live on Sky Sports Premier League. Up next for Crystal Palace is a trip to Newcastle at the same time.

Teams

Chelsea Mendy, Azpilicueta (c), Christensen (Silva 82), Rudiger, James, Jorginho (Kante 77), Kovacic (Loftus-Cheek 26), Alonso, Mount (Ziyech 77), Havertz (Lukaku 77), Werner
Subs Not Used Kepa, Sarr, Saul, Pulisic
Booked Havertz
Goals Loftus-Cheek 65, Mount 76

Crystal Palace Butland, Ward, Andersen, Guehi, Mitchell, Kouyate Milivojevic 85), McArthur (c) (Olise 72), Schlupp (Benteke 72), Eze, Mateta (Ayew 55), Zaha
Subs Not Used Guaita, Clyne, Kelly, Tomkins, Edouard
Booked
Goals

Attendance 76,238

Referee Anthony Taylor

VAR John Brooks