TEENAGER Ruben Loftus-Cheek was delighted to score his first Chelsea goal as they extended their unbeaten streak to five matches with a 2-0 victory over League One side Scunthorpe in the third round of the FA Cup at Stamford Bridge.
Diego Costa fired the Blues ahead with his eighth goal of the season after 13 minutes, slotting Branislav Ivanovic's cross into the bottom corner from the edge of the six-yard box as the Barclays Premier League side gained the advantage.
Second-half substitute Loftus-Cheek, who replaced Oscar at the break, made it 2-0 after 68 minutes with his first senior goal to put Chelsea into the pot for the fourth round for the 18th consecutive season.
Loftus-Cheek said afterwards: "[It was a] really nice moment when I got the goal. I'm really, really happy with that. Just to come on and play 45 minutes was amazing."
The strike came from the 19-year-old's first shot on target for Chelsea and he laughed: "One for one - 100 per cent, I'll try to keep that going and I was just happy to come on and help the team."
Loftus-Cheek believes interim boss Guus Hiddink has lifted the spirits of the Chelsea squad: "I'm really pleased to play for him, he's a really nice man as well as a good manager," he said.
"It's been different, obviously with a change of managers, but we've got to get on with it and I feel we did really well."
Hiddink reserved praise for Loftus-Cheek, admitting he thought the teenager was in his early 20s when the Dutchman first joined the club last month.
He said: "We have these youngsters and I know them now after three to four weeks and I know their abilities and, when it's a possibility, an option, I don't hesitate to bring them in.
"It was a lovely clean finish. He waits, he waits, he waits and he comes in at the right moment. He can be of big value now. He's 19, [but] I thought he was 22, 23 when I came in, he's a proper grown player already, but he's 19 - we have to be careful on the one hand and, on the other, I said 'hey guys, get it done' and we didn't hesitate. We're in a difficult situation to finish in fourth place in the Premier League, so I say 'okay, give [the younger players] a try'."
On Chelsea's chances of reaching the top four, Hiddink added: "Mathematically, yes. [Realistically], it's rather difficult.
"You see the league is so, so strong. All the clubs can go for fourth position. But meanwhile, I think it's good to see young players knocking on the door. It's not always easy for them. They have to get confronted with the life of the Premier League, which is a tough league."
Chelsea were handed a let-off when referee Craig Pawson denied Scunthorpe a second-half penalty, despite Ramires tangling with Kevin van Neen in the box. Scunthorpe manager Mark Robins admitted he was proud of his side and was disappointed over the penalty shout.
He said: "I think we gave a really good account of ourselves and tried.
"I am proud [of them]. I think they were good. They're a good set of lads and I was just hoping we'd get a goal. We've given everything we could.
"[We] had one or two opportunities and the goalkeeper's made some good saves, a penalty shout. It's very difficult as they filmed it [the penalty shout] from the top of the stand. The analyst thought it was a penalty. It was just one of those things, I think. Sometimes when you come to places like this, you get the decision from the referee and we just didn't get it today.
"There's some really good players there. We've had injuries to key players and we're hoping for a decent second-half to the season to get some continuity going."
