Second-half goals from substitutes Alejandro Garnacho and Pedro Neto lifted Chelsea to a 3-1 victory over League One leaders Cardiff City, as Enzo Maresca’s side booked their place in the EFL Cup semi-finals and extended their winning run in the competition’s quarter-finals to six.

After a comfortable 2-0 league win over Everton at the weekend, Maresca admitted the build-up had been his “worst 48 hours” in charge of Chelsea, and a sluggish first-half display did little to improve his mood. The Italian made wholesale changes to his starting XI, and the Premier League side struggled to impose themselves in a hostile atmosphere at a sold-out Cardiff City Stadium.

Cardiff threatened first when Isaak Davies latched onto Joel Bagan’s through ball in the 23rd minute, but the winger hurried his effort and sent it wide. The hosts, buoyed by vocal home support, continued to frustrate Chelsea, whose only shot on target before the break came when Moises Caicedo split the defence with a precise pass for Marc Guiu, only for goalkeeper Nathan Trott to block the striker’s effort at the near post.

At the other end, Chelsea goalkeeper Filip Jorgensen reacted sharply to push Davies’ deflected cross onto the post and behind, ensuring the sides went into the interval level.

Maresca responded by introducing Joao Pedro and Garnacho at half-time, and the changes paid off within 12 minutes of the restart. Facundo Buonanotte intercepted a loose pass from Dylan Lawlor and teed up Garnacho, who calmly curled his shot into the far corner to break the deadlock.

Buonanotte went close to doubling the lead moments later, forcing Trott to tip his effort over the crossbar, but Cardiff refused to fade. Their persistence was rewarded with 15 minutes remaining when David Turnbull timed his run perfectly to meet Perry Ng’s cross and head home his first goal in 13 months, sparking wild celebrations in the stands.

The equaliser briefly had the stadium rocking, but Chelsea regained control seven minutes later. Neto struck low towards the far corner, and a deflection off Bagan wrong-footed Trott, restoring the visitors’ lead and making the Portuguese winger Chelsea’s outright top scorer this season.

Any lingering doubt was removed in stoppage time when Garnacho struck again to seal the win, ensuring Chelsea avoided a potential cup upset and eliminated the last remaining non-Premier League side from the competition.