Chelsea reached the FA Cup quarterfinals Tuesday, winning a replay 2-0 at Birmingham in its first match since firing coach Andre Villas-Boas. Juan Mata and Raul Meireles scored second-half goals to take the Premier League club through to a meeting with another second-tier side, Leicester. Roberto Di Matteo, who has stepped up from his role as Villas-Boas' assistant to lead the team for the rest of the season, left Frank Lampard, Didier Drogba, Michael Essien and Daniel Sturridge out of his starting lineup. Although the influence of experienced players was widely cited by British newspapers as being central in Chelsea's poor performances under Villas-Boas, Di Matteo's decision may have been motivated by a desire to keep them fresh for the club's ailing challenge for Champions League qualification. Tevez scores on public comeback Carlos Tevez marked his first public appearance for Manchester City in more than five months with a goal as the Premier League leaders' reserves beat Bolton 3-1 Tuesday. Tevez, who played for 45 minutes behind closed doors last week, appeared in front of a crowd of more than 1,000 boosted by media personnel in the Manchester district of Hyde. The Argentina striker who had come close with a first half free-kick, scored City's equalizer in the 51st minute when he finished off a cross from fellow forward Harry Bunn from close range. Tevez was substituted shortly after his goal.
