Chelsea's Cesc Fabregas stunned by Man City's line-up in FA Cup defeat

Chelsea midfielder Cesc Fabregas has slammed Manchester City manager Manuel Pellegrini's decision to play kids in a FA Cup clash, saying that he was stunned to see the line-up.

City suffered their biggest ever defeat at the hands of the Guus Hiddink-led side 5-1 at Stamford Bridge on Sunday.

Fabregas said City's surprising line-up was negative for his side, as it had put more pressure on Chelsea to win the match.

According to the Mirror, Pellegrini decided to field a weakened team against Chelsea because of the club's Champions League clash with Dynamo Kiev in Ukraine on Wednesday.

Pellegrini defended his decision, saying that he made the selection depending upon the availability of the players, the Guardian reported.

The Chilean manager further insisted that things would have been quite different if he had 20 players available. He added that six of his players were injured so he could not take risk of further injuries.

With the defeat, City have bowed out of the tournament while Chelsea will play against Everton in the quarter-final clash on March 12.