Chelsea's FA Cup victory over Aston Villa labelled 'setback for English football' by Liverpool legend Jamie Carragher

Chelsea's commendable 3-1 win propelled them to a place in the fifth round of the FA Cup. It was a crucial win for the Blues as it relieved much of the mounting pressure on under-fire manager Mauricio Pochettino amid their disastrous league form. However, Carragher did not view it as an occasion to celebrate and instead believes that the triumph signifies a broader issue within English football.

Writing in a column in The Telegraph, Carragher said: "With apologies to Chelsea fans, Aston Villa’s midweek defeat in the FA Cup replay is a setback for English football.

"Villa had the ability to go all the way to those Wembley steps. Their loss means that it is highly likely the three major domestic honours will again be shared between the same clubs, underlining how difficult it is to emerge from the pack so the trophy engravers are spelling out different names."

Carragher pointed out the dominance of a select few clubs, including Chelsea, Manchester United, Manchester City, and Arsenal, in major competitions over the years and added: "Since the Premier League was formed in 1992, there have only been three seasons in which the title was not won by Manchester United, Manchester City, Chelsea or Arsenal.

"Over that period, there are only four years in which one of those clubs or Liverpool did not lift the FA Cup. The chances of anyone other than those five winning the League Cup have been better, but not lately. The last team outside of the Manchester clubs, Chelsea and Liverpool to win the competition was Swansea City in 2013. By May, it is likely that 80 out of the last 96 major domestic trophies will have been paraded at the same five venues. This is a healthy situation for the serial winners, but not for our game. We need more variety in the honours' lists. The reason for that is not just the power and wealth of the ‘big five’. Those just below them should have done better"

Despite an underwhelming league form, Chelsea could end up winning two trophies in Pochettino's debut season. They have already set up a Carabao Cup final date against Liverpool at Wembley and will face Leeds in the FA Cup fifth round for a spot in the last-eight in the final week of February. Meanwhile, they have three blockbuster league fixtures against Crystal Palace, Manchester City and Tottenham in what could be a decisive February for Enzo Fernandez and Co.