Chelsea’s players have rallied around Raheem Sterling in a public show of support after his struggles in the FA Cup.

The Blues forward endured a torrid time in Sunday’s thrilling quarter-final tie against Leicester at Stamford Bridge, missing a penalty and several other excellent chances to score in addition to ballooning a dreadful free-kick into the stands.

Such a notably below-par performance saw Sterling booed by some Chelsea fans both during the game and when he was replaced by Noni Madueke late on, while head coach Mauricio Pochettino was also met by mocking chants of ‘you don’t know what you’re doing’ from the home supporters after he earlier chose to take off the impressive Mykhailo Mudryk instead of Sterling when sending on Carney Chukwuemeka from the bench.

Pochettino’s changes ended up working out perfectly, with Chukwuemeka and Madueke both scoring in second-half stoppage time to avoid an extra 30 minutes and send beaten Carabao Cup finalists Chelsea back to Wembley for the second time in a matter of weeks, where they will meet current FA Cup holders Manchester City in the semi-finals next month.

The Blues won 4-2 in the end against the Championship leaders, with first-half goals from Marc Cucurella and Cole Palmer initially cancelled out by a disastrous Axel Disasi own goal and a stunning effort from Leicester’s Stephy Mavididi.

After his afternoon to forget, Sterling, once again left out of the latest England squad as the European Championship looms in the summer, took to social media to send his apologies to Chelsea fans and was met by a raft of supportive responses from his team-mates.

“Wembley Bound,” he wrote on social media. “To all the Chelsea fans, apologies for the Penalty miss. I’ll be back 10x times stronger to help the team win and continue to keep fighting for the badge every single day. Let’s Go Blues.”

Chelsea defender Trevoh Chalobah then replied: “We love you brother, one family.”

Palmer said: “My brother. S**t happens, no need to apologise.”

Madueke then wrote: “Bro no need to apologise.. we appreciate you.”

Ben Chilwell said: “Its football, it happens. We all appreciate you brother.”

Thiago Silva, Malo Gusto, Reece James, Nicolas Jackson, Robert Sanchez, Chukwuemeka, Benoit Badiashile, Enzo Fernandez and Lesley Ugochukwu were among the other Chelsea players to offer their support to Sterling on social media, along with former England team-mate Jadon Sancho.

Pochettino also backed Sterling after the win over Leicester, telling reporters: "It's obvious that I cannot hide anything. The feelings weren't good for him, but I'm going to support him and today is a great opportunity to support him.

"He has an unbelievable CV, he's played in big teams and he's an experienced player. He missed a penalty and some chances, but I'm happy with him and we are going to support him.

"The chance is to show we are building something. It's my decision as always to play with eleven players, always doing the best for the team, the club and fans. It's keep going, being strong and believing in the way we are doing things."

On the booing of his substitutions by Chelsea fans, Pochettino added: “I am not only here to do whatever the people want. Also, I am not stupid.

“We analysed Mudryk and he was tired, he was doing some stretching and we thought that maybe he would not finish the game. Then we decided to first go for Mudryk and then for Raheem.

“We need to see everything, we are professional and we want to win. I completely understand the situation, but that doesn't mean that I agree.

“We conceded a lot, they feel emotional because they're disappointed, but it's normal that they don't agree with some decisions because it's the feeling.

“We have very clever fans, they realise the situation and then when they are on the street, I am always open to talk with them and they show their support for us.

“They need to trust in the club. If I'm here, it is for decision of the club. It is not to trust in me or the players, it's to trust in what the club is doing and what they think is good for the club and the fans. Trust in everyone, not only me.”