Young players came 'out of the shadows' - Bell

Emre Tezgel scored a first senior hat-trick in the 7-1 win over Chesterfield

Crewe boss Lee Bell says his young players came "out of the shadows" as they thrashed Chestefield 7-1 in the Vertu Trophy.

Emre Tezgel, 19, on loan at Crewe from Stoke, scored his first senior hat-trick in the victory, including two in the first six minutes.

Bell told BBC Radio Stoke: "People go 'it's a young side, they've got to come out of the shadows'. I think they did that against a really strong Chesterfield side."

Crewe are top of the Northern Group H after the win, which followed back-to-back defeats in League Two against Gillingham and Swindon.

Tezgel became Stoke's youngest first-team player when he made his debut in an FA Cup tie against Leyton Orient as a 16-year-old in January 2022 and has made 23 senior appearances, including 17 across all competitions last season.

"It's a great feeling to score a hat-trick," he said. "The result was big for the team and it was great to bounce back from Saturday [against Swindon].

"All strikers want to score goals and getting three has boosted my confidence massively.

"I want to carry on going and take that confidence into the next game."