The Spireites fell to a 7-1 defeat in their opening Vertu Trophy fixture against Crewe Alexandra at the Mornflake Stadium.
Emre Tezgel’s brace alongside goals from Callum Agius and Louis Moult put the hosts in a commanding position at the break, despite Adam Lewis’ well-hit free-kick.
Tezghel completed his hat-trick in the second half before Adrian Thibaut and Olly Armstrong completed the scoring.
Wholesale changes were made from Saturday’s fixture – noticeably Devan Tanton made his return after injury.
Tezgel almost got on the scoresheet within the two minutes as he brought down a long throw before driving a low effort just wide of the goal.
The striker would find the back of the net just a couple of minutes later. Crewe broke forward with Olly Armstrong, who rolled the ball across for Tezgel to slot home.
He added a second goal in the sixth minute; Luca Moore set Tezgel free before placing the ball beyond Ryan Boot.
Ten minutes later, Crewe added a third goal. Agius broke free of the defence and the offside trap before slotting the ball into the back of the net.
The Spireites looked for a way back into the game as they started to control possession. Lewis brilliantly drilled a free-kick into the far corner in the 21st minute to reduce the deficit.
On the half-hour mark, the home side extended their lead as Moult headed the ball into the goal from Moore’s delivery.
Alex Whitney made his first-team debut as he replaced Tanton at the break.
Six minutes into the second half, Tezgel secured his hat-trick by making his way into the area and firing past Boot.
The home side were awarded a penalty four minutes later after Ryheem Sheckleford brought down substitute Thibaut. The forward dusted himself off and dispatched his spot kick.
Armstrong finished off the scoring with a driven low effort that bobbled along the ground and found the bottom right corner.
Chesterfield: Boot, Tanton (Whitney 46), Sheckleford, Grimes ©️, Lewis (Gordon 70), Naylor (Stirk 70), Fleck, Markanday (Darcy 70), Mandeville, Cook, Grigg (Bonis 70).
Subs not used: Hemming, Dobra.
