Chelsea ratings vs. BATE: Maurizio Sarri mails it in, players follow his lead
Eden Hazard, left winger: 7
Chelsea fans would have been happy to see Eden Hazard line up for this game, all recovered from his injury that kept him out of action for the last few weeks. As the game wore on and Hazard stayed on, those same people became increasingly frustrated he wasn’t being subbed to rest for the weekend game against Everton. It was a nice stretch of the legs for him in a game he did not boss, but ultimately did not need bossing. Chelsea never got out of first gear, and neither did the Belgian.
Olivier Giroud, striker: 7.5
The man has waited long enough to get his first goal of the season. 794 minutes, to be exact. He didn’t have the best performance by any stretch, as he struggled to replicate the always effective, sometimes downright telepathic connection he had with Hazard at the start of the season. But it takes two to tango, and neither were really at the races today. I’m mixing metaphors, but the point still stands.
Pedro, right winger: 6.5
Pedro had an indifferent game going forward. He made short passes around the box with little penetration. His most obvious impact on this game was his defensive work, regularly tracking back to tackle the ball carrier or to cover for an uninterested Ruben Loftus Cheek.
Willian, left wing (62′): 7
Willian looked positive, and was a much needed substitute for the last half hour as Hazard continues to recover. He dropped deep to pick the ball up but dribbled better than the two starting wingers and was overall positive.
Mateo Kovacic, midfielder (64′): 7
Kovacic came on and looked better than Loftus-Cheek, but it was a pretty low bar. Kovacic brought some much needed energy and positivity to the midfield, driving forward with runs and generally looking forwards first and not sideways.
Callum Hudson-Odoi, winger (85′): N/A
The bad things about this cameo are that he only got eight minutes, and in those eight minutes he barely touched the ball. The good things are that it means that the manager does, in fact, know he exists, and that Chelsea’s win puts them through to the knockout stages. That could mean some longer appearances in the remaining group stage games.
Maurizio Sarri, head coach: 5
During games like these it feels as if Sarri gives all of his attention to the best XI, and then just throws the rest on for smaller games. We saw a midfield that had not played together before, and a defense that looked as if it had not played together before. His man-management has done wonders for Ross Barkley, but youngsters like Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Andreas Christensen have not responded well at all. Meanwhile Callum Hudson-Odoi must surely be getting frustrated at his lack of playing time.
Next. Mateo Kovacic is worth the price for Chelsea despite the shallow stats. dark
This is the second game in a row in which the second-string lineup did little to deserve a win, but walked away with one anyway.