Chelsea ratings: Rudiger, Kante and Hazard lead Blues’ best performance
By George Perry
Chelsea put in their best performance of the season in their penalty kick loss to Manchester City in the Carabao Cup final. The tactics, organization and individual showings gave fans plenty to be proud of despite the outcome.
Maurizio Sarri finally executed a Plan B, which looked a lot like his predecessors’ Plan A. Unsurprisingly, the winning formula nearly led to the typical Chelsea result: a trophy lift. The Blues lost on the lottery that is a penalty kick shootout, which should not detract from their efforts and output.
Kepa Arrizabalaga, Goalkeeper: 6.5
Kepa Arrizabalaga had a very quiet 115 minutes of football, particularly given the opponent he was facing. City only took three shots on goal, and the only one of those that was memorable was when Sergio Aguero put the ball in the net from an offsides position. Arrizabalaga made one good save in the penalty shoot-out to keep Chelsea in it after Jorginho opened with a miss, but should have stopped Aguero’s as it rolled right underneath his arm.
As to the other thing. Maurizio Sarri said it was a miscommunication. Kepa Arrizabalaga said it was a misunderstanding. That makes more sense than most of the overwrought tinfoil hat takes out there. If you want players who will fight for their place for the side, who show passion on the pitch, who want the game to be on their feet and in their hands, who would sacrifice their bodies for the badge, Kepa Arrizabalaga is your man, one who got carried away as 24-year olds in their first cup final sometimes do.
Cesar Azpilicueta, Right back: 7.5
On the subject of overwrought tinfoil hat takes, questioning Cesar Azpilicueta’s leadership because of what he did or didn’t do? Stop. As if there’s not enough actual football to talk about with this game and this club.
Azpilicueta was a big part of making Manchester City look like Chelsea usually do: toothless and self-gratifying in possession, glimpsing the goal only through a forest of Blue shirts. Azpilicueta battled with Raheem Sterling for the first hour until Chelsea took full control of the run of play. And while Sterling often emerged ahead of Azpilicueta, Azpilicueta interfered with Sterling enough to ensure nothing came out of his speed, dribbles, passes or positioning.
Azpilicueta’s only issue -and the entire Chelsea team had this – was forgetting that Sterling was still behind him in space when City concentrated play on Chelsea’s left. On the other side, though, when Chelsea had a minute or two in the first half where all three forwards were on Chelsea’s left-most side of the pitch, Azpilicueta knew where to be and call for a switch of play to the wide right. He didn’t get the ball, but he knew just where to be to support the play.
Antonio Rudiger, Centre back: 8
Rudiger planted his flag in John Terry and Branislav Ivanovic territory with this game. He was the physical, fiery leader the team needed and was more than willing to step into a block, whether against the ball or a Manchester City player. His anger at an offsides non-call in the first half was pitch perfect, even if it was misdirected. He blamed the linesman for keeping his flag down, not realizing David Luiz had played City onsides. Perhaps getting a faceful of Rudiger would have instilled some discipline in Luiz.
David Luiz, Centre back: 7
Textbook Luiz performance. He had some immense clearances, some perfectly-timed tackles and numerous examples of how potent is physicality is on both sides of the ball.
He also gifted City several chances, starting with a completely nonsensical hard backpass to Kepa Arrizabalaga with Sergio Aguero standing right between the two. Match official John Moss did a solid job keeping his cards in the pocket (although he went overboard in not booking Oleksandr Zinchenko), as Luiz could have seen more than the one he received in the 30′. Luiz had his obligatory free kick into the cheap seats, and was unlucky to ping his penalty off the post. Shades of John Terry there, but in the wrong way.
Emerson, Left back: 8
Like nearly everything else about the game, this was the performance from Emerson we have been waiting for. Emerson finally gave his supporters a game they can point to the next time they call for him to replace Marcos Alonso. He led the team in defensive actions, and only N’Golo Kante had more tackles.
Emerson connected the defence to Eden Hazard on the left and supported Hazard throughout the game as an outlet and with overlapping and underlapping runs. Marcos Alonso needed a rest, and that as much as anything may have factored into this decision. Now that he has had a chance to rejuvenate, he will need to attack training and his next start doubly hard. He finally has a reason to think he needs to fight for his place.