Chelsea player ratings: Reece James has outgrown being a “prospect”
By Nate Hofmann
Jorginho, Midfielder: 7
There’s still no one who seems to have figured out Jorginho’s hopscotch penalty technique. Nick Pope became the most recent keeper to be rendered helpless as he watched the ball hit the back of the net to open the scoring.
Apart from that moment, Jorginho wasn’t up to much. Fortunately, Chelsea didn’t need much out of him.
Frank Lampard fielded a decidedly attacking midfield, with Jorginho predictably playing as the most conservative of the three. That’s not to say he was just a passenger in the match, but outside of his penalty, it was an otherwise uneventful day.
Ross Barkley, Midfielder: 7
Not too shabby, Ross! Between injuries and just being way, way down the pecking order, Barkley has been a non-factor for a majority of the season. After a solid performance against Nottingham Forest in the FA Cup last weekend, another start was justified, especially given the late injury to N’Golo Kante.
Barkley was a willing facilitator in the attacking third, and decided against a number of low-percentage, long-range shots. It’s not hard to imagine him going for the spectacular during a rare appearance in hopes of catching the eye of Frank Lampard, but it says a lot about his maturity and selflessness that he went against that instinct.
Will this mean more minutes for Barkley going forward? We’ll see, but he can certainly hold his head high after this performance.
Mason Mount, Midfielder: 7
This was another example of what is becoming a trend for Mount: an overall positive performance without any tangible returns. He’s certainly not the prototypical midfielder in a 4-3-3, but he showed his surprising strength and toughness against a rugged Burnley side.
He’s someone who could really use a goal, and he had one decent effort that was saved by Pope. Much like Willian, Mount was another cog in an efficient and dominant team performance.