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Chelsea player ratings vs. Morecambe: A dominant victory in the FA Cup

By Hridyam Arora

Chelsea's English midfielder Callum Hudson-Odoi (R) celebrates scoring their third goal during the English FA Cup third round football match between Chelsea and Morecambe at Stamford Bridge in London on January 10, 2021. (Photo by Ian KINGTON / IKIMAGES / AFP) / RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE. No use with unauthorized audio, video, data, fixture lists, club/league logos or 'live' services. Online in-match use limited to 120 images. An additional 40 images may be used in extra time. No video emulation. Social media in-match use limited to 120 images. An additional 40 images may be used in extra time. No use in betting publications, games or single club/league/player publications. / (Photo by IAN KINGTON/IKIMAGES/AFP via Getty Images)
Chelsea's English midfielder Callum Hudson-Odoi (R) celebrates scoring their third goal during the English FA Cup third round football match between Chelsea and Morecambe at Stamford Bridge in London on January 10, 2021. (Photo by Ian KINGTON / IKIMAGES / AFP) / RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE. No use with unauthorized audio, video, data, fixture lists, club/league logos or 'live' services. Online in-match use limited to 120 images. An additional 40 images may be used in extra time. No video emulation. Social media in-match use limited to 120 images. An additional 40 images may be used in extra time. No use in betting publications, games or single club/league/player publications. / (Photo by IAN KINGTON/IKIMAGES/AFP via Getty Images) /
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LONDON, ENGLAND – JANUARY 10: Kepa Arrizabalaga of Chelsea on the ball during the FA Cup Third Round match between Chelsea and Morecambe at Stamford Bridge on January 10, 2021 in London, England. Sporting stadiums around England remain under strict restrictions due to the Coronavirus Pandemic as Government social distancing laws prohibit fans inside venues resulting in games being played behind closed doors. (Photo by Clive Rose/Getty Images)
LONDON, ENGLAND – JANUARY 10: Kepa Arrizabalaga of Chelsea on the ball during the FA Cup Third Round match between Chelsea and Morecambe at Stamford Bridge on January 10, 2021 in London, England. Sporting stadiums around England remain under strict restrictions due to the Coronavirus Pandemic as Government social distancing laws prohibit fans inside venues resulting in games being played behind closed doors. (Photo by Clive Rose/Getty Images) /

Chelsea put on a dominant display against Morecambe in the FA Cup, but how did each of the Blues perform on an individual level?

Chelsea advanced to the fourth round of the FA Cup after a dominant performance on Sunday, comfortably defeating Morecambe, 4-0. Despite facing a lowly opponent, Frank Lampard decided to go for a strong line-up, with the likes of Timo Werner, Kai Havertz and Hakim Ziyech all starting. It was pretty understandable why he did that though, as he wanted his team to qualify and he wanted his out-of-form players to get a chance to boost their confidence a little bit. The Blues struggled for goals early on, but the players put in a dominant display, it was all smooth sailing.

Chelsea performed well on a team level, but here are the individual player ratings:

Kepa Arrizabalaga (Goalkeeper): 6/10

To be honest, Kepa Arrizabalaga didn’t see the ball much in this game. Chelsea pretty much had it under control for the entirety of the game, controlling 84 percent of possession, and Arrizabalaga was rarely forced into action. He saved one early cross from awkwardly going into the goal, which looked easy, but actually was a very good save—that’s all though. He passed the ball around well enough. The Spaniard did not have a lot to do, but he did his job well regardless.

Cesar Azpilicueta (Right back): 6.5/10

Cesar Azpilicueta was both bad and good. He had a great cross to Kai Havertz for the Blues’ final goal, but he also had a few sloppy passes, a few weird touches and was just clumsy in possession going forward. He provided a lot of overlaps with Ziyech going into the half-space, but in general, had both pros and cons on Sunday.

Kurt Zouma (Centerback): 6/10

Kurt Zouma wasn’t bad by any means, but like Arrizabalaga, he wasn’t tested that much. The ball rarely ever got to Chelsea’s box, and whenever it did, Zouma and his partner Antonio Rudiger cleared everything out with ease. Believe me, it didn’t happen very often. Zouma had good distribution, a few solid interventions and did what he was asked. He was subbed off for Fikayo Tomori in the 80′.

Antonio Rudiger (Centerback): 6/10

Rudiger had a very similar game to Zouma, but he was a little more dangerous than the Frenchman when it came to set pieces. The German actually connected with the ball on a few occasions whenever it was dinked in from corners; none of them were close though. As for the rest, he did what was necessary—nothing too fancy.

Emerson (Left back): 6/10

Emerson’s position was left back, but honestly, it didn’t feel like it. In fact, if you watched the game, you’d know how he performed. The Italian was almost always in the attack; from taking long shots to actually being inside the box trying to put the ball into the net. Emerson was, quite literally, all over the place. At one point, you could actually see him playing at the position of a central midfielder—his lack of proper positioning deducted points as Lampard surely didn’t instruct him to be this involved.

Fikayo Tomori (Centerback): N/A

Tomori came on late in the second half and saw out the game; nothing noteworthy.

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