Chelsea dueling player ratings: Job just done against Atletico Madrid

Mason Mount (Right winger): 9/10

The worst part of Mount’s performance came in the first minute, when he was issued a frankly
ridiculous yellow card that will rule him out of the return leg in March. Apart from that bit of
harsh refereeing, Mount was essentially flawless. While Chelsea struggled to create dangerous
chances through measured build up play, Mount was able to take things into his own hands and
create opportunities through his dribbling and ability to take up useful positions all over the
attacking third. Ironically, the best thing Mount did all game was to not touch the ball that was
eventually lobbed towards Olivier Giroud for the game’s only goal. Had he made contact with
it, the goal would have been rightly ruled offside and we’d be a bit less excited. Overall,
another peerless display from Chelsea’s up-and-coming centerpiece.

Timo Werner (Left winger): 7/10

Always the willing runner, Werner offered the type of energy and persistence that we have
come to expect. Atletico’s defenders were constantly being dragged out of their well-drilled
routines as they stretched to keep Werner in front of them, something that created pockets of
space for Chelsea’s other attackers to work with. It was another one of those games where
statistics won’t be particularly kind to the German, but it didn’t take a genius to see that he was
certain a positive contributor for the Blues.

Olivier Giroud (Center Forward): 8.5/10

I mean, let’s not overcomplicate things. Giroud scored the only goal of the match practically
out of thin air, and it could very well be Chelsea’s goal of the season. Nothing leading up to that
moment would have led anyone to think Giroud was due for a goal in the match, as he waited
for decent service from wide players and set piece takers that just never hit the mark. And yet,
when the one fatal moment came, Giroud was mentally locked in and perfectly poised to take
advantage of the slim chance afforded to him by Mario Hermoso’s shanked clearance. That
type of mentality was the only way Chelsea was ever going to get through Atletico’s organized
defensive structure, by pouncing on the one moment of chaos conceded by an otherwise
stalwart group of defenders. He continues to be an absolutely world-class pragmatist of a
goal scorer.

Hakim Ziyech (Substitute at 74′): 7/10

Perhaps an odd choice of someone to help settle any jangled nerves late in a tight match, but
Ziyech did exactly what he needed to do, and just about created one last chance for Werner to
put the game to bed near the end. While it was a short cameo, it was arguably the best Ziyech
has looked since the group stage matches.

Christian Pulisic (Substitute at 87′): N/A

Kai Havertz (Substitute at 87′): N/A

How do you think the players fared? What ratings would you change? How do these ratings compare to the other ratings article? Let us know in the comments and on Twitter!