Chelsea met Manchester City in the Premier League three weeks before the two teams face each other in the UEFA Champions League final. In this dress rehearsal of the main event both the managers set their teams up to not give away any major tactical secrets. Pep Guardiola dropped Phil Foden to the bench and kept Kevin De Bruyne outside the squad. Thomas Tuchel, on the other hand, decided to give Mason Mount a rest.
Both the teams were cautious in their approach to the match, toying with each other but not really testing the goalkeepers for much of the first half. The breakthrough arrived just before half-time when Gabriel Jesus took advantage of a mistake by Andreas Christensen before playing a ball across the Chelsea box. Raheem Sterling – who was lucky to be on the pitch – scored after Sergio Aguero somehow missed his cue. Things went from bad to worse for Aguero, who missed a penalty two minutes later. The Argentine tried to pull a “Panenka” over Edouard Mendy, but the Senegalese stood in his spot much to his opponent’s embarrassment.
Chelsea came back much stronger in the second half and leveled the match three minutes past the hour. Hakim Ziyech fired in a fierce strike through Ederson in goal to bring back parity. The Blues were lucky to escape late punishment as the Citizens were denied what looked like a clear penalty. Remarkably, they then went ahead to win the match in exceptional circumstances, with Marcos Alonso grabbing a late winner.
Here’s how the players fared in the dress rehearsal:
Edouard Mendy (Goalkeeper): 8/10
There wasn’t much Mendy could’ve done to stop Manchester City’s opening goal. The Senegalese custodian was left scrambling across his goal-line as Sterling scored into a near-empty net. However, just moments later, Mendy had his big moment of the match. The Chelsea goalkeeper stood his ground to stop a “Panenka” penalty from Aguero, much to the embarrassment of the latter, and the amusement of those watching around the globe.
Cesar Azpilicueta (Centerback): 7/10
Azpilicueta returned to the centerback position after playing on the wing in recent matches. He put in yet another solid performance, restricting the City attackers to low probability shots, either from range or from a tight angle. There was the constant risk of players exploiting the gap between him and James, but the Spaniard covered his part of the pitch well.
Andreas Christensen (Centerback): 6/10
It was his costly error just before the break which allowed Manchester City to score the opening goal of the match. Christensen misread a long ball and then mistimed his clearance, injuring himself in the process. Gabriel Jesus took full advantage of the situation as he latched onto the ball before playing it across the goal for one of his onrushing teammates to tap in. Sterling did, further adding to Christensen’s misery. He was subbed off immediately after the goal due to the injury.
Antonio Rudiger (Centerback): 6.5/10
Some of Manchester City’s most dangerous attacks came down the left side. The Citizens exploited the gap left behind by Alonso with balls over the top, and Rudiger didn’t exactly cover himself in glory defending the space. The German was partially at fault for City’s opener as he got dragged higher, leaving in yards of space behind him for Jesus to run into. Christensen paid the price for that error.
Kurt Zouma (Centerback/Sub): 6.5/10
Zouma came on to replace Christensen for the second half after the Dane picked up an injury during City’s opening goal. He had some nervy moments in the match and very nearly conceded the foul that would’ve resulted in the Citizens’ second spot-kick of the night. However, he did make one excellent block to stop Sterling from scoring his second goal of the match.
Reece James (Right wingback): 9/10
James came alive in the second half, after a quiet first period. The Englishman tormented Benjamin Mendy through his surging runs, so much so that Guardiola eventually decided to take the Frenchman off for Oleksandr Zinchenko – not that the Ukrainian fared any better. He delivered several inviting crosses for the Chelsea attackers to finish and also had an assist canceled when Callum Hudson-Odoi’s strike was flagged for offside. It was a truly sensational attacking performance from the wingback, who had the entire City left flank on the strings for much of the second half.
N’Golo Kante (Central midfielder): 8/10
Either to freshen things up or to protect him from an injury, Tuchel decided to sub Kante off shortly after the hour mark. However, the Frenchman did enjoy another good 60 minutes out on the pitch breaking down Manchester City attacks – just as he did over 180 minutes against Real Madrid. There was a passage of play shortly before he was hooked off that defined what Kante is all about. The Frenchman won the ball three times in different areas of the pitch – all within the space of ten seconds.
Billy Gilmour (Central midfielder): 8.5/10
One could count the number of errors Gilmour made during the match on one hand. Apart from a couple of wayward passes in the first half – and the concession of a contentious penalty – the youngster put in a confident, controlled display. His passing was crisp and he escaped the City press with some excellent turns on a few occasions. Gilmour wasn’t too cautious with his distribution, as he constantly looked to play forward passes to his teammates in good positions. All in all, it was a great performance from the Scotsman against strong opposition.
Marcos Alonso (Left wingback): 8.5/10
Shortly after Manchester City had their penalty appeals turned down at one end, Alonso latched onto a defensive error on the other, before attempting an audacious chip over Ederson from a tight angle. On that occasion, the Brazilian denied the Spaniard by the tip of his fingers, but there was nothing the goalkeeper could’ve done to stop him from scoring the winner late on. Overall, it was the kind of performance we have come to expect from Alonso all year round. The wingback left gaps in behind while storming forward and did not have the pace to recover, although who cares when he comes up with the winner, right?
Jorginho (Central midfielder/Sub): 7/10
The Italian came on for Kante midway through the second half and barely put a foot wrong. He rotated the ball well and helped his side keep hold of the ball. There wasn’t much he had to do defensively as City decided to take the direct route more often than not.
Christian Pulisic (Right winger): 7.5/10
Pulisic had a largely frustrating night as he was well watched by Rodri for much of the match. The American did grow into the game as it progressed and the opponents began to tire. He grew more and more dangerous with each passing minute, turning his markers around and running directly at the defense. The attacker was at the heart of one of Chelsea’s best moves of the match in the second half, as he dribbled a long distance with the ball before playing in James who, in turn, set up Hudson-Odoi for the finish. The goal, unfortunately, was ruled out for offside.
Timo Werner (Striker): 8/10
It is great to see Werner regain more and more confidence with each passing match. The German put in a good display yet again, constantly making good runs in behind the defense. He had two goals ruled out for offside, although neither of them were close calls. Nevertheless, Werner did record one of the most meaningful actions of the night, as he assisted Alonso for the winning goal in second-half stoppage time.
Hakim Ziyech (Left winger): 8.5/10
The Moroccan’s stunning strike was the reason why Chelsea got back into the game. Ziyech took his goal extremely well, firing in a shot on the half-volley past Ederson in goal. This was one of the attacker’s more enjoyable outings in recent times after going through some difficult moments in his first season at the club. He also tested Ederson from range on a couple of occasions, with his first strike deriving a good save out of the Brazilian. He was substituted in the second half, with Hudson-Odoi taking his place.
Callum Hudson-Odoi (Left winger/Sub): 7.5/10
The youngster started well under Tuchel but has since been relegated to the bench. The sight of him alongside the fourth official on the touchline was a welcome one for the Chelsea fans, especially those who are curious as to why he has not seen more game time in recent weeks. He only came on for 20 minutes but had a major impact. The youngster was direct and took on the City defenders as they grew tired. He had one goal chalked off and one stolen by Alonso – although he won’t be complaining about that!
How would you rate the players in this one? Let us know in the comments and on Twitter!