It was never going to be easy. Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich put his team under tremendous pressure as he announced just 60 minutes before kickoff that he was selling the club that he’s owned since 2003. Thomas Tuchel’s side already had its work cut out for it with a number of key players missing through either fatigue or injury. Nevertheless, the Blues were able to come from behind on two occasions and narrowly defeat Luton Town away from home on a cold, wet night 35 miles north of England’s capital.
The Championship side took the lead in the 2′ via a corner as Reece Burke rose above Malang Sarr to fire the Hatters ahead. Saul responded with a goalazo to open his Chelsea account 25 minutes later before the French centerback inexplicably gave away the lead again. The Blues went into halftime 2-1 down and the scoreline remained unchanged until Timo Werner came to life and leveled the match with 25 minutes remaining in the cup tie. The German found the feet of Romelu Lukaku 10 minutes later with his sumptuous cross and the Belgian made no mistake. In the end, it was a victory that showed a lot of character from the away side under tough circumstances.
Here is how each player fared as Chelsea booked its place in the FA Cup quarterfinals:
Kepa Arrizabalaga (Goalkeeper): 6/10
Kepa Arrizabalaga needed a rock-solid performance to bounce back from the letdown at the weekend. Unfortunately, he did not have a great outing. The Spaniard watched helplessly as two goals found the back of the net in the first half. To his defense, the back line in front of him was the definition of provisional, but Arrizabalaga didn’t do much to cover himself in glory either. It was a quiet second half where the No. 2 shot-stopper didn’t have much to do. Arrizabalaga did just enough in the game to see the Blues through, which is what was essentially asked of him.
Antonio Rudiger (Right centerback): 7.5/10
This wasn’t the best Antonio Rudiger performance we’ve ever seen. Then again, was it ever going to be? Rudiger was the only starting defender with an abundance of game time as of late and he looked the part of the experienced, level-headed (as much as the German can be) centerhalf. Rudiger was strong when called into action and he didn’t put a foot wrong, unless you count the long range effort he tries every game, which failed to hit the target. Solid outing from Rudiger.
Ruben Loftus-Cheek (Centerback): 8.5/10
Ruben Loftus-Cheek wasn’t solely responsible for the Blues conceding two first half goals, nor was he not responsible, if that makes sense. Loftus-Cheek’s communication with his “fellow defenders” was shaky to start. He grew into the game though, especially in the second half. The English midfielder began to be a catalyst late on when he made surging runs from deep to spark attacks. It was his ball over the top from the centerback position that saw Werner through on goal to level the match for a second time. Loftus-Cheek was pushed into midfield later in the match, where he continued to put on a show. The 26-year-old was a savior of sorts on the night.
Malang Sarr (Left centerback): 3/10
It was a shocking game for the Frenchman, easily his worst during his time at Chelsea. Sarr’s poor marking led to the opener from a corner in the 2′ and he inexplicably played Harry Cornick onside for the second goal. The communication was understandably missing in this one with a makeshift back line, but this was a huge opportunity for the 23-year-old to step up and leave his mark on the campaign—he failed miserably. Nevertheless, his awful outing at Luton cannot be allowed to overshadow the utility man’s usefulness throughout the season.
Callum Hudson-Odoi (Right wingback): 5/10
Callum Hudson-Odoi was a passenger for most of the game. He simply doesn’t look comfortable as a right wingback and that’s understandable. The young winger wasn’t at fault for either goal, which is good as his defense is the quality he lacks when it comes to being an effective wide hybrid defender. Hudson-Odoi’s interplay with Mason Mount was decent, he just lacked creativity going forward. I think it’s time for all of us to just stop judging Hudson-Odoi in these games as he’s so obviously not a good fit in this role. Luckily, Chelsea didn’t need anything special from him on the night to see out the contest.
Jorginho (Central midfielder): 6/10
Jorginho didn’t do anything to deserve a good or bad rating. His ability to dictate tempo was supposed to be key to the way the Blues played against Luton. However, an early goal and the inability of the visitors to have lengthy spells of possession early on threw a wrench into those plans. Jorginho was substituted halfway through the second half as he made way for Reece James. This change allowed Loftus-Cheek to slot into midfield.
Saul (Central midfielder): 8.5/10
Saul was easily the best player on the pitch for the Blues in an otherwise abysmal first half. He continued his solid showing into the second half. Even though he may be overlooked in the grand scheme of things by the positive performances of Loftus-Cheek and others, it was still the performance of the Spaniard’s season so far. The effort shown by Saul on the night was commendable for sure as he inspired a comeback at Kenilworth Road.
Kenedy (Left wingback): 5/10
It was a second debut of sorts (if you want to call it that) for the Brazilian as he made his first senior team appearance for the Blues in four years. There were a few moments of flare every now and again from Kenedy, but he didn’t do anything significant as a left wingback. His outing against the Hatters didn’t really inspire confidence about the club’s decision to keep him as the emergency wingback cover until Ben Chilwell returns.
Mason Mount (Right winger): 7/10
Mount followed up his uncharacteristically bad outing on Sunday in the Carabao Cup final with a bang average performance against Luton Town. Mount tried to drop deep and pick up possession when the Blues were struggling to hold onto the ball in the first half. Most of his efforts were wasted on those around him failing to pull their own weight. However, Chelsea’s star boy didn’t do anything spectacular either. The English attacking midfielder really needed to bounce back from his wasteful showing at the weekend. He failed to do this, putting on an OK display. All of that said, it is nice to see him fully fit once again after his recent stint on the sidelines.
Romelu Lukaku (Striker): 7.5/10
It was the same old story from the Belgian talisman. Lukaku—similar to every one of his teammates—struggled in the first half mightily. He didn’t get too involved in the game. Lukaku did have more than seven touches, which is a huge positive. The 28-year-old dropped deep to pick up the ball on a few occasions and moved around the front line with Werner alongside him. In the end, it was Lukaku who put the finishing touch on the German’s cross to send the Blues through into the FA Cup quarterfinals. He scores slightly higher than Mount due to the game-deciding goal he scored at the end. Lukaku’s 11th goal of the campaign aside, an average outing at Luton Town.
Timo Werner (Left winger): 9/10
It was a tale of two halves from Werner on the evening. He looked like a zombie in the first half, strolling around the small pitch at Kenilworth Road, minding his own business. The 25-year-old was so obviously low on confidence that his poor ball control saw him stumble his way into an assist on Saul’s opening goal. The top flight’s offside flag and VAR have obviously scarred Werner as he failed to celebrate his goal. Nevertheless, that doesn’t change the fact it was a tremendous run that would’ve counted all the same in a game with replay on call when needed. He capped off his dazzling second half showing with a scintillating low cross into the area, which Lukaku promptly got on the other end of to bury the Hatters once and for all.
Christian Pulisic (Right wingback): 7/10
Christian Pulisic looked confident, even though he was forced to play deeper as Hudson-Odoi’s replacement at right wingback. He positively influenced play when going forward, helping the Blues secure a statement win on the night. There isn’t much to say about his defensive work as he came on in the 62′, when Luton was still nursing a lead and could afford to sit back. Pulisic didn’t do anything truly of note, he was much more involved and better overall than Hudson-Odoi though, so the rating reflects that fact.
Harvey Vale (Central midfielder): 7.5/10
It was great to see the young attacker get involved for a nice chunk of time. Harvey Vale was very good in his outing earlier in the campaign against Brentford, which makes Chelsea fans wonder why we haven’t seen more of him in these deep cup runs. He came on alongside Pulisic around the 60′ mark and slotted into central midfield, kicking Saul over to left wingback. Vale looked to be in a creative mood as he tried a series of complex passes over the top and back-heel flicks during his half hour cameo. Although he didn’t record a goal or assist, he was still a welcomed addition.
Reece James (Right centerback): 7/10
James came on as a tactical substitution that allowed Loftus-Cheek the chance to move further up the pitch and thus, get himself more involved. The English defender helped the Blues calmly see out the result after going ahead, all while getting minutes under his belt as he continues to recover from a long-term injury. James even helped out in attack when he was given the opportunity to march forward, something opponents will never have to send him a second invitation to do.
Thomas Tuchel (Manager): 8/10
There was a lot that could have gone wrong tonight. Truthfully, few would’ve blamed Tuchel for the struggles either. Chelsea had its work cut out for it already with a trip to a hostile away ground to face a playoff-contending Championship club, on the back of a heartbreaking loss in the Carabao Cup final. Add on the Abramovich news and the game status for a lot of first team players and it looked grim early on. Alas, Tuchel was able to inspire a comeback from his makeshift team.
The gaffer’s substitutions worked to perfection, he allowed a lot of key figures to get a rest and he managed to guide his side into the FA Cup quarterfinals. Tuchel gets some points off for some of the decisions he made in the starting XI, but this author must also take into account the limited options he had at his disposal.
What rating would you give to each of the players? Let us know in the comments or on Twitter!