Chelsea 2-0 Boro player ratings: Ziyech books ticket to Wembley

Timo Werner (Left winger): 6/10

Timo Werner replaced Pulisic and he had 22 minutes to make a case to start when the Blues resume club football. Suffice it to say, he didn’t do this. Werner did get on the end of a very good cross by Mount, but he couldn’t quite direct his header in the direction he wanted. The German was chasing shadows for most of his time on the pitch as he didn’t see much of the ball.

N’Golo Kante (Central midfielder): 6/10

N’Golo Kante did not do much when he came on. He was brought on to lock up shop and see out the game, which he did. The Frenchman was understandably more involved in proceedings than Werner, considering the positions they play. Kante did create a chance, but Chelsea ultimately gained nothing from his involvement.

Kenedy (Right winger): N/A

Kenedy played nine minutes. He made five touches and won one foul during his brief cameo. Tuchel wanted to give Kenedy match minutes and this was perhaps his best chance to do so.

Harvey Vale (Left winger): N/A

Harvey Vale won two duels and won a foul. He’s another player that seems to have gotten minutes because Tuchel would have been unable to give them to him later in the season.

Thomas Tuchel (Manager): 8.5/10

Tuchel clearly put a lot of thought into his selection for this match. He has been selecting strong teams since the third round of the competition. He rested Ziyech against Lille OSC so that the Moroccan would be fresh for the match. His decision to start Loftus-Cheek was also clever as the 26-year-old English midfielder has not gotten as many minutes as he would have liked thus far in the current campaign. Tuchel’s ability to create near-unique tactical solutions for each match is uncanny. There are already “greatest Chelsea manager ever” shouts, and while those are silly, the fact that Tuchel’s performance has prompted the argument—no matter how ridiculous—shows just how well the German has performed since he arrived.

All statistics from SofaScore unless otherwise stated.

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