Thomas Tuchel has had to go through a lot in the last few weeks, most of it has self-inflicted wounds as he suffered two of his most inexplicable losses during his time in SW6. Chelsea welcomed Real Madrid to Stamford Bridge and managed to be even worse than it was against Brentford last weekend. The Blues are now going to be 3-1 down when they go to a lively and packed Santiago Bernabeu for the second leg in a week’s time.
Here’s how poorly The Pride of London believes the players performed against Los Blancos:
Edouard Mendy (Goalkeeper): 0/10
Edouard Mendy was incredibly poor. His shot-stopping was way below par and his inexplicable error that led to Real Madrid’s third goal effectively summarizes his last two matches between the sticks. Again, there was an element of Mendy being hung out to dry by his back line, but when he was called upon, he was sometimes nowhere to be found.
Andreas Christensen (Right centerback): 3/10
Andreas Christensen showed zero spatial awareness when Karim Benzema split he and Thiago Silva with a run that left both centerbacks in no man’s land. His passing was good, but a defender’s job is not to pass first, it’s to defend. The Dane looked to be dreaming of the summer sun in Barcelona during his 45 minutes on the pitch.
Thiago Silva (Centerback): 3/10
Silva showed absolutely no leadership. The only thing the Brazilian did well on the evening was pass the ball. He lost his marker—Benzema—on the first two goals, which put the Blues in a massive hole early on. The fact that Silva only contested one aerial duel shows just how far off the pace he was. Chelsea’s defense was once again a disgrace, and this cannot continue.
Antonio Rudiger (Left centerback): 3/10
How people were able to push the silly narrative that any noteworthy club was considering enlisting in Antonio Rudiger’s services is baffling. The German has shown that there’s only so much protection a system can provide a player before their actual ability eventually shines through. Rudiger was even worse in this game than he was against Brentford, which is saying something considering he was the sole reason the Bees were able to get back in the game.
The third Real Madrid goal was more Mendy’s fault than Rudiger’s, but he also had a game to forget. The experienced veteran made just one defensive action while committing an error leading to a goal. His reaction to the pass from Mendy was slow, granted, Mendy’s pass was rubbish (and that’s being generous). The centerbacks had no communication on the night. It was the same thing fans saw against Brentford, only worse. This is why, despite Rudiger having less than two months left on his contract, no one is kicking down the door to secure his signature.