Chelsea 1-0 West Ham player ratings: Christian Pulisic saves the day

Romelu Lukaku (Striker): 7/10

Romelu Lukaku was very good against West Ham. He pressed very well and he was willing to track back in crucial moments in the game. The Belgian made a priceless contribution to the game by winning a penalty late on, and in the process, getting one of West Ham’s few fit centerbacks sent off. Unfortunately, the penalty did not result in Chelsea taking the lead, but that part was out of his control as he was not the designated penalty taker.

Hakim Ziyech (Right wingback): 6/10

Hakim Ziyech helped a few times to link up play and tried a few crosses. He came on for Loftus-Cheek, effectively playing as a right wingback for the duration of his say on the pitch.

Christian Pulisic (Left winger): 8/10

Many fans had very strong words after reading this piece because they didn’t agree that Pulisic’s dribbling wasn’t that great. One of the main points made in that piece was that the American was much better at getting into goal scoring positions, whether starting or coming on from the bench. Disagree? No player has converted more big chances than Pulisic for Chelsea this season. Altogether, Pulisic has been on the end of 10 big chances this season, only Havertz has been presented with more.

Thomas Tuchel (Manager): 6/10

Thomas Tuchel nearly dropped the ball on this one. He insisted on playing Mount—who he knew was tired. Admittedly, the forwards he has been selecting have been in form, but he did a poor job of rotating them. His substitutes came way too late on Sunday, especially because those on the pitch were more or less stinking up the place. Mount was on the pitch for way too long, and so was Werner. None of the starting front three played well. Chelsea needed to force the issue, and while it was good Tuchel brought on all three subs at the same time, if he had started making substitutions much earlier, he wouldn’t have needed to bring three substitutes at once.

What rating would you give each of the players? Let us know in the comments or on Twitter!