After the controversial game against London rival Tottenham Hotspur, the feeling at Chelsea was seemingly quite positive. The fans saw a better than expected performance from every player on the pitch last weekend, but they were brought back down to Earth at Elland Road. The performance at Leeds United showed that there is still a long way to go for the Blues. It is now very difficult to see the team earning a position in top four this season.
From the get-go, the Whites were on the front foot and pressed the life out of the Chelsea defence. Very early on, Conor Gallagher—who made his debut start for the club—threaded a pass to Raheem Sterling, whose effort went just wide of the post. Apart from this, the only other real effort came from Mason Mount’s shot that troubled Illan Meslier all match. That was as good as it got for the Blues. In the 33′, Edouard Mendy conceded a woeful goal by getting pick pocketed by Brendan Aaronson. The new Leeds signing walked the ball into the net to give the hosts the advantage early on. Four minutes later, Leeds United doubled its lead through Rodrigo, as he headed in Jack Harrison’s cross from a free kick. The lack of man-marking and awareness from even the likes of Thiago Silva and Reece James was astonishing.
In the second half, Chelsea tried to take hold of the game, but the energy level of the Whites was too much to cope for the the Blues’ players. They failed to score or even create any clear-cut chances. In the 69′, the game was all done and dusted by Harrison, who scored Leeds’ third goal to put the game to the bed. The day went from bad to worse as Kalidou Koulibaly was shown a second yellow in the 85′ to pile the misery on all Chelsea fans watching around the world. This will be a long season, it’s time to get ready for the rollercoaster.
Here’s how each of the Blues’ players fared in a woeful performance against Leeds United.
Edouard Mendy (Goalkeeper): 3/10
Mendy looked quite solid in the opening 30 minutes of the game. The Senegalese international had to make routine saves only up until that point. However, keeping the ball a second too long at his feet cost Chelsea the game, many fans feel. It was incredibly careless from the goalkeeper to try and dribble past the Leeds attackers, rather than just booting the ball away when under pressure. For the second and third goals, Mendy couldn’t have done much to keep them out, but the tempo shifted right after the first goal.
Reece James (Right centerback): 5/10
James was again deployed in the same right centerback role, just like he was when Chelsea played Tottenham Hotspur. When it comes to defending, James played pretty well and he restricted the Whites’ attacks. However, playing him in this centerback role means that the team cannot fully utilise James’ attacking ability and that was very telling throughout the game. He did come close to scoring in the 65′, only for Meslier to make a good save on his shot.
Thiago Silva (Centerback): 6/10
Silva had the same level of game he almost every time has: good arial clearances and interceptions in abundance. He was one of the better players on the day. But one thing supporters expected from Silva was for him to regroup the team when it was under pressure by the Leeds attackers. Unfortunately, Silva failed to do so, which was quite disappointing.
Kalidou Koulibaly (Left centerback): 4/10
Koulibaly got a really good feel for what Premier League football is all about in this game against Leeds United. From the get-go, Koulibaly was under pressure from the Whites’ attackers due to their high intensity gameplay and pace. The Senegalese international got booked early on in the game, which meant he had to be overly cautious throughout the game. Koulibaly should have done a lot of things better over the hour-and-a-half contest, and the day went from bad to worse after he was booked for the second time, resulting in a one-game suspension.
Ruben Loftus-Cheek (Right wingback): 5/10
After an amazing performance from Ruben Loftus-Cheek against Spurs, this game brings the English player down to earth as he essentially struggled to create any clear-cut chances in the first half. This clearly shows that Loftus-Cheek is not the perfect cover for James at the right wingback position, but only an imperfect solution. In the second half, Thomas Tuchel changed the system and played with three midfielders, out of which Loftus-Cheek was one of them.
Jorginho (Central midfielder): 4/10
Throughout his Chelsea career, Jorginho has always struggled with opponents that are very agile and quick to close him down. With Jorginho’s lack of pace comes the danger of him giving away the ball and turning over possession in dangerous positions—that is exactly what happened throughout the game on Sunday. Leeds United had a plan in mind to attack the Italian midfielder, and it worked wonders as he couldn’t create chances. He got dispossessed regularly.
Conor Gallagher (Central midfielder): 5/10
Conor Gallagher finally made his much-awaited full debut for the club, but it was not the best debut in recent memory. Gallagher showed signs of brilliance on the ball with his passing, but also gave away the ball more times than Tuchel would have wanted. His energy off the ball was also commendable, but with Leeds dominating the midfield, Gallagher couldn’t do much in terms of changing the outcome of the game. During the second half, Gallagher played a bit better after Tuchel changed the formation, indicating that the midfielder is more of a No. 8 than No 6.
Marc Cucurella (Left wingback): 6/10
Marc Cucurella was one of the better players for Chelsea on the day. He was solid on the ball, crisp with his passing and he did well to play the ball out of the Blues’ half when under pressure from Leeds attackers. Despite putting in a solid performance, Cucurella lacked the attacking threat a player like Ben Chilwell has in the opposition’s box. The Spanish international squandered a lot of chances, shooting the ball off target. Still, an upgrade on a player like Marcos Alonso nonetheless, but Cucurella still needs a lot of time to adapt to Tuchel’s system.
Mason Mount (Right winger): 5/10
Mason Mount had a very mixed match. He drifted in and out of the game and he wasn’t majorly involved in any of the little attacks Chelsea tried to create. In the first half, early on, Mount struggled. However, as the game went on, it seemed the English international got a hang of things. Unfortunately, his effort was saved by Meslier, and that was as good as it got. For the remainder of the game, Mount tried—but failed—to assert any kind of influence on the game.
Kai Havertz (Center forward): 4/10
The German international was by far the most disappointing player on the pitch for Chelsea in the eyes of many. Kai Havertz was anonymous for almost all of the game and he provided no threat to the Leeds back line. In the second half, the wunderkind connected the play a bit better with the front three, but to no good avail. In the past two seasons, we have seen that Havertz starts his scoring for the season late. Now, with a talented player like Armando Broja waiting on the wings, it feels like the Albanian international should be given a chance to impress.
Raheem Sterling (Left winger): 6/10
Raheem Sterling was by far the most dangerous player for Chelsea in the final third, troubling the Leeds back line regularly. The England international came close to scoring very early on, but just missed the target. When Sterling did put the ball back into the net, he was rightly ruled offside by fine margins. For the third game in a row, Sterling was the best attacker for the club without anything to show for it. Hopefully he carries his form and gets his much deserved reward.
Cesar Azpilicueta (Right centerback): 6/10
Cesar Azpilicueta replaced Sterling in the final few minutes of the game to fill in for Koulibaly, who was shown the red card. Azpilicueta couldn’t do much as the game as already done and dusted, but he did help provide some much-needed stability in the center of defense. It wouldn’t be surprising to see him called upon against Leicester City next weekend seeing as Koulibaly will be serving a suspension due to his sending off.
Christian Pulisic (Left winger): 5/10
Christian Pulisic came on for Gallagher in the 65′ after the manager changed the Blues’ formation to a 4-3-3. Pulisic tried to influence the game—first from the center of the midfield and then from further forward—but he was physically dealt with by the Leeds defenders. Unfortunately, not even numerous attacking substitutes could force Chelsea into Leeds’ final third.
Hakim Ziyech (Right winger): 6/10
Hakim Ziyech came on for Jorginho in the 65′ and just like Pulisic, he tried to influence the game going forward. The Moroccan unfortunately couldn’t do much to chance the outcome given the scenario when he was brought on. Given the situation, Ziyech looked like a much better player when on the pitch than those who were dragged off before him. The double-attacking substitution seemed a last-ditch effort from Tuchel to salvage something from the game.
Ben Chilwell (Left wingback): 5/10
Ben Chilwell came on for Mount in the 77′ to play left wingback when Cucurella dropped into the back line. Given the fact that he is getting some minutes under his belt, Chilwell looked solid during his cameo, but he couldn’t do much to influence the game in its dying moments.
What ratings would you give to each of the players? Let us know your thoughts in the comments or on Twitter!