All Chelsea players reached the Round of 16 of the 2022 World Cup except Kai Havertz. These fresh matches were always going to be even more difficult than the group stage matches, and it has to be said before anything else that the players gave all they could.
Only five Blues remain in the World Cup after the Knockout stages: Thiago Silva, Mateo Kovacic, Mason Mount, Raheem Sterling, and Hakim Ziyech. Six if you include Conor Gallagher, who has not played one minute of football in the competition as of yet.
Edouard Mendy, Chelsea (Goalkeeper) and Senegal
Mendy did not have a good game against England but the scoreline paints him in a worse light than in reality. Of the three goals that the Senegalese conceded on the night, Mendy could’ve done better for the first one, as the shot missed his wrist by a hair’s width, but had he parried it, it would have fallen to Bukayo Saka anyway. The other two goals were more down to Senegal’s inability to defend their box than anything Mendy did or didn’t do.
Kalidou Koulibaly (Centerback) Senegal
Koulibaly also had a bad game, but also not because he particularly dropped a stinker. He was part of a backline that performed very poorly in marking opponents in their box, and as team captain, deserves blame. Some have tried to blame him for England’s second goal, and wrongly so. The fact that Senegal was left in a 2-v-1 situation from the halfway line with Koulibaly desperately backpedaling indicates that the defensive structure of the team had collapsed and Koulibaly was the only one in position. There was literally nothing else he could’ve done to prevent it.
Thiago Silva (Centerback) Brazil
Silva was sublime against South Korea. His highlight was providing the perfect through pass to Richarlison from the top of the South Korea penalty area. The CFC veteran was so far forward that he was operating in Zone 14 in that moment pretty much. He completed 6/9 long balls.
Mateo Kovacic (Central midfielder) Croatia
The Chelsea midfielder was very good against Japan. He helped keep control of the midfield with his work rate and passing. He was very good defensively too. He was subbed off in extra time, probably to preserve him in case he was needed for the next round, and probably because Croatia needed fresh legs on the pitch.
Mason Mount (Central midfielder) England
Mount came on for the last 14 minutes of the knockout tie against Senegal. The fact that he didn’t start for England in a game as important as the Senegal one, tells you all you need to know about his performance in this World Cup. As for his performance, he was inconsequential. He is one of the few Chelsea players in the World Cup Round of 16 that didn’t start.
Hakim Ziyech (Right winger) Morocco
Ziyech was good for Morocco against Spain. He played a key role in executing the game plan that Morocco designed. He was incredibly good off the ball. The Blues No. 22 contested 11 ground duels for Morocco, though completing just one. he also attempted zero dribbles, an indication of being instructed to be more conservative in possession to help ball retention in the final third. He wasn’t good creatively though, as he created no chances. he was a reliable outlet for Morocco to get out of pressure and drive the ball up the pitch.
Christian Pulisic (Left winger) United States
Pulisic also made Chelsea proud as he was great for the United States, despite getting knocked out. He created four chances and completed 2/9 crosses, which is a good ratio. He assisted America’s only goal against the Netherlands, though he missed a big chance early on in the game. Had he scored his chance, the outcome might have been different because USA would’ve been more confident, but overall Pulisic was good.
Denis Zakaria (Central midfielder) Switzerland
Zakaria wasn’t great, however, it must be noted that Switzerland got some control back when he came on. In fact, all of the Swiss goals conceded came before Zakaria was substituted on, except two. Considering that he played 36 minutes, his presence in the game definitely made a difference.