Chelsea v Crystal Palace player ratings
Chelsea returned to winning ways in the Premier League by beating Crystal Palace 2-1 in Saturday’s late kick-off. Here’s how we rated the Blues’ players in the Stamford Bridge victory.
Thibaut Courtois: 6
Did all that was asked of him for most of the match – he only had to field Patrick van Aanholt’s volley – but was beaten by the former Chelsea man from closer range late on.
Cesar Azpilicueta: 8
The only player on the pitch to clock up more than 100 touches – largely because of Chelsea’s propensity to play themselves out of trouble – he also made more tackles and interceptions than any of his team-mates.
Andreas Christensen: 7
A solid shift in the first half, he was posed more questions after the break by the introduction of Wilfried Zaha – and his heavy touch should have gifted Palace a goal, only for Alexander Sorloth to hit the post.
Gary Cahill: 8
Embed from Getty Images
The captain returned to the starting line-up and was dominant in the air, cleaning up regularly and bringing a composure to the back three.
Davide Zappacosta: 7
Had so much space in the first half he was effectively acting as a fourth forward. Got to the byline well but his end product needed work – of 14 crosses, only three found their target. However, his shot led to the second goal, albeit with a heavy dose of good fortune.
N’Golo Kante: 7
Embed from Getty Images
Reminded Chelsea of what they missed at Manchester City last week. Industrious off the ball, good work on it – in fact he barely wasted a pass.
Cesc Fabregas: 7
Not as heavily involved as he often is, but he started the move that led to the second goal and kept several of the other attacks ticking over.
Marcos Alonso: 7
Embed from Getty Images
Popped up on the left to great effect at times and was part of the build up that led to the second goal. Could also have had an assist when Olivier Giroud hit the post, but his final ball wasn’t consistent enough.
Willian: 9
In the mood from the whistle – a couple of sighters gathered by Wayne Hennessey preceded his opener, bursting off the left flank before firing home. A clever dummy helped create Chelsea’s second and he was denied another goal only by Hennessey’s palms and James Tomkins’ midriff.
Olivier Giroud: 7
Embed from Getty Images
Worked hard, showed good touches and was unlucky not to score. Denied in the first half by Tomkins’ remarkable clearance and in the second by the woodwork. However, he clearly lacks sharpness in front of goal and was replaced by Alvaro Morata on 72 minutes.
Eden Hazard: 8
Had quiet moments but exploded into life at times, setting up Zappacosta for the second goal and was crucial in the build up to the Giroud chance when Tomkins cleared off the line. Denied a goal of his own for offside and by a Hennessey save.
Alvaro Morata: 6
Fairly ineffective in his 20 minutes on the pitch and picked up his eighth booking of the season.
