Chelsea v Sunderland player ratings

Chelsea boosted their bid for a top-four finish by coming from behind to beat Sunderland at Stamford Bridge. Here’s how we rated the Blues players in their 2-1 win.

Petr Cech: 7
The stand-in skipper in the absence of John Terry and Frank Lampard, Cech had little to do and was helpless as Cesar Azpilicueta sliced past him for Sunderland’s opener.

Cesar Azpilicueta: 6
A hit-and-miss display was summed up by his own goal, as he anxiously made a hash of an attempted clearance under no real pressure.

Branislav Ivanovic: 8
Strong defensively when Sunderland were enjoying their purple patches early in the first half and late in the second. Scored the vital winner when instinctively back-heeling David Luiz’s shot past Simon Mignolet – although even he will have been surprised to see it nestle perfectly into the bottom corner.

David Luiz: 8
Occasionally troubled by the pace and movement of Stephane Sessegnon early on, but the Brazilian bravely blocked an Adam Johnson effort with his face and was strong in the second half. Battled on after taking a knock.

Ryan Bertrand: 6
Got forward well on his 50th Chelsea appearance but more often than not found his attempted deliveries blocked by the alert Phil Bardsley and John O’Shea.

John Obi Mikel: 7
Chelsea’s outstanding performer in an otherwise flat first half, the Nigerian’s passing and movement was crisp and fluent. Sadly, he couldn’t maintain that level after the break.

Ramires: 6
Too often outfought by Sunderland’s enforcer Alfred N’Diaye and on the rare occasions he broke forward into the box, he twice headed meekly at Mignolet.

Oscar: 7
In and out of the game but was at the forefront of Chelsea’s most dangerous attacks. It was his shot which led to the own goal equaliser and he also set up Fernando Torres for a header which flew just over.

Juan Mata: 7
Worked hard to create space for himself and others on the edge of an often crowded penalty area. Linked up well with Oscar – less so with Hazard – and forced Mignolet into a save in the second half.

Eden Hazard: 6
At times this season he’s been brilliant – this was the other side of the enigmatic Belgian. Too often his flicks and tricks failed to come off and his end product was inconsistent.

Demba Ba: 6
The former Newcastle man worked hard until he was roughed up by a two-footed challenge from Craig Gardner in the 25th minute and hobbled out of the game at half-time.

Fernando Torres: 7
Made an instant impact after replacing Ba, his dynamic run starting the move from which Chelsea equalised. Perhaps should’ve done better with a header when teed up by Oscar but Rafael Benitez will be pleased to have a more confident Torres leading the line.

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