A Wembley match-up between arguably the best teams in England was to revive emotions of passion as Tottenham Hotspur collided with their bitter rivals Chelsea football club in the semi-finals of the FA Cup.
The match had a gripping tempo with goals galore, 6 scored on the evening and four from the winning team. Chelsea opened their account through a brilliant freekick from Willian, Kane’s header was the equaliser for Tottenham, Willian struck again through a penalty after Son brought down Moses and Tottenham again equalised after a world-class delivery from Eriksen found Alli.
However, Chelsea powered through with goals from Eden Hazard and Nemanja Matic booking their place in prestigious finals. Here’s how the Blues of London have been rated after a morale-boosting victory:-
1) GK: Thibaut Courtois – 6/10
Wasn’t called into action much but both the goals he conceded were tough enough to save. While Kane’s header had pace and altered his direction, Alli’s firebomb gave him no chance.
2) CB: Caesar Azpilicueta – 6/10
Was called into action time and again and did a tidy job. Kept the Tottenham pressure at bay.
3) CB: David Luiz – 6.5/10
At fault for Alli’s goal for not tracking the Englishman but the ball from Eriksen completely took him out of the picture. Overall though his composure looked impressive as usual and he had a good game.
4) CB: Nathan Ake – 6/10
Had to repay the faith manager Antonio Conte showed in him on such a big stage and he impressed as well as showed glimpses of promise. Very mature and composed with the ball but there are few things that can be addressed for him to cement his place next season.
5) LWB: Marcos Alonso – 5/10
Struggled against the pace of Trippier and Eriksen. Had a below average game.
6) RWB: Victor Moses – 6.5/10
Put in a typical performance. Charged down the right whenever needed and added another dimension and won a penalty as well for Chelsea’s crucial second goal. Decent defensive wise.
7) CM: Nemanja Matic – 6/10
Really had an underwhelming game with Kante being the most noticeable Chelsea man running across the midfield until he unleashed a thunderbolt that quickly changed his fortune.
8) CM: N’golo Kante – 7.5/10
He was excellent today with work-rate again being commendable. Chipped in several times to knock the ball out of the feet of Spurs and made defensive contributions which were vital at times as well.
9) RF: Willian – 8.5/10
Justified his presence over Hazard. His free-kick was extremely calculative and beautiful while his penalty was accurate and lethal. His pace caused Tottenham a lot of trouble.
10) ST: Mitchy Batshuayi – 6/10
Showed glimpses of what he can do with his strength and physicality and had a decent game.
11) LF: Pedro Rodriguez – 7/10
His speed and quickness again was the reason Tottenham huffed when he came charging along. Got a free kick which Willian converted and put in a great shift!
SUBSTITUTES
HAZARD- 9/10
Game Changer
COSTA- 7/10
Couldn’t break his drought
FABREGAS- NA/10
