Chelsea clashed heads with Tottenham Hotspur at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium earlier tonight hoping to pick a positive result in the London derby. The Blues dominated the game in the first half and took the lead in the 24th minute courtesy of Jorginho’s penalty. They held on to their narrow advantage and went into the half-time interval one goal to the good.
It was mostly one-way traffic in the second 45 minutes as Thomas Tuchel’s men kept creating chances to kill the game off. However, the scoreline remained the same as the West Londoners ended up securing a narrow 1-0 win after the full-time whistle.
Let’s take a look at how each Chelsea player fared during the match against Spurs.
GK: Edouard Mendy – 7/10
The Blues keeper made a couple of solid saves during the game and earned an impressive clean sheet in the derby.
CB: Cesar Azpilicueta – 7/10
Azpilicueta showed a lot of fight when defending inside his half and was relatively tidy when passing the ball out from the back.
CB: Thiago Silva – 6.5/10
The Brazilian centre-back made a couple of crucial interceptions but had to hobble off the pitch in the 35th minute with an injury.
CB: Antonio Rüdiger – 7/10
He was strong in the air and didn’t give away anything cheaply in defence. Rudiger will be quite happy with the clean sheet tonight.
LM: Marcos Alonso – 8/10
The Spaniard won a lot of aerial duels during the 90 minutes. He was also quick to react to the danger and did well to keep the opposition frustrated throughout the game. Furthermore, Alonso showed a lot of promise with powerful running down the left-wing.
CM: Mateo Kovacic – 7/10
Kovacic kept the ball moving at the centre of the park and also had a couple of shots at goal.
CM: Jorginho – 7.5/10
He kept his calm to convert the penalty in the first half, which ended up deciding the match. Jorginho also engineered some meaningful chances for others around him.
RM: Reece James – 7/10
The English talent tracked back to perform his defensive duties when needed. He also orchestrated a few promising goal-scoring opportunities from the right flank.
LAM: Mason Mount – 7/10
Mount was a constant nuisance for Jose Mourinho’s defenders as he caused some problems for them with his shooting and creativity in and around the penalty area. However, he will be disappointed about not getting his name on the scoresheet.
RAM: Callum Hudson-Odoi – 6/10
The youngster struggled to influence the game as much as he would have liked. Tuchel decided to replace him after the hour mark.
ST: Timo Werner – 7/10
Werner earned the penalty in the first half which Jorginho converted from the spot. He was always looking for opportunities but failed to get himself a goal.
Substitutes:
CB: Andreas Christensen – 6.5/10
Christensen dealt with the pressure well and managed to keep a clean sheet during his time on the field.
RAM: Christian Pulisic – 6/10
He made a couple of quick sprints but was not good enough to get his name on the scoresheet.
CM: N’Golo Kante – 6/10
Kante was cautioned but did enough to see out the victory in the latter stages of the contest.
