Chelsea played hosts to Southampton at Stamford Bridge earlier today as they looked to pick up maximum points from this home clash. The Blues made an excellent start to the game as they took the lead in the ninth minute courtesy of Trevoh Chalobah’s goal from point-blank range. Thomas Tuchel’s men protected their lead well and went into the half-time interval 1-0 up on the scoreline.
James Ward-Prowse scored for the Saints just after the hour mark from the penalty spot to make it 1-1. However, the English midfielder was sent off in the 77th minute to make life difficult for the visitors. Chelsea made their numerical advantage count as Timo Werner found the back of the net in the 84th minute before Ben Chilwell made the points secure when he got his name on the scoresheet just five minutes later. The contest ended with the Blues securing an impressive 3-1 victory at the English capital.
Let’s take a look at how each Chelsea player fared during the clash against the Saints.
GK: Edouard Mendy – 6/10
The Blues keeper made one save in the game but will be disappointed after conceding a goal in the second half.
CB: Trevoh Chalobah – 8.5/10
He was strong in the air and defended valiantly at the back when required. He also gave Chelsea the lead in the 9th minute when he scored from close range.
CB: Thiago Silva – 6.5/10
The Brazilian defender made a couple of crucial clearances inside his half. He was also a dominant force in the air as well.
CB: Antonio Rudiger – 7/10
Rudiger performed his defensive duties well and passed the ball with a lot of conviction. He did enough to restrict the opposition to just one goal.
RM: Cesar Azpilicueta – 8/10
The veteran full-back kept things solid at the back and made a couple of decent runs going forward. He ended the game with an assist to his name for creating Werner’s goal.
CM: Ruben Loftus-Cheek – 7.5/10
The English midfield ace gave a good account of himself in the Southampton half and picked up an assist for setting up Chalobah’s goal.
CM: Mateo Kovacic – 7.5/10
He got stuck in with some crunching tackles to hamper the flow of the Saints in midfield and made some good runs with the ball during his time on the field. He also created some inviting goal-scoring opportunities in the final third.
LM: Ben Chilwell – 7.5/10
Chilwell gave a poor penalty at the hour mark but redeemed himself by scoring a late goal which ensured all three points for his team.
RAM: Timo Werner – 7.5/10
The German attacker had a goal disallowed in the first half but kept pushing and managed to score in the 84th minute.
LAM: Callum Hudson-Odoi – 6/10
He was lively at times but was lackluster in front of the Southampton goal. Hudson-Odoi got replaced after the hour mark.
ST: Romelu Lukaku – 7/10
The Belgian centre-forward was a bit unfortunate not to score but did well to stretch the Southampton defence at times during the match.
Substitutes:
CM: Mason Mount – 6.5/10
Mount added some energy to Chelsea’s attack and engineered two key chances in the final third.
CM: Jorginho – 6/10
He added some bite and steel to Tuchel’s midfield in the final quarter of the game.
CM: Ross Barkley – N/A
The English midfield ace didn’t get enough minutes to warrant a rating.
