A not so good title defence from the English Premier League Champions has seen Chelsea manager Antonio Conte speculated to many unpleasant rumours. With his latest feud against Jose Mourinho taking an even nastier turn this week, Conte would have been eager to start off a new competition well in the hopes of winning it come May. For most clubs in England, it would seem that the Premier League Trophy is destined to end up in the hands of Pep Guardiola this season and hence the two other domestic competitions, the FA Cup and the Carabao Cup have become something of utmost importance to the other managers.
Chelsea who are coming off an intense 2-2 draw at the Emirates against London were largely considered the favourites for their FA Cup tie against Norwich City. Antonio Conte as expected decided to rest his star players for the match and the likes of Cesar Azpilicueta, Cesc Fabregas, N’Golo Kante and Eden Hazard did not make the starting line-up.
Chelsea’s changed XI failed to win the match and here is how the players performed on the night.
Willy Caballero – 5
Steady when needed to be sparing one occasion.
Gary Cahill – 5
Not his hardest day as a defender by any means but needs to be more effective when he has the ball.
David Luiz – 6
Was clear that the Brazilian was making a comeback as he looked off the pace at times but tried his best to launch attacks.
Antonio Rudiger- 6.5
Had a good battle with Murphy which he won.
Davide Zappacosta- 4.5
Was not his best game defensively and needs to improve with his final ball as well.
Tiemoue Bakayoko – 3
Had little clue where to be without the ball and what to do when he had the ball. Typical disastrous performance.
Danny Drinkwater – 4
Slow on the ball and passive in the game. Failed to get the midfield moving.
Kenedy – 5.5
Tried really hard to get his team moving but was simply too inconsistent with his dribbling.
Pedro – 5
A slow performance from the Spaniard failed to create much with or without the ball.
Michy Batshuayi – 4.5
Looked disinterested in the game when his team did not have the ball and was too desperate to score.
Willian – 7
A classy Willian display as Chelsea’s only bright attacking spark on the night.
Substitutes:
Charly Musonda – 6
Was not good enough on the night to register a win for his side.
Alvaro Morata – 6
The Spaniard once again failed to deliver for his side when it was needed the most.
