1. EDEN HAZARD | 9.4 |
Minutes played82
Touches71
Passes35/45
Shots1*/2
Take-ons10/10
Fouls drawn3
Block+REC+INTs11
Eden Hazard is still not shooting enough lately — an ailment that affects him at rather regular intervals — but in this one he was at his most positive and adventurous in some time, taking-on defenders at will and of course scoring that marvelous individual goal.
Hopefully this starts another purple patch in Hazard's season after the more inconsistent run of the last couple months.
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2. N'GOLO KANTÉ | 8.9 |
Minutes played90
Touches59
Passes36/46
Tackles6
Block+REC+INTs14
Another strong performance from the Kanté twins against Arsenal, and they were joined by a third brother as well in Nemanja Matić.
Of course it helped that Arsenal didn't really bother to contest the midfield with the likes of Coquelin, Oxlade-Chamberlain, and Alex Iwobi, but that's not something the Kanté triplets can do anything about — just about the only thing out of their control on Saturday.
Would the contest have been any different if Arsenal had the likes of Xhaka or Ramsey or Cazorla available? Undoubtedly. But the actual outcome probably would not have been any different.
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3. THIBAUT COURTOIS | 8.7 |
Minutes played90
Touches39
Distribution17/32
Saves4
After a string of games in which he basically could've just napped through the 90 minutes, Courtois has been called into action over the past few weeks and has acquitted himself quite excellently.
Four saves today, with the one on Welbeck probably his best and perhaps even worthy of inclusion in the Encylopaedia Thibautica. The big man was also noticeably dominant in the air, catching multiple crosses, and outside of his dangerous pass early, was solid in distribution as well.
While rumors continue to link him with a return to Spain, he seems happy enough to be playing for Chelsea these days and spoke highly of new goalkeeping coach Spinelli in a recent interview in The Times.
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STARTERS:
Courtois (8.7), Cahill (7.8), David Luiz (7.8), Azpilicueta (8.1), Alonso (8.5), Matić (7.8), Kanté (8.9), Moses (7.8), Hazard (9.4), Costa (7.3), Pedro (7.9)
SUBS:
Willian (6.9), Fàbregas (8.0), Zouma (7.2)