Overview

Chelsea wrapped up another win under surreal circumstances, walking to a fairly straightforward 3-1 up amidst the backdrop of sanctions imposed on our club and the owner. Two early goals set the tone and the team mostly cruised beyond this point except for a brief 10 minute scare in the second half.

The main takeaway from this game was a minor tactical change from Tuchel, pulling Mount a bit deeper and allowing him to operate in his comfort zone. Besides that, there was not much to analyze — especially considering the circumstances.

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Match statistics

Stats are from fbref and understat.

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Individual ratings

Thomas Tuchel

As mentioned above, Tuchel moved Mount to a deeper position and was rewarded for it. Mount went back to display the near-world-class form he did last season, ranking in our top three for a bunch of passing, defensive and ball-carrying metrics. His chemistry with Havertz in particular is very promising and offers a good base for us to build on for the rest of this season.

More than tactics and team selection however, Tuchel deserves the highest praise for how he has handled himself over the course of this saga. He has showed virtually no anger and has handled extremely tricky questions with a lot of grace and dignity. We as a club and fans are very lucky to have him.

RATING: 8

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Édouard Mendy — GK

The post-shot xG metric is surprisingly high considering the quality of shots he had to face. His distribution could have been slightly better.

RATING: 6

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César Azpilicueta — RWB

His lack of pace showed at certain points, especially when one of our midfielders tried to find space behind their wing-backs with passes. When he did have the ball, he did a good job of moving it and making the right choices.

Stats of note
4 touches in box — T-3rd

RATING: 6

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Photo by Stephen Pond/Getty Images

Trevoh Chalobah — RCB

Scored the opener after some smart movement from a corner and looked assured in ground duels. However, he did not cover himself in glory when conceding Norwich’s penalty. And while his ground defending is improving by the day, his ball-playing appears to have regressed a little.

Stats of note
1 goal
4 tackles — 1st
8 clearances — 1st
4 aerial duels won (4 contested) — 1st
7 loose-ball recoveries — 2nd
2 carries into final third — T-2nd

RATING: 7.5

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Thiago Silva — CB

More of the usual from the classy veteran — awesome on the ball and unperturbed off it.

Stats of note
2 shots blocked — 1st
5 interceptions — T-1st
10 passes into final third — 2nd
5 clearances — 2nd
8 progressive carries — 2nd

RATING: 8

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Photo by GLYN KIRK/AFP via Getty Images

Andreas Christensen — LCB

Looked very good in a new role on the left side of the back-three. His ability to play on different sides and in different roles with equal comfort is a major reason why he is so valued in the market.

Stats of note
8 loose-ball recoveries — 1st
11 passes into final third — 1st
3 aerial duels won (4 contested) — 2nd
2 clearances — 3rd

RATING: 7

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Saúl Ñíguez — LWB

Filled in admirably on the left flank, offering good overlap support and solid defence.

Stats of note
25 pressures — 1st
5 interceptions — T-1st
3 tackles — T-2nd
5 loose-ball recoveries — T-3rd

RATING: 7

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Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images

Jorginho — RCM

Was not at his best, especially in terms of defending. One move where Christoph Zimmerman — a 194cm heavy-footed defender — dribbled past him to get a shot off was the chief example of his defensive issues on the night. On the ball, he circulated possession and ensured we kept play ticking.

Stats of note
3 interceptions — 2nd
5 progressive passes — 3rd
15 pressures — T-3rd

RATING: 6.5

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Mateo Kovačić — LCM

Looked in fine nick in terms of ball progression, moving the ball forward every time we hit a brick wall. He is reaching a level where his default performance is around 7/10, an admirable trait that few players in our team have.

Stats of note
3 successful dribbles (4 attempted) — T-1st
6 progressive passes — 2nd
2 passes into box — T-2nd
9 passes into final third — 3rd

RATING: 7

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Mason Mount — RW/R-AM

Showed the form that made him so good last season — recovering the ball, progressing it and linking our midfield and attack. After a few very rough games, it is good to see him back to his best in his natural position.

It is very revealing that Mount has only played 15% of his games in a deeper position this season, compared to over 70% last season under Tuchel. While his end product has been great, playing him close to goal has negatively impacted his overall play so far.

Stats of note
1 goal
1 assist
5 key passes — 1st
9 progressive passes — 1st
4 carries into final third — 1st
4 shots — T-1st
7 shot-creating actions — 2nd
18 pressures — 2nd
7 touches in box — 2nd
2 passes into box — T-2nd
7 progressive carries — 3rd
8 progressive passes received — 3rd
5 loose-ball recoveries — T-3rd

RATING: 9

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Photo by Matthew Ashton - AMA/Getty Images

Kai Havertz — CF

Continued his recent red-hot form with a goal, an assist and plenty of touches in dangerous areas. His ability to impact the game even during quiet spells — such as the second half — is very encouraging and is a trait that most elite strikers need to have.

Stats of note
1 goal
1 assist
9 shot-creating actions — 1st
13 touches in box — 1st
10 progressive carries — 1st
5 carries into box — 1st
10 progressive passes received — 1st
4 shots — T-1st
3 key passes — 2nd
2 successful dribbles (3 attempted) — T-2nd
2 carries into final third — T-2nd
15 pressures — T-3rd

RATING: 9

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Timo Werner – LW

Worked hard but could not provide the same impetus Pulisic has been providing of late, primarily due to an inability in 1v1 scenarios in wide areas.

Stats of note
3 passes into box — 1st
2 shots — 2nd
9 progressive passes received — 2nd
2 carries into final third — T-2nd
4 touches in box — T-3rd

RATING: 6

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Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images

Substitutes

Ruben Loftus-Cheek (46th minute) – Played as a right wing-back and while he did not set the field alight, he did a reasonable job considering the fact he has not played there much before.

Stats of note
3 successful dribbles (3 attempted) — T-1st
3 tackles — T-2nd
2 shot-creating actions — T-3rd

RATING: 6.5

N’Golo Kanté (85th minute) — Looked ultra-sharp and created our third goal.

Stats of note
1 assist
2 successful dribbles (2 attempted) — T-2nd
2 carries into final third — T-2nd
2 shot-creating actions — T-3rd

Romelu Lukaku (80th minute) – Got a good shot off and executed a subtle run for Havertz’s goal.