Jose Mourinho will be very disappointed with his players following the 3-2 loss at the Britannia Stadium against Stoke City and admits he could see it coming after Peter Crouch’s equaliser just before the break but was unable to prevent the defeat.
Looking back on a poor performances such as that is not the most pleasant thing in the world but here is my personal ratings of the players that featured and I just hope they will come back stronger after this. If you agree, disagree or think I have missed something then I welcome your thoughts and comments at the bottom of the page.
Chelsea:
Petr Cech – 5
Has not been helped by his defence of late but mistakes have been creeping into his game recently and was at fault for Stoke’s first goal.
Branislav Ivanovic – 5.5
Provided an out-ball on the right as always but gives nothing with his crossing and was bad for the winner.
John Terry – 5
He has been a top performer for the Blues this season but was not at the races yesterday and not himself.
Gary Cahill – 4
Was poor – especially for Stephen Ireland’s goal – and it is not the first time we have seen him punished for backing off. If David Luiz played like that the media would have a field day.
Cesar Azpilicueta – 6
Was unfortunate as he was fouled in the build up to Stoke’s second goal but I thought he was the best of a bad bunch as far as the defence was concerned…not that it’s saying much.
Ramires – 4
Gave the ball away too cheaply and missed a number of good chances that could have put the game to bed early on. Poor.
John Obi Mikel – 8
The Nigerian midfielder showed composure, consistency and defended well. He also provided Andre Schurrle with an assist but unfortunately Chelsea resorted to hoof ball once he came off.
Andre Schurrle – 8.5
Schurrle made an impact on his return to the side with two well take goals – with his left foot. Went missing for periods but what can you expect from a man that has barely played of late? Good effort.
Juan Mata – 7
Played his third consecutive match which shows the manager is putting faith in him and used the ball well, was accurate and economic in his passing but struggled to get his game going much like the rest of the attack.
Eden Hazard – 7.5
Things did not quite click for Hazard as they may have done – or like they did against Sunderland – and things just did not happen for him today. Tried his best, made a few chances but could perhaps be a little more selfish at times instead of trying to find a team-mate.
Fernando Torres – 5
Worked hard but that is an absolute given in football and what you’re supposed to do. Wasn’t productive in any other way and lacked the movement to get into good positions on the occasions Hazard had the defenders on the back foot.
Substitutes:
Frank Lampard – 6
Lamps would have gobbled up the sort of opportunities Ramires was getting in the first half and our midfield game went out the window when Mikel was taken off so did not make the impact as Mourinho hoped but through no fault of his own.
Demba Ba – 6
Gave Chelsea a bit of presence up top but by this point Stoke had gone 10 behind the ball and it was difficult for everyone.
Samuel Eto’o – 5
Thinks he can beat four or five players and is as quick as Hazard – but he is not. Conceded possession for Stoke’s winner.
Chelsea fans are just seeing what has been apparent for 2-3 years. Terry is shot away. All they see is the up and at ’em style and occasionally tough challenge and headed goal, but they miss the set pieces (and so does Terry). For 2-3 years Terry has gone missing at set pieces. He nominally marks his man, but as soon as the ball comes into the box, he leaves his man and simply moves back to the middle of the goal. It’s a cunning trick for 2 reasons. One he can claim he is never to blame and 2 he sometimes clears one off the line and looks like a hero. It’s beginning to really hack me off now. Against Sunderland he was at fault for the first goal by not marking tightly – frankly he looked scared of the big bloke he was supposed to be marking. Then the next 3 goals we conceded he just went missing as always. Watch the video for the 2 against Sunderland and the first yesterday. Mark man; walk away from man; walk backwards towards goal; watch ball go in. It’s so pathetic. He is supposed to be our leader. He should be the man heading the ball out. Go back and watch the goals we concede from set pieces and just ask ‘what did Terry do?’. Been banging on about this for ages and slowly my mates have realised. JT you have been great, but sort yourself out or move on.
I couldn’t really tell which one of the centre backs lost their man for the first goal but yeah, neither have covered themselves in glory when defending these set-pieces and mistakes are becoming more frequent for Cech – which makes the Courtois thing even more interesting. I thought Terry might be done last season because he looked as low as he’s been, pressure on and off the field taking its toll and always seemed injured.
However, I think he’s been one of the most consistent performers this season and probably our best player up until the Southampton game but has been really really bad in last couple of games.
I like this rating; you know how to rate. Did you know that some blogs rated mikel, for that match 6, some 5, this hatred against mikel is getting too much… this young man was everywhere in mid field doing it well yesterday yet some blog are rating such performance 5, 6. it is not good we have to show love to this young man so as to get all that he is made of….
Thanks Gab,
I think there are an awful lot of people that either don’t get or refuse to acknowledge what Mikel’s role is but the likes of Ancelotti, Mourinho and Hiddink aren’t stupid which is why they’ve made good use of the player.
I’ve noticed there are more and more converts that are starting to appreciate the unglamorous role he fulfils in the set-up.
Seen some other mad ratings elsewhere. Someone gave Cahill a 7…a 7?! The lad was hopeless and if that’d been Luiz the press would have destroyed him.