Chelsea’s menacing run of five consecutive Premier League wins came to an end, as the Blues were held to a 0:0 draw by West Ham United. The West London giants simply didn’t do enough to create too many opportunities in the final third as the Hammers dug in for one point.
With the draw, Chelsea now slip to third in the league table while Liverpool remain the only side to boast a hundred percent record so far this season. West ham, on the other hand, are slowly getting back on track after securing 4 points in their last two matches.
Here are the Chelsea players ratings in their disappointing draw against the Hammers.
Kepa Arrizabalaga (7.5/10): He remained largely untested for the most period of the game despite West Ham’s frequent counter-attacks. However, the Spaniard made an astonishing save in the first half when Michail Antonio fired in from close range. It was arguably one of the most important moments of the game.
Cesar Azpilicueta (5.5/10): Today was a rare off-day for Azpilicueta, who has been regarded as Mr Consistent for Chelsea in recent years. The Spaniard struggled to defend against the clever Felipe Anderson on the right flank and had zero influence in attack.
Antonio Rudiger (7.5/10): Remained quite calm and composed for the most period as he emerged as one of Chelsea’s better performers yesterday afternoon. Rudiger was excellent in his ball distribution, completing 86 passes with an accuracy of 94%. However, he had to be subbed off later in the second half after taking a knock.
David Luiz (6.5/10): Looked nervy throughout the game, as he, aside from making a couple of errors, failed to marshal the defence. He did, however, record the most number of headed duels than anyone else on the pitch.
Marcos Alonso (6/10): Looked fatigued after coming on the back of a strenuous win against PAOK in midweek. The Spaniard looked out of sorts and gave his oppositions too much space on the left flank. Pablo Zabaleta, in particular, exploited the space left by Alonso to good effect.
N’Golo Kante (6.5/10): Chelsea’s best opportunity of the game fell to N’Golo Kante. But, the Frenchman wasn’t accurate with his shooting on the day, fluffing two of his three shots while the other one was blocked. His lack of offensive prowess was truly exposed.
Jorginho (7/10): A decent performance from Jorginho, who did his job well but lacked support from his teammates. The Italian attempted a whopping 180 passes with an accuracy of 90%. However, with both of his partners struggling to influence the game, he was somewhat nullified in midfield.
Mateo Kovacic (6.5/10): Started the game on a positive note as he looked menacing whenever he was on the ball. That being said, his influence started to fade as the game wore on and he was completely ineffective in the second half.
Willian (6/10): A disappointing performance from Willian, who was arguably Chelsea’s least effective player in the final third. The Brazilian lacked the attacking intent which was coupled with the lack of support from his teammates. Also fluffed a lot of attacking moves with sloppy passes.
Olivier Giroud (6.5/10): Disappointing performance from the French international, who was ineffective in the number nine role. While he did lack adequate service in the first place, Giroud didn’t do anything to help out a struggling Chelsea attack aside from a couple of nice interplays. He was rightly subbed off in the second half.
Eden Hazard (7/10): Tried to take on the West Ham defence by himself but couldn’t make much of an impact, as he also lacked support from his teammates. The Belgian will be keen to bounce back next week against Liverpool.
Substitutes
Alvaro Morata (7/10): Was presented with a nice opportunity after replacing Giroud around the hour mark. But, his flicked effort was hit straight into the face of Lukasz Fabianski who had a wonderful outing.
Gary Cahill (7/10): Remained solid in defence after replacing the injured Antonio Rudiger in the 69th minute.
Ross Barkley (NA): Made an impact after coming on for Mateo Kovacic. But, it was too little too late as the Hammers somehow managed to preserve their clean sheet.
Stat courtesy: Whoscored