Chelsea moved into second place in the Premier League with a 2-0 win over Burnley on Saturday afternoon. The Blues had to endure a frustrating 35 minutes before finally breaking through Burnley’s tight defence. Pedro Neto headed home Jamie Gittens’ cross to give the visitors the lead.
As the game drew to a close, Enzo Fernandes scored the winner with a brilliant play from Marc Giu, to the delight of the fans at Turf Moor. Here’s my assessment of Chelsea’s players:
Robert Sanchez – 6
Sanchez had a relatively easy afternoon with few shots on target.
Reece James – 6
James effectively distributed the ball into the midfield. This afternoon he took on a more defensive role as captain, a position he seemed very comfortable with.
He was substituted at half-time but flashed a smile on the touchline, dispelling any fears of a serious injury.
Toshin Adarabioyo – 7
Chelsea were under pressure in the 12th minute when Adarabioyo made a brilliant slide to deny Jadon Anthony. A long pass to Marc Cucurella led to the opening goal.
His passing ability was always a plus during his play, and he also performed well defensively.
Trevor Chalobah – 6
Seven minutes into the game, Chaloba made a great intervention when Rumu Chauna threatened Burnley’s right flank. His positioning was perfect and he slid to block the winger’s attempt.
Solid performance overall.
Marc Cucurella – 8
Cucurella contributed to the opening goal of the game. He expertly controlled a long ball from Toshin and passed it to Gittens.
He was a constant threat in Chelsea’s attack. Outstanding performance.
Andrei Santos – 9
Santos showed off his excellent defensive skills. In the 11th minute, he stepped back to thwart Anthony, who had a promising chance, sliding in to block the winger’s shot.
Santos was a key player for the Blues, making numerous interceptions and tackles, effectively filling the void left by Moises Caicedo on the bench.
Apart from that, he was calm and had the ball. He always tries to divide the defense with his passes.
This is a truly positive expression from the Brazilian national team player. His vest in a Chelsea shirt.
Enzo Fernandes – 8
Fernandes frequently looked for Neto on the right, but Neto was often left unmarked against the full-backs. His passing was accurate and he was typically involved in every positive Chelsea play.
He scored the second goal, thanks in large part to Giu, to the delight of the visiting Chelsea fans.
Pedro Neto – 8
Neto thought he had set up Jamie Gittens perfectly after 35 minutes, but it wasn’t long before the Portuguese winger found the back of the net himself. A great pass from Gittens found his fellow winger and headed past Martin Dubravka.
They almost gave away another point in the 63rd minute, but unfortunately they were unable to get a shot.
Joao Pedro – 6
The Brazilian was signed for matches like this against low-block defenses and attempted several passes to break through his opponents. However, most of his efforts failed, with Chelsea’s number 20 ending up with a somewhat frustrating performance.
Jamie Gittens – 7
It was the 21-year-old’s first Premier League start in more than two months. He almost scored his first Premier League goal after 35 minutes, but Kyle Walker made a superb sliding tackle to stop him.
But moments later Gittens sent in a great cross towards the back post for Neto to head home. This was the first assist in the league for Gittens, who was later replaced.
Liam Delap – 5
Delap missed a chance to pass the ball to one of his teammates nine minutes into the game. Instead he opted for a long-range shot, but it went wide of the target.
His understanding with João Pedro has deepened, and his future seems promising. He was substituted in the 67th minute after facing a difficult match-up with Maxime Esteve.
Benoit Badiashile (played in 46 minutes for James) – 6
Badiashile was brought on at half-time. Good to have him back.
He gave a solid performance. There wasn’t much he could do in the second half as Chelsea controlled the ball well.
Maro Gusto (played in the 67th minute of Delap) – 5
Gusto replaced Delap in midfield and played the remaining 23 minutes. They gave away the ball unnecessarily in the 71st minute, but other than that they did what they needed to do.
Marc Giu (75 minutes for Joao Pedro) – 7
He entered the fight with about 15 minutes left and contributed greatly. His strength, power, and intelligence helped set up Fernandes’ goals.
