In the 2-2 draw at Stamford Bridge, Chelsea once again struggled to deal with long throws, as Bournemouth exploited this weakness twice with Antoine Semenyo’s throw-in. David Brooks put the Cherries ahead early after Semenyo’s throw was mishandled, but Cole Palmer scored an equalizer from the penalty spot moments later. Enzo Fernandes then put Chelsea ahead in the 23rd minute with a superb shot into the top corner.
However, Semenyo’s throw into the box again caused confusion and the visitors leveled the score. This time, Justin Kluivert fired at the far post following a misjudged header from Trevor Chalobah. In the first half, the teams scored four goals evenly, but in the second half there were no decisive goals. Express Sport rates and predicts Chelsea players…
Chelsea vs Bournemouth player ratings
Robert Sanchez – 6
Sanchez could have done better with the opening goal. He parried it straight to Brooks, who scored on the rebound. However, the Spaniard made a great save in the 18th minute to deny Brooks his second goal of the game.
Josh Achiampong – 4
First Premier League appearance in over two months. Play against tricky Semenyo. I had a hard time. He didn’t look as confident and confident as usual.
Wesley Fofana – 6
I went back to defense. He performed well at times, but there were moments when he calmly controlled the ball with his head, especially after a dangerous lofted pass in his own direction.
Trevor Chalobah – 5
Kluivert’s goal was far from impressive. His flick-on allowed the Bournemouth forward an easy tap-in at the far post as Chelsea again showed hesitation in defending a long throw-in.
Maro Gusto – 5
Gusto started at left-back in place of injured Marc Cucurella. In Bournemouth’s key chance in the 18th minute, he was caught out of position. Gast was upfield, leaving space for Brooks, who should have scored. 5.
Moises Caicedo – 5
Caicedo was booked very early on and will miss this weekend’s trip to Manchester City. Naturally, those early yellows seem to have had some effect on him.
Enzo Fernandes – 7
Fernandes fired a superb shot into the top corner in the 23rd minute. I was a little bit lucky to create a chance with a touch, but there was nothing lucky about my shot into the top corner. However, he gave the ball away carelessly several times.
Estevao Willian – 8
The 18-year-old made his first Premier League start since earlier this month. In the early stages, Estevao was typical, scoring a penalty for Chelsea. His skill was brilliant to break through the Bournemouth defense and he was eventually brought down by Semenyo. He is Chelsea’s best player, even when he switched to the left in the second half.
Cole Palmer – 7
Palmer has made back-to-back starts in the Premier League for the first time this season. He expertly converted the penalty kick to equalize for Chelsea. However, he wasn’t able to influence the game as much as he expected.
Alejandro Garnacho – 4
Garnacho provided the assist for his compatriot Fernandes’ second goal of the game for Chelsea. Before that, he was wasting a decent shot opportunity by thinking too much about the ball. He was substituted at halftime.
Liam Delap – 6
Ironically, this is Delap’s first start since the game against Bournemouth earlier this month (6 December). He showed strength in some runs. Team-mates often miss him when making runs in behind, which can be frustrating for the No.9.
substitute
Reece James (Acheampong 46 minutes) – 6
He appeared at halftime. His passing was good, but he couldn’t influence the game like he has in recent appearances.
Pedro Neto (46 minutes for Garnacho) – 6
Neto appeared lively. Immediately after coming on, he provided a good cross for Delap. However, his influence was not enough.
João Pedro (63 minutes for Palmer) – 6
He entered the game with just under 30 minutes left in normal time. I couldn’t make an impact.
Andrei Santos (played in the 87th minute for Delap) – N/A
I played it for a few minutes, but it wasn’t very noticeable. N
