Chelsea continued their winning form early Thursday morning, collecting a 1-0 win over Liverpool in the International Champions Cup. The match marked the first ICC game for both teams, with Chelsea set to travel to Ann Arbor, Michigan for a match against Real Madrid on Saturday at Michigan Stadium.
The goal was scored in the 10th minute by Gary Cahill. Chelsea received their first corner kick of the match to the left of Liverpool goalkeeper Loris Karius. Cesc Fabregas delivered an inswinger to the edge of the six-yard box, where Cahill leapt over a pair of Liverpool defenders and found the back of the net with a precision header.
What unfolded over the next hour was each team struggling to maintain a decent swing of momentum, with plenty of fouls and bookings mixed together. It was important that both teams try to finish the match 11-a-side as it’s tough to gauge player performances when playing up or down a man — but that all went awry in the 70th minute when Fabregas was given a red card, forcing Chelsea to sit behind the ball for the remainder of the match.
Please note, again: I listed minutes played at the end of each player’s summary. That number is much more important than the player’s rating at this stage, though the rating should start being taken more into account over the coming weeks.
