Chelsea secured their first win of the season with a dramatic 2-1 win over Tottenham in the first ever league game at the new Wembley Stadium.
Due to the suspensions incurred by red cards in last weekend’s demoralising 3-2 loss to Burnley, Antonio Conte drafted in Andreas Christensen and Tiemoue Bakayoko, whilst David Luiz was deployed in a deep-lying midfield role for the first time under Conte.
Tottenham dominated proceedings, but the watertight midfield of Ngolo Kante, Bakayoko and Luiz played exceptionally, forcing Tottenham to play the ball out wide, where their wing backs were reluctant to bomb forward.
Chelsea took the lead slightly against the run of play, but nonetheless in a fashion befitting of such an occasion – arguably the most fiercely competed London derby, as Marcos Alonso swept home a sumptuous free-kick from the edge of the area.
Trading blows were dealt by both sides, as Tottenham looked to breakdown Chelsea’s wall of resistance, whilst the Blues were always ready on the counter-attack. Both Willian and Harry Kane struck the post, whilst Christian Eriksen’s crosses constantly went begging.
Tottenham did finally force the breakthrough, but from an unlikely source, as Michy Batshuayi, who was only recently subbed on, headed the ball past Thibaut Courtois with a finish so good that the only ingredient missing was the fact that it ended up in the wrong net.
Character and spirit have personified Chelsea’s performances of late, and Alonso’s 88th minute strike certainly ticked all the boxes for drama and spirit, as his tame shot squirmed under Hugo Lloris, sending the away fans behind the goal into raptures – as well as of course Conte, who celebrated in a typically eccentric fashion.
Here are the player ratings from yesterday’s game:
Thibaut Courtois – 7
Made six saves throughout the game and was always alert at his near post, unlike Lloris who’s lazy guarding of his goal led to Alonso’s winner.
Cesar Azpilicueta – 7
Was lucky not to be troubled by Kane or Dele Alli in the air, a route to goal that was thoroughly exploited by Tottenham in last season’s games against Chelsea. On the floor, however, Azpilicueta was solid in the tackle, winning the ball three times, but in conjunction with what must have been a tactical decision by Conte, the Spaniard had a remarkably low pass completion rate of just 72%. A solid captain’s performance from Azpilicueta, who has now beaten Tottenham twice at Wembley in his only two games as Chelsea captain.
Andreas Christensen – 7
The first debutant since David Luiz in 2010 to complete 100% of his passes on his debut for the club. In the absence of Gary Cahill, he really held his own in the middle of the back three, making nine clearances and four blocks as well as a single interception. Christensen is blossoming into the world-class centre back we all knew he could become with the right opportunities.
Antonio Rudiger – 6
Didn’t win any aerial duels and put in just a couple of tackles, while his defensive positioning was awkward at times. He let Moussa Dembele and Kane beat him round the side on far too many occasions.
Victor Moses – 7
Won the third most tackles in the team with four, but was given a relatively easier time because left wing-back Ben Davies failed to make runs into the gaping space between Moses and Azpilicueta. Davies was also unwilling to take Moses on one on one, which meant he wasn’t left vulnerable by his limited set of defensive attributes.
Tiemoue Bakayoko – 6
Not the most encouraging debut from Bakayoko, but in fairness, he has only just returned from injury. In the air he dominated, using his gangly stature to bully Tottenham’s midfield and win three aerial duels, a figure only bettered by Victor Wanyama and Alvaro Morata – whose main job was to act as a target man. His retention of possession, however, let him down, as he was dispossessed three times, whilst his pass accuracy was an abysmally low 63% – only Kane managed to complete fewer passes on average. Bakayoko was also very heavy handed in his tackling, giving away six fouls.
David Luiz – 8
Under Rafa Benitez, the Brazilian shone in a deeper-lying midfield role, and Sunday’s game was no different. Luiz won five tackles, whilst his interception late on in the game also led to Alonso’s winner. His pass accuracy was around 70%, but this was due in part to the fact that his range of passing was longer in order to get service to the isolated Morata.
N’Golo Kante – 9
Arguably the man of the match, Kante was certainly back to his best against Tottenham. He won the most tackles on the pitch, with six and completed two dribbles. Kante did what he does best, and alongside Luiz that made for an incredible counter attacking performance from Chelsea.
Marcos Alonso – 10
There truly is no more this man could’ve done. He receives a lot of criticism for his defensive displays, but against Spurs, he completed 100% of his tackles and take-ons, whilst also maintaining a 100% shot accuracy with his two crucial strikes. No defender has scored more goals than him since the start of last season, and his free-kicks are now up there with some of the best and most consistent in the league. Alonso also made six clearances and won three aerial duels.
Willian – 6
A bit too selfish in front of goal, which is uncharacteristic of Willian, but other than Alonso’s goals, he came the closest to putting the game beyond Tottenham when he struck the post. As the only creative outlet in the team, he was burdened with too much responsibility – a player of even Eden Hazard’s ability would struggle to make an impact in such an isolated position.
Alvaro Morata – 6
He’ll never prove his worth if he is made to play out of position or in a role that doesn’t suit his play style. Understandably he struggled to play the target man role, with his hold up play causing more problems than it fixed. With a midfield and defence as physically imposing as Tottenham’s, it’s always going to be difficult to make an impact as a target man. He did miss a gilt-edged opportunity early on when he found himself unmarked in the area, only to prod his header wide of the target.
Substitutes
Pedro – 6
One touch one assist, that was pretty much his only impact, but a crucial one nonetheless.
Michy Batshuayi – 4
Almost a horror show of a substitute performance, levelling up the game late on with an own goal. Luckily he was bailed out by Alonso and Chelsea went on to claim the three points
