Player ratings: Lampard’s man management questionable again as Chelsea fall to champions Manchester City

May 21, 2023May 25, 2023 Kieran Roy

Chelsea fell to a 1-0 defeat at the hands of Manchester City at the Etihad. A first half goal from Julián Álvarez was enough for a heavily rotated City side to claim all three points.

Whilst Chelsea created chances, they never looked like scoring, and the defeat means Chelsea are guaranteed a bottom half finish in the Premier League.

Kepa Arrizabalaga- 6/10

Was tested far less than perhaps he expected. Only had to make one save in the game and couldn’t do much about Álvarez’ goal.

César Azpilicueta- 4/10

It could definitely be argued that Azpilicueta should not have started at RWB, given his declining pace facing off against a lively Cole Palmer.

The Spaniard struggled massively to deal with the young attacker, especially in the first half. He did improve slightly as the game went on. Missed a golden opportunity to equalise late in the game.

Wesley Fofana- 4/10

An absolute terrible pass early in the game led to City taking the lead. It proved a costly mistake as Chelsea failed to get back into the game.

Thiago Silva- 4/10

Another defender who was very poor for City’s opening goal. The experienced defender allowed Álvarez to run off him with ease before the Argentine was found in acres of space with Silva nowhere to be seen.

Trevoh Chalobah- 5/10

Perhaps caught too far up the pitch for City’s opener – although it is harsh to expect him to have predicted Fofana’s poor pass.

Lewis Hall- 6/10

The youngster performed well in a struggling Chelsea defence. He made four successful tackles and could have had an assist when his cross found the head of Gallagher. Had a couple of chances to score himself that were easily saved.

Ruben Loftus-Cheek- 6/10

Displayed his dribbling talent with some good driving runs from midfield. At times managed to work his way out of some tight areas.

Connor Gallagher- 4/10

Inches away from equalising for Chelsea when his header hit the post and deflected onto a scrambling Stefan Ortega. Despite this, was poor defensively and at times seemed to be running around aimlessly.

Enzo Fernández- 6/10

It genuinely seems like Enzo is as desperate as Chelsea fans are for the season to end. The Argentine fought well today but his facial expressions tell a different story.

Played an incredible long-range pass to Sterling, who wasted the chance, and later Pulisic who put a good ball across the box.

Kai Havertz- 4/10

Played one great pass to Sterling, but other than that seemed invisible. Committed a number of fouls and was booked for a cynical one early in the game.

Raheem Sterling- 3/10

You would think if Sterling wanted to show himself off for one game in the season, it would be against the club who sold him. That thought would be wrong.

Sterling wasted a great opportunity to square the ball to Havertz for an open goal, missed a one-on-one, and generally was poor on the ball. Did create a good chance for himself with some nice dribbling, but saw his shot cleared off the line.

Subs :

Noni Madueke- 6/10

Looked lovely for the period he was on the pitch, will probably feel aggrieved to have not started the game.

Mykhailo Mudryk- 6/10

Another player who could have done with a start. Looked like a man with a point to prove, but perhaps overdid it with a couple of ambitious strikes.

Kalidou Koulibaly- N/A

Carney Chukwuemeka- N/A

Christian Pulisic- N/A

Frank Lampard- 2/10

Why did Chelsea not allow Chukwuemeka to attend the U20 World Cup, if they weren’t going to use him other than for the last ten minutes? This was a nothing game against a City B team, and Lampard still opted for a ‘safe’ option – which ended up still losing the game. Terrible line-up, terrible performance, terrible season.

Twitter- @Kieranroy1