Chelsea Match Review
Chelsea vs Swansea I Premier League I 28/4/2018
Match Overview
It was a tale of two halves for Chelsea at the Liberty Stadium
in a match equally crucial for either side with Chelsea needing a win to close
the gap for a Champions League spot next season and Swansea needing points to
bring them further away from the relegation zone. Chelsea were absolutely
rampant in the first half but Swansea subsequently grew into the second half
and they will go home tonight feeling like they could have nicked a point or
three.
In a performance where the Chelsea players were stunningly
in sync in the first half, the team decimated the Swansea defence and peppered Fabianski’s
goal with numerous shots. Hazard’s constant dribbling through the defence,
combined with excellent link up play between Giroud and Fabregas, eventually
lead to the first goal on the 3rd minute. Kante had the ball and
played a quick pass to Hazard who then dribbled through the middle and in turn,
brought all three Swansea defenders towards him. That left space for Fabregas
on the right to ghost in and with an incisive pass, Fabregas was one-on-one with
Fabianski. Without hesitation, he swept the ball to the top left corner.
Cesc Fabregas 3’
After the goal, Chelsea continued with the onslaught and had
a number of chances go narrowly wide or blocked before it escalates. Hazard continues
to play off Giroud and Fabregas joined in on the attack constantly, spraying
beautiful passes to the wingbacks or to the front two. There was an almost own
goal by Swansea and the Swansea defence had to make a couple of fairly lucky
blocks to keep the ball out. In the end, Chelsea, once again, fail to kill off
their opponents when they could.
Half time: 1-0
The second half was a different story though, especially
after the 65th minute. Before which, Chelsea was pretty much still
in control with equal chances by both sides to either extend the lead or to
equalise. It could be the rain that was pouring at the Liberty Stadium or a
drop in intensity. Either way, Swansea grew in confidence after each successful,
albeit weak, shots on target from distance at Courtois and the game could have
changed in Swansea’s favour. There were some interesting refereeing decisions
throughout the match. A couple of offside decisions were not spotted or unnecessarily
flagged and some fouls were seemingly unfairly judged. In the end, Chelsea may
feel lucky to have gone home with 3 points, but then again, they could have
easily had a more comfortable score-line by half time.
Full-time: 1-0
Match Highlight
Chelsea played with a 3-5-1-1 with Hustleman Rudiger, Mr
Dependable Azpilicueta and captain Gary Cahill in the defence, the same from
the Southampton game. Victor Moses and Emerson also retained their positions in
Right Wingback and Left Wingback respectively. The only difference is the
midfield, with Willian on the bench and Bakayoko starting alongside Wizard
Fabregas and midfield destroyer N’golo Kante. Eden Hazard plays up front right
behind Giroud.
This formation had been the go-to formation for Antonio
Conte since the start of this season, which Conte reasoned to provide more
defensive solidity than the 3-4-3. Despite the case, the Chelsea defence still
looked susceptible and porous and it is a good thing Courtois was up to match
for this game especially in the second half. The attack though, was phenomenal,
characterised by excellent touches and tricks and when they break, it was
breath-taking to behold. The substitutes, Willian, Pedro and Morata are all
forward players, thus their introduction maintained the energy and fluidity of Chelsea’s
attack.
Swansea
Swansea matched Chelsea in having three defenders at the back.
They were absolute thrash in the first half, misplacing passes and not having
the creative spark going forward but in the second, the whole team came alive.
Their frustration is summed up by Ayew’s unnecessary foul on Cahill in the dying
seconds of the match.
As mentioned, it was a tale of two halves, and the stats
tell the story of the night. Chelsea and Swansea had almost similar possession
rates (51%-49%) and equal number of shots on target (3), which is a fairly low
number of shots for Chelsea (Well, we played for one half only anyway) in the
Conte era against a ‘weaker’ side.
Man Of The Match
Chelsea’s MOTM should deservedly go to Hazard for his
brilliant displays on the ball and influence on the match. Honestly, it seems impossible
to rob the ball off Eden Hazard and he is an absolute menace when he dribbles
straight through the defence at pace. He constantly looks for the space to
shoot but defenders keep closing on him in numbers which he then is forced to
pass to his unmarked colleagues.
Giroud deserves special mention. His flicks and passes with
his head opened up and often started Chelsea’s attack. As a brilliant target
man, he made the attack tick.
Player Ratings
-
Goalkeeper
Thibaut Courtois 7
Plays in goal after Caballero’s cameo in the FA Cup
Semi-final. Didn’t have much to do in the first half but in the second half,
had to make a couple of decent but fairly easy saves. Not tested much.
-
Defenders
Gary Cahill 6.5
Once again, the lion puts in an acceptable appreciative performance.
Could have stifled the attacks more in the second half though.
Antonio Rudiger 6.5
Hustleman overall performance is as solid and pleasing to
watch as it gets. Generally good in defence and had a good chance to score from
a corner in the first half. However, he also could have stopped done better in
the second half
Cesar Azpilicueta 6.6
I would say he played better than the game against
Southampton. Made a couple of crucial blocks and often brings the ball forward.
6.6 as an appreciation for that.
-
Midfielders
Tiemoue Bakayoko 6.5
He plays too simple passes and does not contribute much
going forward, except towards the end (with that tame shot across goal).
Defensively, he do help to cut the passing width for Swansea but then a tree
(not Fellaini) can do just that. I think his role is to disrupt and distract as
Kante will then steal the ball when being occupied with Baka.
N’golo Kante 7
Great defensively as usual, although he did commit some
mistakes in this match. He seems to have a
knack for driving forward with pace now in attack and this can lead to
attacking opportunities.
Cesc Fabregas 7.5
Great interplay with the front forwards. He plays further
forward than his midfield counterparts and passes his balls well (as he should).
Great composed goal at the start.
-
Wingbacks
Victor Moses 6.5
His darts in attack caused trouble, but as much of this
season, he could contribute better in defence
Emerson Palmieri 7
This guy is fearless going forward, maybe even against Conte’s
wishes. A particular memorable run took him dribbling from defence all the way
to a shot straight at Fabianski. Alonso may find it hard to displace him.
-
Forwards
Eden Hazard 8
Another amazing performance. Great pace, great dribbling and
great passes (has his passing improved significantly?)
Olivier Giroud 7.5
Great, if not the greatest, target man. His assets are
exactly what Chelsea is lacking in the first half of this season. Came off with
a standing ovation by the Chelsea supporters
-
Substitutes
Since the subs were forwards, and good players at that, the
attack was still great, and they created a couple of chances on the break especially
with Willian. Pedro looked a little off and Morata can’t be judged with only
less than 10 minutes of play. Pity Swansea. I mean, come on, an ex-Barca player,
an ex-Real Madrid player and a player as good as Willian on the bench?
