Chelsea FC Ratings – Mata And Hazard Steal The Show; Luiz Shows Steel

By Karan Yadav
11 years Ago

In many ways, this was a standard Chelsea season; the club began on a good note, endured a customary disastrous winter that saw a manager being sacked and replaced by someone who was given clear short term goals, and after a period of uncertainly, the club eventually achieved the modest targets that they’d set for themselves.

In a season wherein Chelsea played 69 games across 7 competitions winning just one, it is fair to say that majority of the players certainly didn’t perform at an optimal level, irrespective of the facts that thin squad, fatigue, instability and managerial decisions played an equally crucial role in determining the fate of the team.

Here’s a look at how key elements of the first team squad fared across the season – who did well, who didn’t, who was absolutely instrumental in the team’s cause, and who took the first few steps into the sunset. Ai??Ai??

Petr Cech – 8.5/10Ai??

Petr Cech continued from where he’d left off in the final against Bayern Munich last season. With the defence continuously changing because of injuries, rotation, etc., Petr was the single constant figure in the Chelsea defence, and he certainly didn’t disappoint. The Czech international captained the team on quite a few occasions and was as reliable as he has even been in his Chelsea career. The fact that the West London club aren’t yet ready to even think about giving the number 1 role to the sensational Thibaut Courtois, who was arguably the best goalkeeper in the world last season, is a testimony to how good Cech has been.

Cesar Azpilicueta – 6.5/10

The former Marseille right-back didn’t waste anytime in establishing himself in the English league; moreover, he was Rafa Benitez’s preferred choice in the majority of games. He was good positionally, often equal to whatever the opposition threw at him and his pace helped him beat defenders at the other end. However, his crossing still left a lot to be desired. All in all, Chelsea look to have finally solved their right-back conundrum.

John Terry – 5/10

The Chelsea captain missed quite a lot of action because of injuries primarily, but Rafa also preferred to play other central defenders in bigger games even when Terry was fit. However, whenever he played, he was mostly his solid self.

Gary Cahill – 6/10

Gary Cahill was signed last January to strengthen the squad and in the last one and a half seasons, he has managed to prove much more than just a squad player. He did miss out a few games this season due to injury, but still saw considerable game time because of unavailability of John Terry. He was fairly consistent, barring a few occasion errors such as those against Brentford and his shot-blocking ability is perhaps second to none in world football presently.

Branislav Ivanovic – 7/10

Switching between right-back and centre-back, the Serbian defender was the most used outfield player for Chelsea. Over the years, he has proved to be an astute buy as his versatility and reliability have played a crucial role in Chelsea’s campaigns; this season was no different. Although he did have a few off days, such as the League Cup semi-final against Swansea, his goals, particularly the Europa League winning one, more than made up for them.

David Luiz – 8/10

For di Matteo, he was an increasingly disciplined and reliable centre-back while for Rafa, he was that and a more than capable option to plug a hole in midfield. As the season progressed, Luiz began to take responsibility on and off the field and his commitment to the Chelsea cause was unquestionable. One of the standout performers of this season, David Luiz also lit up arenas with his jaw-dropping goals.

Ashley Cole – 5.5/10

Ashley Cole may not be the most complete left-back in world football anymore, but he remains an as effective and intelligent player as he was during his hey days. With age finally showing signs of catching up with him, he made up with the enormous top-level experience that he has gathered in his career. Another satisfactory season for the man who has now been capped 100 times by England.

Ryan Bertrand – 4.5/10

After starting in the Champions League final last season and actually doing a good job at it, this was expected to be the season wherein Bertrand was finally expected to emerge from Ashley Cole’s shadow and make the left-back position his own. However, he failed to live up to expectations. Offensively, he left a lot to be desired but was fairly consistent at the back. With Patrick van Aanholt impressing during his loan spell and Chelsea perhaps also in the market for a left-back, time seems to be running out for Ryan, unless he’s prepared to remain a back-up left-back at the club.

John Obi Mikel – 5/10

Mikel wouldn’t be too happy with how the season eventually panned out, especially after a solid 2011-12 campaign. He missed a few games because of injury and African Cup (which he incidentally won with Nigeria), and then Rafa completely overlooked him during the business end of the season. He was average whenever he got an opportunity otherwise.

Ramires – 6.5/10

Ramires is an important player for Chelsea, and the trend continued this season. There were games where his lack of passing ability was horribly exposed in midfield, but at the same time, his energy, pace on counter-attacks and goals did come to the team’s rescue.

Frank Lampard – 7.5/10

As the uncertainty surrounding his contract grew in the second half of the season, Frank raised his game by a couple of notches in typical fashion. While he accepted the fact that he cannot regularly play twice a week at this age, he made the most of the opportunities that came his way by scoring some vital goals including the Champions League-securing brace against Aston Villa and delivering some solid performances through the season. Furthermore, he led the team by example in Terry’s absence. All in all, it was a memorable season for Lampard despite Rafa preferring to play Luiz and Ramires in midfield in more important games, as he became the highest ever goal-scored for Chelsea by going past Bobby Tambling’s record of 202 goals.

Juan Mata – 9/10

Juan Mata for Chelsea was what David Silva was for Manchester City in their title-winning campaign last season: absolutely phenomenal. His vision, passing ability, intelligence, and telepathic understanding with his team-mates make him arguably the best number 10 in world football at the moment. Often the only shining light in a long, tiresome, and tumultuous season, Mata carried Chelsea through, literally, in games this season. His goals, assists, deliveries on set-pieces and overall presence were absolutely essential in Rafa achieving the targets that were set for him.

Eden Hazard – 8.5/10

Eden Hazard was earmarked as the signing of the season even before he’d played his first game for Chelsea, and after a long, enduring season, it’s safe to say that the hype wasn’t out of place. He is the real deal. His touch, blistering pace, close ball control, ability and confidence to take on defenders and beat them at will and tendency to change the course of matches, is second to none. If at 22 and in his first season in English football, Hazard could do what he did, it’s frightening to think what he’d be capable of in a couple of years.

Oscar – 7.5/10

Hazard may have been the more high profile signing, but the man who wears the number 10 shirt for Brazil was equally impressive in his debut season. he may not have had the impact the Belgian had, but the potential was there for everyone to see from the moment he flicked, turned and shot to score one of the best goals this season against Juventus. It was not a coincident that against the same opposition, he completely shut out a modern day legend such as Pirlo by delivering a defensive masterclass. Later under Rafa, he was often played out of position on the wings and his influence dimmed, yet his ball control, passing range and ability that he had made sure he had an above average end to the season. His prefers to play in an advanced role centrally, but eventually Chelsea may chose to deploy him in a deeper role. Next season it would be worth keeping an eye on him.

Victor Moses – 5.5/10

Victor Moses did add another dimension to the Chelsea attack this season and was a good option to call upon whenever the club needed defensive cover on the wings, but he still needs to go a long way before proving that he’s more than just a squad player for Chelsea.

Demba Ba – 6/10

Demba Ba was shipped in from Newcastle to score goals and although he started off with a bang, he soon fizzled out. His hold-up play was decent and he did score some spectacular (and crucial) goals, but he was quite average overall.

Fernando Torres – 6.5/10

The jokes have somewhat dried up and he doesn’t cut the same sorry figure he used to before Rafa Benitez was summoned at Stamford Bridge. This is enough testimony to the fact that Fernando Torres finally managed to put in a consistent shift of decent performances for the first time in a Chelsea shirt. He scored 22 goals this season, most of them in the Europa League, but his overall game improved as the season progressed. He will never be the player he once was, but he finally started resembling a striker again which was the most Chelsea fans could hope for.

Categories: Chelsea FC, English Premier League, Features
Tags: Chelsea FC player ratings Season Review 2012-13