Chelsea and Manchester United player ratings as Morata scores 8 and Lukaku 5

Sport360 staff 23:40 05/11/2017
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  • Star man: Alvaro Morata.

    Chelsea striker Alvaro Morata condemned Jose Mourinho to another damaging defeat against his former club as the champions clinched a crucial 1-0 win over Manchester United on Sunday.

    Morata rewarded an enterprising display from Antonio Conte’s side when the Spain striker headed home early in the second half at Stamford Bridge.

    This was an especially painful setback for Mourinho as a second defeat in their last three Premier League games leaves second-placed United lagging eight points behind leaders Manchester City.

    While Mourinho licks his wounds, Chelsea manager Conte can take heart from a vibrant performance that keeps his fourth-placed team nine points behind City.

    Here are our player ratings…

    CHELSEA

    THIBAUT COURTOIS: Hardly called upon. Made one save from Romelu Lukaku in the first half and a late stop from Marouane Fellaini. 7 (out of 10)

    CESAR AZPILICUETA: After a rare indifferent spell, Mr Consistent was back. Did not put a foot wrong and set up the goal. 8

    ANDREAS CHRISTENSEN: Selected ahead of David Luiz. Performed well in defence, but missed a good headed chance in the first half. 7

    GARY CAHILL: Back on the left of the back three with his confidence seemingly restored. 7

    DAVIDE ZAPPACOSTA: Useful outlet down the right but crosses let him down. 6

    N’GOLO KANTE: How Chelsea have missed him. Provided the balance that had been absent in the last six games. 8

    TIEMOUE BAKAYOKO: Deployed further forwards and did not take his chances, especially in the first half. Yellow for foul on Jones. 6

    MARCOS ALONSO: Had seemed fatigued in recent weeks. Was much better here. 6

    ALVARO MORATA: Showed why his signing was such a coup. His movement was brilliant and resulted in his goal – although he fluffed a late chance for a second. 8

    CESC FABREGAS: Revelled in the return of Kante and less defensive responsibility. Showed his class on the ball. 8

    EDEN HAZARD: Heavily marked throughout and recipient of some hefty tackles. Missed a sitter. 6

    Substitutes:

    ANTONIO RUDIGER (for Zappacosta, 66 minutes): Brought on to combat United’s heavy artillery and did just that. 6

    DANNY DRINKWATER (for Fabregas, 79): Defended doggedly as United pressed late on. 6

    WILLIAN (for Hazard, 87): Had plenty to do defensively and played through Morata, but the chance was spurned. 6

    Cesc Fabregas.

    Cesc Fabregas.

    MANCHESTER UNITED

    DAVID DE GEA: Could do little to prevent Alvaro Morata’s superb header on an afternoon when he dealt with everything else. 7

    ERIC BAILLY: Talented but still raw, the centre-back was largely reliable as the pressure mounted. Morata’s goal left big questions though. 6

    PHIL JONES: One of United’s best performers this season, he scored a wonderful early goal… past his own goalkeeper. Thankfully for him it was cancelled out due to a foul. 5

    CHRIS SMALLING: Having been dropped by Gareth Southgate and seen his ability on the ball questioned by England’s manager, he performed well enough until Morata scored. 6

    ANTONIO VALENCIA: A consistent performer as valuable in attack as defence, he was unable to fly down the flanks with regularity at Stamford Bridge. 6

    NEMANJA MATIC: Back at his old stomping ground, the Serbian was a composed presence in midfield – but he could do little to prevent pockets of space opening around him. 6

    ANDER HERRERA: A pain in the backside for his opponents, the tenacious midfielder was a thorn in the side throughout. Lacked regular quality. 6

    ASHLEY YOUNG: Rejuvenated under Mourinho, he performed diligently at wing-back but did not set the match alight. 6

    HENRIKH MKHITARYAN: The Armenian’s latest anonymous performance. A shadow of the player he was towards the back end of 2016-17. 5

    MARCUS RASHFORD: Full of running but lacked service and a cutting edge, despite late efforts to draw level. 5

    ROMELU LUKAKU: Back at his former home, the striker forced Thibaut Courtois into a first-half save but rarely looked like ending his goalless run stretching back to the end of September. 5

    Substitutes:

    ANTHONY MARTIAL (for Mkhitaryan, 62): Brought on to inject another attacking dimension but could not change the course of this match. 6

    MAROUANE FELLAINI (for Jones, 62): Rusty on his return to the team. Fortunate that a sloppy pass was not punished, but threatened towards the end. 5

    JESSE LINGARD (for Ashley Young, 78): Added extra running and impetus, but there just was not enough time to turn things around. 6

    Romelu Lukaku.

    Romelu Lukaku.

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