CandH Ratings man Niall McDonald hands out the marks and Hugh weighs in with some of his own below!
Lanzini enjoyed a top game
Randolph: Sharp save in a mêlée in first half and a superb one from Costa in the second 6
Kouyate: Got away with a couple of yellow card tackles in the first half. Pushed in to centre-back for the injured Reid 5
Reid: Departed with an injury that we can only hope is not serious 6
Fonte: Does not instill total confidence yet. His distribution has room for improvement too 6
Cresswell: Looks much happier with Snodgrass ahead of him. Saw plenty of the ball in attacking positions 6
Noble: Heated debate around us if he was responsible for their first. For me the ball should have gone to the far post. Thought the skipper had a decent second half 5
Obiang: Chelsea didn’t attack through the middle too often, partly due to Pedro’s efforts 6
Lanzini: I confess we were halfway to Westfield when he got his goal. Before then Manu tried to create at every opportunity 7
Feghouli: “you let the game pass you by!” a voice behind me offered as he was subbed 5
Snodgrass: Carried real threat in the first 25 mins. Less effective when he drifted inside 5
Carroll: Threw himself at every ball without ever really getting on the end of one. Looked out on his feet after 70 mins 5
Subs
Ayew: An assist for the very late consolation goal 5
Byram: Did his best to get forward but found the door firmly shut by Alonso 4
Fernandes: Got another ten minutes or so. Not really a game-changer yet 4
Here’s how Hugh rated the boys
Randolph Two world class saves …another fine performance 8
Kouyate: Distribution not great – wasted at the back 5
Fonte: He’s slowing down and decision making not always great 5
Reid: Calm and composed for the most part – came off with injury looking significant 6
Cresswell: Had the better of his battle with Moses and dangerous going forward 7
Noble: Hard to mark after being responsible for first goal but there was some good work in there as well 5
Obiang Steady without providing anything spectacular 5,
Feghouli: Tried hard but still looks lightweight to me 5,
Snodgrass What energy we did see came from the Scotsman – impressive 6
Lanzini Plenty of decent passes and great with ball at feet 7
Carroll: Slav really has to provide a partner who can get on the end of his knock downs 6
Subs:
Ayew 6 Fernandes 5 Byram 5
We played quite well in the first 25 minutes, but clearly missed Antonio’s pace and penetration.
Bilic has to resist the temptation to use AC as a lone-wolf striker; the 4-2-3-1 worked well last season when Payet was around, but we don’t have the ‘right player mix’ for this formation.
I’d like to see Slav stick to a stable 4-4-2 formation for our last 11 games, preferably with Kouyate in mid-field.
If we are serious about making a move up the EPL ladder next season (ie top 6 finish), we need to bring in 4-6 quality players in addition to the present squad.
Randolph: Very concentrated and (finally) commanding in his area. Two determining saves when he actually did not have that much to do throughout the game. 8
Kouyate: Showed again he is not more than a make up solution at right back. I would have subbed Noble with Byram at half time and pushed Cheik in midfield. 5 1/2
Reid: played quite well except for the bird watching on second goal. 7 1/2 without goal two, 4 1/2 because of goal two.
Fonte: Still not quite what it should be. Got caught out of position a couple of times and had a hard time recovering. Also miscommunicated with Carroll on corner, which led to Costa’s goal. 6
Cresswell: Courageous performance. Looks on his way back… 6
Noble: Very good and precise passing going forward. Very slow when he has to recover. Did not even bother to race back on goal number one. 5
Obiang: This guy reads and plays the game very well, Discrete but very efficient. One of the best on the pitch today. 7
Lanzini: Should have scored or passed in the first half semi volley. Feghouli was better positioned. Very talented player, gaining in confidence and weight in the team every weekend. 6 1/2
Feghouli: I don’t understand the bashing going around this player. Brings energy and would have scored but for Moses clearance on the line. 6
Snodgrass: The mentality is good, but too much waste in his passing still. Partly at fault for Hazard center attack, and seems to lose gas during the games. 5
Carroll: Clearly not fit yet. Could not make the difference today. Lots of will power, dedication, and vista playing the ball. 5 1/2
Subs
Ayew: Assist, little more. 5
Byram: Ddid not miss a single pass or give balls away. Why did Bilic not bring him on at half time for Noble ? That would have freed Cheik into midfield. Serious question as to whether he is rated and will ever make it as out right back. 5 1/2
Fernandes: not enough minuted on the pitch, no rating.
A few words regarding CB. Bilic did not get Collins on and was right. Not quick nor mobile enough. Maybe v. Bournemouth if Reid is injured. Or bring in Declan Rice !
As to RB, by now it is clear that it has to be Byram till the end of season or we will never know what this player is really worth. Push Cheik back in midfield, and you will see the difference in energy and pace.
if anyone had a really good final 5 minutes that I missed, I’m happy to revise their scores. personally I felt I’d seen enough…
You wouldn’t know if they did as you had left!
Why don’t you do us some next week mate? Five mins is hardly like to make much difference for crying out loud
Bearing in mind that last season was a bit of a one off, have we really progressed over the last two years? I am not starting an anti Bilic rant, but I think we will finish bottom half and will end below Leicester. I know there has been Payet, but that problem surfaced early on & we are still using it as the excuse. We should see ourselves on a level with Southampton, but they have made more progress than us- cup finals, further in Europe. Every season they have a blip, but then just sort it out. This season they had their own Payet problem. Solved that. Found themselves with no striker. Solved that. Now they are back above us. I struggle to think of convincing performances from us this season..
I don’t want to start a sack Bilic row. I know most fans love him & I respect that. Just would be interested to know what other fans think about whether we are going forward.