FA Cup Chelsea vs. Birmingham:Torres, Mata and Player Grades for the Blues

Chelsea were booed off the pitch today at Stamford Bridge, as their 1-1 draw to Birmingham City in the fifth round of the FA Cup was not good enough for fans.

Chelsea manager Andre Villas-Boas was unable to help his case for more time, as he added an unnecessary trip to Birmingham for the replay to an already busy schedule.

Birmingham broke through in the 20th minute as David Murphy finished a bouncing corner kick. Chelsea defended poorly as the ball was allowed to drop in box and a scramble ensued in front of Petr Cech to clear it. The ball found Murphy all alone on the far post, and he drove it past the onrushing keeper.

Chelsea got their chance to level two minutes later as Ramires’ run into the box drew a penalty. However, Mata’s attempt was turned out to the post by Birmingham keeper Colin Doyle.

The second half began with a no-confidence vote for Chelsea striker Fernando Torres from his manager as he was taken off for Didier Drogba.

The break came for Chelsea in the 62nd minute as Branislav Ivanovic’s cross found Daniel Sturridge in the middle of the box. The England international, who had been on somewhat of a goal drought, placed and excellent header across his body to level the score at 1-1.

The game concluded the final half hour without either side have a real threat on goal. As the final whistle blew, jeers poured down from the stands on their underperforming side.

As Chelsea ready themselves to fly off to Napoli, they were probably hoping to have a win and strong performance under their belt. However, neither happened, and they will have to regroup for the Champions League tie.

Petr Cech: B+

Good game out of the Chelsea goalkeeper. He was not called on to make any outstanding saves, but was confident in his control when he did.

Birmingham were sitting and waiting to pounce on any loose balls, but there were none to have.  Cech made an especially nice save diving low to his left side late in the game.

Ryan Bertrand: B

A good outing for the youngster. He was challenged early in the game. Birmingham recognized that he would be the weakest link, but Bertrand held his ground and looked confident in his play.

He did not get forward as much as you would expect Ashley Cole to, but I am sure that was on the instructions of Andre Villas-Boas, who did not want to risk him getting caught out of position.

With Cole out for the near future, this was an excellent audition to claim the spot for that time.

Gary Cahill: B-

Nothing particularly good about his performance, and nothing horrid either. His second game in the blue may not have gone as he hoped, but the goal against was not directly attributed to him and he made a couple good clearances.

However, he did look a bit sluggish and uneasy at times. His yellow card as he pulled down the Birmingham defender from behind was a step away from being a straight red.

With John Terry supposedly out against Napoli, there is good chance that Cahill will be in the back, but against a much stronger side. He will have to step it up as he will have to be perfect come Tuesday.

David Luiz: B-

I was waiting for the inevitable all game—that one moment of stupidity from David Luiz that would cast a shadow on an otherwise good performance. It never really came on Saturday.

Luiz was strong and in charge of the back line today. He was a huge part of keeping Birmingham out of the Chelsea box for most of the match.

The corner they scored off probably could have been better defended by Luiz as he had the best chance of clearing it before the ball got into a dangerous area. However, the aerial game has never been his strong point.

He will almost surely figure into Tuesday’s match against Italy, which could make you excited or nervous, depending on how you look at it. You could either say he has finally lived up to his billing or he is due for one of  his horrid games.

Branislav Ivanovic: B

Ivanovic was, for me, the most deserving of blame for the Birmingham goal. The big Serb turned away from the ball as it fell into the Chelsea box, rather than running through and clearing it with all he had. Very uncharacteristic of him.

However, he did make it up with that excellent service to Sturridge, which proved crucial in Chelsea staying alive in the FA Cup.

It is always welcome to see him at the right-back position and just leaves the fans with further questions about why he is not there every game. He gets forward as much as Bosingwa does and even provides better balls, but does not sacrifice defense to do so.

Hopefully, this was enough for Andre Villas-Boas to see he needs to be there in Italy.

John Obi Mikel: B-

John Obi Mikel is the kind of player who, if you don’t call his name, then he had a good game. Defensively, he was sound in the midfield and made sure that Birmingham was not able to retain possession for too long.

His substitution was more a consequence of the flow of the game than anything else. Chelsea needed a goal, and he more than anyone knows he is not the guy to count on for that.

Raul Meireles: D

I still for the life of me cannot figure out Raul Meireles’ role. He does not play a true holding midfielder, but also is not high enough in the attack. He kind of meanders in between and ultimately does nothing of influence.

I don’t know if he is a victim of the Andre Villas-Boas scheme or simply not the player fans want him to be, but it baffles me that he consistently plays 90 minutes. Hopefully, Essien was just resting for the game next week and will take the Portuguese’s spot when it really matters.

Ramires: A-

It was a warm welcome back for arguably Chelsea’s player of the year.

The Brazilian returned from injury the same way he left—a constant presence throughout the midfield and with defiant speed that creates out of nothing. He earned the penalty as he slalomed through the Birmingham midfield and into the box.

As usual, every 50/50 ball was challenged hard, and he won a majority of them, swinging the game in favor of Chelsea. For much of the match, he was the only bright spot for hosts.

Juan Mata: C-

It was a poor day for the Spaniard. He did not create enough to help the team get chances and missed their best of the first half as his penalty was saved.

He did rotate the ball over to Branaslav Ivanovic, who provided the cross on the goal, but this is the kind of thing we expect out of him four or five times a game.

A “C-” grade might seem harsh, but I have always stood by the idea that Juan Mata is the key to the Chelsea offense. He needs to be involved if the team wants any chance of making things happen in the attacking third. On Saturday, he did not do that and the scoreboard proved it.

Daniel Sturridge: B-

Sturridge was stuck in a similar goal drought as Torres, albeit not that lengthy. However, he broke through on Saturday with an excellent header to earn Chelsea the tie.

He had a few opportunities outside of that, including a volley effort that did not miss by much.

He seemed to be invigorated by the arrival of Drogba and became a threat playing off the Ivorain’s runs.

Still not the answer to the right wing that Chelsea need, he showed that when he is able to play in the middle and as a true forward, he can make things happen

Fernando Torres: D

It appears that Fernando Torres may have started his last meaningful game for Chelsea. He was ineffective yet again, adding another 45 minutes to his goal drought.

His best play of the game was on a mis-touch that happened to bounce into the path of an onrushing Juan Mata who headed it on net.

All the misconceptions about how he never gets the service required were silenced within minutes of Drogba coming on. He was given the ball multiple times up top and over the top through his own movement.

Torres will get the chance to prove himself again, but those opportunities will be few and far between as he has done nothing to warrant playing time.

Dider Drogba (45th Minute for Torres): B-

The Ivorian return to Stamford Bridge was greeted warmly by the fans. After suffering from goallessness for over a month, Drogba offered some hope.

He did not get a goal today, but it is undeniable the impact he had on the team. His inclusion immediately sparked the team to a new life and dominated the ball in the Birmingham half for most of it.

Some early runs behind the defensive line put them on their heels and opened space for Daniel Sturridge to be free for the goal.

I know the flak will come down on this grade, but you cannot argue that with Torres on the field, they did not score, and without him, they did. These are the simple hard facts of the game.

Salomon Kalou (58th Minute for Mikel): B-

Salomon Kalou played in his first game for Chelsea in almost two months and proved that his poor start at the beginning of the season may have been a fluke.

He did not have much direct influence in the attack, but his constant movement opened space up for the midfield.

I have always been a Kalou fan and think he is a good player. I would like to see him used more often. Hopefully, he did enough today to earn that.

Frank Lampard (83rd Minute for Mata): N/A

Frank Lampard had one free kick he hit into the wall. Other than that, there's not enough to judge.