Newcastle 0-3 Chelsea: Grading Andre Villas-Boas' Players
Chelsea defeated Newcastle United 3-0 in a entertaining game.
The score doesn't do justice to Newcastle's efforts. David Luiz should have been sent off and Shola Ameobi hit the bar with a thunderous shot.
A win is a win and this sets Chelsea up well for its must-win UEFA Champions League game against Valencia.
Here are my grades for the game against Newcastle. Feel free to comment below.
Goalkeeper: Petr Čech
1 of 13Grade: B
A fantastic save in the 25th minute to deny Demba Ba's reflex shot. If he had scored, it would have been like Cristiano Ronaldo's acrobatic goal against Málaga.
Aside from that, Petr Čech was a spectator, perhaps marveling at his counterpart Tim Krul pulling off save after save.
Right-Back: Branislav Ivanović
2 of 13Grade: A
In 71 minutes, Peter Løvenkrands only delivered in two crosses and Branislav Ivanović was the reason why.
The Serbian contested five challenges and won them all.
Centre-Back: John Terry
3 of 13Grade: A
An inspiring performance from the captain as he gave a masterpiece in how to defend.
Like usual, putting his body on the line, which had an effect on Ashley Cole.
Now, hopefully, John Terry's defensive ability rubs off on David Luiz.
Centre-Back: David Luiz
4 of 13Grade: F
David Luiz somehow escaped a red card when, as the last man, he pulled down Demba Ba.
Luiz was ball-watching, thinking he was going to intercept Peter Løvenkrands' through ball, only for Ba to run behind him, win the ball, to which Luiz takes the Senegalese forward down.
Then in the seventh minute, he took his time on the ball, and Ba won the ball off him.
Throughout the game, he lost out many headers and looked flustered.
His defending reminds me of Fabricio Coloccini during his first season.
Of course, Coloccini has vastly improved and hopefully Luiz can to.
Left-Back: Ashley Cole
5 of 13Grade: B
Had Gabriel Obertan in his pocket for most of the game, but that was because every time the Frenchman received the ball, he indulged in stationary step overs, either lost the ball or just passed it backwards.
The only time Obertan did beat Cole, the cross missed everyone.
Curiously, Cole didn't deliver in one single cross.
Defensive Midfielder: Oriol Romeu
6 of 13Grade: B+
Oriol Romeu asserted himself onto the game running around and making challenges.
He made six successful tackles and intercepted the ball twice.
A 90 percent passing rate is expected, but hopefully he can start to make plays from deep because he has the passing ability.
Keep starting him and as he gains confidence. Hopefully, we'll be seeing Gerard Piqué-esque balls.
Centre Midfielder: Frank Lampard
7 of 13Grade: D
Frank Lampard surprisingly sprayed the ball around, losing it 10 times and then factor in failing to convert his penalty.
Centre Midfielder: Ramires
8 of 13Grade: A
Ramires has been one of the most consistent players for Chelsea this season.
Today, he chalked up seven successful tackles and one interception.
So he won the ball back for Chelsea eight times.
Right Forward: Daniel Sturridge
9 of 13Grade: A
Daniel Sturridge humiliated Ryan Taylor so much that Taylor took out Sturridge twice in off the ball incidents before launching into a shocking tackle late in the game.
The only criticism of Sturridge is he needs to be more efficient with his shooting and needs to pass the ball instead of taking shots from crazy angles.
Mind you, he did hit the post from an absurd angle.
His relationship with Fernando Torres seems nonexistent from a professional and personal perspective.
Centre Forward: Didier Drogba
10 of 13Grade: C+
Didier Drogba was anonymous for most of the game, but he did score a bullet-like header.
He should have scored a second when he was in front of goal only to volley it so hard that the ball rebounded off the advertisement boards and into the back net.
I actually thought he had scored.
He almost scored an own goal and doesn't look like the Drogba of old.
Where's the bullying centre forward?
He should have had taken advantage of young James Perch more but didn't.
Left Forward: Juan Mata
11 of 13Grade: B+
In the 45th minute, Juan Mata made a tackle, not just any tackle, but a good sliding tackle and he had tracked back to make that tackle.
I was stunned.
As stunned as when Claude Makélelé scored that peach of a volley against Tottenham Hotspur.
Mata could be like Andrei Arshavin when it comes to defending.
He can defend when he tries.
With regards to his attacking play, again he demonstrates he is the architect of the team.
Excellent cross for Didier Drogba to score.
Substitutes
12 of 13Fernando Torres: Had some bright moments but again failed to find the back of the net when he should have. Luckily, his shot rebounded back to him and he squared it to Salomon Kalou.
A trend is emerging where he yells at Daniel Sturridge when the Englishman doesn't pass him the ball.
Torres needs to read Dale Carnegie's How to Win Friends and Influence People. Yelling at Sturridge is not going to make him pass—especially when Torres has no authority.
Raúl Meireles: Some excellent cross-field passes. Comment below with whether or not Meireles should start.
Salomon Kalou: As long as he doesn't come on and give away penalties, it's all good. Though, I suspect his future isn't at Stamford Bridge.
Your Opinion
13 of 13What did you think of the game?
Who was Chelsea's man of the match?
Comment below with the ratings you disagree with.
| Petr Čech | B |
| Branislav Ivanović | A |
| John Terry | A |
| David Luiz | F |
| Ashley Cole | B |
| Oriol Romeu | B+ |
| Frank Lampard | D |
| Ramires | A |
| Daniel Sturridge | A |
| Didier Drogba | C+ |
| Juan Mata | B+ |
.jpg?w=600 "Colts Release Kenny Moore")
