Chelsea battled to a win against Norwich in the FA Cup in a game that went from dull to mad over its course.
A boring first half was followed by an exciting second, and a period of extra time that had two red cards and a controversial penalty incident.
In the end the game went to penalties, and Antonio Conte’s men looked confident as they scored all five to move to the next round.
Here are our ratings from today’s featured Chelsea players…
Starting Eleven:
Willy Caballero – 7 – Had perhaps more action than he might have expected, and made a superb save to prevent Norwich equalising immediately after Chelsea scored. Made the vital stop in the shootout.
Cesar Azpilicueta – 7 – Had the first chance of the game but couldn’t quite get onto the end of a cross. Then had a typically solid game at the back.
David Luiz – 6 – A couple of hairy moments when he was caught out, but only because he was being forced to push forward by the dearth of quality ahead of him. One of the players at fault for the equaliser.
Ethan Ampadu – 7 – Very comfortable at the back, really astonishingly so for someone of his age.
Davide Zappacosta – 6 – Very willing runner down the right as always but didn’t put any balls of much quality in. Didn’t close down Klose well enough for the ball that was put in for the equaliser.
Tiemoue Bakayoko – 6 – Not one of his worse games in Blue, but not great either. One of many who grew into the game, but just doesn’t affect matches enough either offensively or defensively.
Danny Drinkwater – 6 – Uninspiring first half but hit a couple of dangerous shots, including one that hit the bar. Doesn’t look a good fit alongside Bakayoko.
Kenedy – 7 – Up and down as always, with moments of great skill and the cross that he put in for Batshuayi’s goal making up for a few poor decisions.
Pedro – 5 – Ineffective up front, although hardly helped by Batshuayi’s movement. Booked for a horrible dive, then given a second yellow deep into extra time for a clear foul.
Michy Batshuayi – 4 – Was absolutely woeful up front, offering no movement and looking totally devoid of confidence or inspiration. His tap in did little to remedy that.
Willian – 6 – Didn’t do much to help the team when they were struggling to create but used the ball intelligently once they were ahead and worked hard when the team were under pressure. Did brilliantly to win what should have been a penalty, but he was booked for a dive.
Substitutes:
Alvaro Morata – 6 – Looked lively immediately and sent a clever header just wide after coming on. Got involved more than Batshuayi had done in his time on the pitch. In the end had plenty of chances and probably should have scored at least one.
Andreas Christensen – 6 – Came on for Ethan Ampadu and ended up playing a lot longer than he might have expected as the game went to extra time.
N’Golo Kante – 6 – Came on to give Kenedy a rest, and his presence and energy was vital in extra time.
Eden Hazard – 6 – Zipped around in his minutes on the pitch and then calmly scored the winning penalty.
