After seeing Manchester United, Tottenham, Sheffield United and Leicester all drop points before kick-off, Chelsea would have been desperate to pick up three points against Aston Villa. Despite dominating possession, it was Villa who took the lead before half-time. However, two goals in 3 minutes after the restart ensured that Frank Lampard’s tricky Blues extended the gap between themselves and 5th place to 5 points.
BEST PLAYER - N’GOLO KANTÉ
Much to the delight of many Chelsea fans, Frank Lampard chose to start N’golo Kanté in the middle of the midfield three. Despite not having played there much, Kanté controlled the game superbly. The French midfielder had the fourth most touches of any Chelsea player (97) and used the ball well, completing 87% of his 90 passes, including 9 long balls and 2 key passes. He also helped disrupt Villa’s few chances to break, making 3 tackles and interceptions, a joint-high. Chelsea fans will surely be hoping to see Kanté deployed in this role more frequently.
WORST PLAYER - JOHN MCGINN
Given that this was only his second game since December, it may be considered harsh to put John McGinn as the worst player. However, hopefully the stats will convince you otherwise. The midfielder only made 1 tackle and failed to intercept the ball despite Chelsea holding 74% of possession. McGinn also had the fewest touches of any Villa starter (16), showing that he struggled to make himself an option. Even on the ball, McGinn only completed 5 passes, disappointing for a midfielder. Currently sat in 19th, Villa will be hoping that McGinn can return to his pre-injury form soon.
UNDERRATED PLAYER - ANDREAS CHRISTENSEN
Andreas Christensen has only appeared 16 times this season due to Chelsea frequently rotating centre back partnerships. However, the Danish academy product was as cool as ever on the ball yesterday, completing the second most passes (93) with the highest accuracy (94%) including 100%(!) of his 9 attempted long balls. Despite often being criticized as physically inadequate, he won 6 aerial duels, 2 more than Antonio Rudiger. Perhaps Christensen is Chelsea’s best option at the back.
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