An epic clash between Chelsea and Atletico was always going to be a low scoring encounter. With a final score of 0-0 it was everything people expected. But was it? No, many didn’t expect to see John Obi Mikel, Cole, and Schwarzer feature in the match.
We entered the match with a squad missing Eden Hazard and Samuel Eto’o to injury. Eto’o picked up a slight knock in the Sunderland loss, as Hazard picked up a knock in training prior to the PSG return leg a few weeks ago.Â
The starting line up seemed to be very defensive and different from what we have seen this season. The team consisting of Cech in goal, Azpilicueta, Cahill, Terry, and Cole in defense, Luiz, Mikel, and Lampard in central midfield roles, Ramires on the right wing, Willian on the left wing, and Torres alone up top.
What was different about this game was the way it finished. Inside 20 minutes we saw first-choice goalkeeper forced off after a heavy fall tipping over a corner. He was then replaced by Mark Schwarzer. It has been stated by Mourinho that Cech is now out for the rest of the season with a dislocated shoulder.
Then with 18 minutes to be played Terry seemed to have stepped on Luiz’s foot and rolled his ankle. This injury seems to be minor and he should be able to return soon. This being said he did leave the match and was replaced by Schurrle as Luiz dropped back and Ramires filled the central midfield role.
The Chelsea squad was full of fringe players tonight and those players flourished in their roles. Ashley Cole filled in at left back as Azpilicueta slid across the defense to fill in right back for the suspended Branislav Ivanovic. Nemanja Matic and Mohamed Salah are not available for Champions league football this season as they are cup tied to Benfica and Basel respectively. This meaning Mikel would fill the Matic role for the night. An interesting choice saw Ramires deployed as a right winger instead of Oscar or Andre Schurrle. Also, Fernando Torres got the start ahead of Chelsea’s hero as of late, Demba Ba. A big game for the Spaniard retuning to Atletico for the first time in blue since leaving them just a while ago. Lastly, Schwarzer came on to replace the injured Petr Cech.
To start, Ashley Cole was fantastic, beaten a couple of times in the air at the far post but nothing came of the attempts. He wasn’t beaten really in the packed defense and didn’t allow many crosses to be played into the dangerous Diego Costa who was kept quiet by Gary Cahill and John Terry. It was a very fine performance from the left back.
Next, we were treated to a rare, disciplined, brilliant performance by John Obi Mikel. After not receiving much playing time this season, Mikel came in and did a fantastic job. Unfortunately, he picked up a yellow card and won’t be able to feature in the return leg. Disappointing news, given his great performance on the night.
Also, Mark Schwarzer turned in an extremely good performance when it was required. He had a bit of a nightmare the past weekend with a bit of a blunder allowing Connor Wickham to score the equalizer. A very unconvincing performance. Nevertheless, it was like watching a completely different man in goal against Atletico. He seemed confident apart from one nervous punch that came to nothing. It was a very good match for the Australian, 41 year old. Who also set the record for being the oldest player to feature in the Champions League, surpassing Ryan Giggs.
Then, we saw a certain Fernando Torres get the start tonight. Eto’o was ruled out with a knock and many expected Demba Ba to start given the form he has been in since the PSG and Swansea wins. It was a big match for Torres as he faced Atletico for the first time in blue. He left the stadium last to a standing ovation. Rightly so as he turned in a great performance. Completing 6 out of 8 take ons and beating Godin and Miranda in the air on several occasions. A much needed good performance from the Atletico fan.
Lastly, we saw another quiet performance from Ramires. Not to be too rough, but his decision making and passing wasn’t brilliant like others tonight. One opportunity in the first half, arguably the best chance of the half saw him break free down the right side to put in a shot/cross to the far post where nobody was. He may have thought Torres was further up the pitch, nevertheless a crucial chance was wasted. He didn’t give the ball away too much, but it was a better performs than the one we saw vs Sunderland at the weekend.
Overall, it was good to see a good performance from some of the fringe players as well as the rest of the squad.
Chelsea vs Atletico Madrid Player Ratings:
Cech: 5 – Not able to see too much of him as he came off early, made a good save to tip over the corner he was injured on. Get well soon.
Azpilicueta: 7 – Not super involved, made some big clearances and didn’t allow much to come down the right side. Solid as always.
Cahill: 8 – Some big clearances, kept Costa quiet, another disciplined performance from the center back.
Terry: 9 – Terry was at his very best tonight up until the injury that saw him leave the match. Clearance after clearance, nothing was getting past Terry tonight. Brilliant.
Cole: 8 – For not getting a start in the past three months and being started against the best in La Liga, it was outstanding from Ashley. Another one of Chelsea’s big game, experienced players. This one will give Mourinho a headache for his selection ahead of Liverpool and Atletico’s return.
Luiz: 7 – He was all over the place in a good way, breaking up attack after attack. He had 2 free kicks that he couldn’t take advantage of but did well in the role given to him.
Mikel: 8 – Mikel has always been known to slow play down and that’s exactly what he did vs Atletico. It was a risk for Mourinho and it payed off, Mikel was awesome clearing crosses, intercepting passes, and more, will be missed in the return leg.
Lampard: 6 – Pretty quiet, received a yellow card, meaning he will sit the next match out. Made a few good passes as well as clearances. Not bad from Frank.
Ramires: 6 – Not a ton to do from him tonight, threw away a big chance to get the opening goal around the 30 minute mark. Solid defensively.
Willian: 7 – Several people thought tonight would be the night he took into his own hands and made something out of nothing. It was a good performance from Willian, but not a great one. Completed a fantastic through ball to Ramires, solid defensively tracking back, good off the ball movement, not too bad from the Brazilian.
Torres: 8 – The only thing keeping Torres from being a 9 or a 10 was his 8-of-21 passing(37.5%) and not getting a goal/assist. His 6 takeons was more than the whole Atletico side combined. Did well on the ball, went missing for a few minutes, tough job, but did well with it. Has to be satisfied despite not getting a goal.
Schwarzer: 8 – After replacing Cech, he was very good, looked confident, made a big save soon after coming on, punched away/caught a few crosses and corners. We should put see many Atletico goals at SW6 with another performance like that. Calm performance.
Schurrle: N/A – No real impact on the game in the given time.
Ba: N/A – No real impact in the few minutes he had despite receiving a yellow card for time wasting.
Chelsea vs Atletico Madrid Man of the Match: John Terry
It was a disciplined performance from the Blues and we will all be looking forward to the return leg next Wednesday, as Chelsea search for their third Champions League final appearance, third European final in as many years, and a second Champions League trophy and Atletico search for their first ever Champions League final appearance. Expect to see tempers flare and emotions rise as the pressure unfolds.Â
Keep The Blue Flag Flying High! Â
