Wednesday, April 29, 2009

. : chelsea vs barcelona : semi final 1st leg : .


How Chelsea FC Rated

4-2-3-1
Average rating: 6.1

Petr Cech
Started nervously and missed two crosses, but recovered to make several good saves from Henry, one from Xavi, a brilliant stop from Eto’o and a late block on Hleb. 7
Branislav Ivanovic
Knew he was in for a torrid evening the moment he was beaten for pace by Henry in the second minute. Caught out again on the half-hour mark. 5

Alex
Lived on the edge after a desperate lunge on Messi, but just about stayed on the right side of the law. Made amends with a great tackle on Henry. 6

John Terry
Helped to keep the marauding home side at bay with a superb rearguard effort, notable for his organisational skills as well as several last-gasp challenges.7

Jose Bosingwa
Came through a fitness test on the day to start only his second match in a month and did as well as could be expected against the best player in the world. 6
John Obi Mikel
His naivety was exposed by Xavi and Iniesta, with whom he struggled to keep pace, resorting to cynical fouls to stop them in their tracks. 5

Michael Essien
Looked ill-suited to the unfamiliar role on the right that he first filled against Juventus in February, but dug deep to get through lots of unselfish work for the team. 6

Michael Ballack
Has been recast as a defensive midfield player by Hiddink and did his work diligently, though missed a good chance when heading over the bar from a Drogba free kick. 6

Frank Lampard
Given less space than he would have liked and struggled to escape the shackles of Touré before he was replaced by Belletti with 20 minutes remaining. 6

Florent Malouda
Has hit form at the right time and could not be faulted for effort, showing a level of energy that has been absent all season and asked several questions of Alves. 7

Didier Drogba
Chasing an imaginary ball for most of the first half before missing a great chance to give Chelsea the lead. Went round Márquez again soon after but lost his footing. 6

Subs:
Juliano Belletti (for Lampard, 71min), Nicolas Anelka (for Ballack, 90).

Not used:
Hilário, Franco Di Santo, Salomon Kalou, Michael Mancienne, Miroslav Stoch.

Booked:
Alex, Ballack.

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