Chelsea 3-0 Aston Villa: Player ratings as Romelu Lukaku brace fired unconvincing Blues past spirited Villans | Premier League 2021-22
Chelsea labored to a 3-0 victory over Aston Villa at Stamford Bridge in the Premier League.
A brace from Romelu Lukaku on either side of a goal from Mateo Kovacic got the job done for the Blues, who were largely unconvincing on the night.
Following the Belgian's opener in the 15th minute, the Villans took control of the match and forced Edouard Mendy into a lot of saves.
Kovacic doubled the European champions' advantage shortly after the break, although they failed to build on that momentum once again.
The match went back and forth, even though Villa once again came really close to scoring on a few occasions.
But following a nice team move and a series of passes, Lukaku fired home an unstoppable volley into the far post to wrap up the proceedings.
Chelsea are back to winning ways and sit third in the league standings with 10 points from four games and consigned Villa down to 12th.
Here are the player ratings for Chelsea:
Edouard Mendy - 8.5/10
The sturdy Senegalese turned in a fine performance, making a series of important saves to keep his side in the game. His best moment was arguably a double save to deny Tyrone Mings and Ezri Konsa in the first-half. Clutch player.
Trevoh Chalobah - 7/10
He almost gifted Villa the opener with a mistake but quickly regained his composure and held off their attacks from the right. Six clearances, four tackles and six long-balls to his credit too.
Thiago Silva - 7.5/10
The Brazilian was a last-minute inclusion but that didn't perturb him at all, for Silva was fine and turned in a flawless performance in defense. He even made a key block to deny Ollie Watkins in the first-half.
Antonio Rudiger - 7.5/10
He's been consistently excellent this season and today was no different. The German read the game astutely, making six clearances, whilst also darting forward a few times to throw his weight around in midfield. He made one attempt at goal too, but it flew horribly awry.
Callum Hudson-Odoi - 7/10
Hudson-Odoi was clearly out of his depth at right-back and looked far more comfortable only after moving forward. Still, it didn't yield great dividends.
Mateo Kovacic - 7.5/10
There was a lot riding on Kovacic's shoulders today, given N'Golo Kante was injured, Jorginho was on the bench and Saul was new to Chelsea's midfield. With one goal, one assist, and 85% pass success, it's suffice to say he stepped up to the plate.
Saul - 6/10
Many expected him to come off the bench but Tuchel threw him right into the deep end. It proved to be a mistake as the Spaniard struggled to cope with Villa's intensity, constantly losing the ball or getting caught out of possession. Not the Chelsea debut he'd hoped for but give him some time.
Marcos Alonso - 6.5/10
Gracing the captain's armband, there was an added sense of responsibility on Alonso's shoulders. However, he didn't carry the usual threat going forward and went into the referee's books too for tugging down Leon Bailey.
Hakim Ziyech - 6/10
It was a nice opportunity for the Moroccan wizard to prove his worth in Chelsea's number 10 role. But he struggled to replicate his pre-season heroics today.
Kai Havertz - 6/10
Having only recovered from the flu, Chelsea's most expensive man struggled to impose himself on the contest. Besides a few good passes and first-touches, there was little of note to see from him.
Romelu Lukaku - 8.5/10
Chelsea's returning hero stole the show with a brace, his first pair of goals at Stamford Bridge. Both his strikes were top-notch and highlighted his quality to the Blues faithful. Much more to come from him for sure.
Substitutes
Jorginho - 8/10
The fact that Chelsea were an improved side with him on the field tells you how important Jorginho remains to them. A talisman.
Cesar Azpilicueta - 7.5/10
He replaced Havertz to help beef up the right flank but also teed up Lukaku's second goal of the night.
Timo Werner - N/A
The Chelsea striker had only 10 minutes on the field and didn't conjure anything meaningful.