Mykhailo Mudryk had a good cameo as he made his debut for the club from
the bench
Both teams came into the game sitting in mid table and underperforming. There were also a lot of injuries in both squads to some key players. The effect of this did show throughout the game. Chelsea had ten injuries as Mateo Kovacic was added to the list for this game. Joao Felix was once again suspended as he served the second game of his three match ban.
In terms of team news Marc Cucurella came in for Carney Chukwuemeka and this meant Lewis Hall went into midfield with Jorginho. Liverpool also had a few of their players unavailable such as Van Dijk, Diaz, Firminio and Jota. Some other players were also on the bench .
Chelsea seemed to lineup with three at the back with Hakim Ziyech and Marc Cucurella as wing backs but this was quite fluid as has been quite usual in and out of possession.
Via BBC Sport
Chelsea slightly shaded possession with 52%. The blues completed more passes (437 v 375) with slightly more accuracy (81% to 79%). Both teams were quite sloppy in possession and the ball was given away quite frequently, especially in midfield areas.
Liverpool took more shots (15) with 6 on target compared to Chelsea’s 11 (also 6 on target). Chelsea though created 4 big chances compared to Liverpool (0) but were unable to convert any of them. Chelsea had a 1.76 xg with Liverpool’s at 1.44.
Stats via FotMob. Xg from @xGphilosophy
Once again Thiago Silva and Benoit Badiashile formed a good partnership in defence. Composed on the ball and defensively they were able to keep Liverpool’s attackers out for the most part. A video compilation of them both is shown below. Silva was again probably man of the match and it seems he has had a positive impact on Badiashile.
Thiago Silva vs. Liverpool:
112 touches
83/91 passes completed (91% accuracy)
9 passes into final ⅓
6 clearances
3 interceptions
3 duels won
3 blocks
2 aerial duels won
1 chance created
1 clean sheet
1 tackle made
1 shot
0 x dribbled past
0 fouls
Stats via Squawka
I believe that playing Lewis Hall in midfield proved to be a bit of a difficult task for the youngster away at Anfield but the lack of options due to injury may have forced this a bit. He performed quite admirably but had a couple of shaky moments which could have been punished on another day. Kovacic was ruled out before this game and Loftus-Cheek has just returned from injury and was on the bench. Potter will be hoping to get players back before the next game in around two weeks.
One of the main positives from this game was the debut and performance of Mykhailo Mudryk from the bench. He did some good things in his cameo and stretched the opposition with his pace and skill. Having not played any matches since November, his performance was quite impressive.
Mykhailo Mudryk v Liverpool after coming on in the 55th minute
13/14 accurate passes (93% accuracy)
2 passes into final third
2/3 successful dribbles
3/3 tackles won
7/10 duels won
1 foul won
4 ball recoveries
(FotMob)
Cesar Azpilicueta also came on to make his 500th appearance for the club, joining an elite group and also becomes the first foreign player to do so. A great achievement for the Spaniard who came to the club in 2012 for just £7 million from Marseille. 👏
🏴 John Terry - 715
🏴 Frank Lampard - 648
🏴 Ron Harris - 609
🏴 Peter Bonetti - 539
🏴 John Hollins - 509
🇪🇸 Cesar Azpilicueta - 500
There were some promising signs from Chelsea, taking into consideration still having a host of injuries to key players. Graham Potter was pleased with the teams performance and also Mudryk.
‘I am happy with the performance overall as it is never easy here, it’s a huge challenge,’ Potter said as he started his analysis.
‘I thought we played well and were the better side in the first half. They started the second half better, but we had a couple of chances with Mykhailo [Mudryk] and Carney [Chukwuemeka].
‘We wanted to win but we take the point and move forward. I liked the energy of the team and what we tried to do.” (via Chelseafc.com)
There is a bit of a break now with the next Chelsea game against Fulham set to be on 3rd February.
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