The Blues will be in the quarter-finals of the Carabao Cup after they beat Everton at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday evening. Antonio Rudiger and Willian grabbed the goals but was it enough to get them onto the Man of the Match shortlist?
3. Ethan Ampadu
Lived up to the excitement surrounding him after his move to Chelsea this summer. The 17-year-old has been playing in the centre of defence for Chelsea’s youth teams but he slotted comfortably into the midfield alongside fellow full debutant, Danny Drinkwater. Composed and elegant on the ball, it’s easy to see why he’s been involved in the first-team setup in recent weeks, both with Chelsea and Wales. Despite going up against the likes of James McCarthy and Tom Davies, Ampadu showed how mature he is with an impressive display at Stamford Bridge. The youngster wasn’t involved too much in the attacking play, that’s not his job, but screened the back three like he’d been doing it for years and never looked out of place alongside a host of Premier League winners.
2. Davide Zappacosta
The Blues certainly didn’t miss Victor Moses in this one. The Italian showed the Chelsea fans that he can play in that right wing-back role after some shaky displays of late in the Premier League. He got the crowd on their feet with a couple of exciting runs down the right wing, sometimes getting in a cross before the ball ran away from him. He also sent a rasping shot into the side netting and, after that goal against Qarabag in the Champions League, he’s clearly got an eye for goal. He coped well defensively and looks to be improving in that department under Antonio Conte. He’s certainly in the frame for a starting place at Bournemouth on Saturday evening after impressing both against Watford and now against Everton.
1. Willy Caballero
Pretty much the main reason why the Blues are still in the Carabao Cup. He made a number of key saves to keep the Toffees out during their periods of dominance in the second half. The most impressive one of the lot came against Wayne Rooney. The former Manchester City keeper denied the former Manchester United striker from point blank range, spreading himself well to block Rooney’s powerful volley. Also made a solid save from Kevin Mirallas’s close-range effort, parrying it out of the danger zone so his defence could regroup. He’ll almost certainly play in the next round and, if the Blues get all the way to the final at Wembley, I’ll have no problem with him starting in between the sticks for that one.
Receive a digest of our best Chelsea content each week direct to your mailbox
