Chelsea midfielder Moises Caicedo did not make the start he was looking for at this year’s World Cup.
In the early hours of Monday morning, Caicedo and his Ecuador teammates lost 1-0 to the Ivory Coast in their opening group stage game.
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Mamadou Sarr is being slept on…
The match was heading for a draw until Manchester United’s Amad Diallo netted in the 90th minute to win the three points for his nation.
Ecuadorian media give Chelsea’s Moises Caicedo mixed review
It was a frustrating match for Caicedo, who fell victim to one of FIFA’s new rules to combat time wasting.
Losing the game would have been the biggest source of his frustration, though. Individually, it was not his best performance either, but it certainly was not his worst.
Primicias handed Caicedo a 6/10 for his display, saying: “It was a complex match in which, for a moment, he seemed about to give in to anger. He calmed down, but received off-the-ball tackles that tested his concentration. He was the driving force of the team, but some passes lacked their usual precision.”
A lot of Caicedo’s performances have been like that since the turn of the year. At the beginning of the 2025/26 season, the 24-year-old was arguably the best midfielder in the Premier League.
However, he had a real dip in form in the second half of the campaign. Nevertheless, Chelsea still consider Caicedo untouchable.
His next game at this summer’s World Cup is against Curacao, which Ecuador will be expected to win.
How would you rank Chelsea’s so-called “untouchables” ahead of the new season?
Here is The Chelsea Chronicle's list!
7. Josh Acheampong
6. Estevao Willian
5. Levi Colwill
4. Moises Caicedo
3. Joao Pedro
2. Reece James
1. Cole Palmer
Moises Caicedo’s stats vs Ivory Coast
Caicedo offered a lot going forward. According to Sofascore, the Chelsea man actually managed to register three key passes.
He also completed two out of four crosses, which is not bad. Defensively, Caicedo only made one successful tackle.
The former Brighton & Hove Albion player started the game quite strongly. Ecuador did as a whole.
However, the second half was the Ivory Coast’s. They started to see much more of the ball, and Caicedo began to fade as a result.
All in all, a 6/10 is probably quite fair. Again, Caicedo was not at his best, but he still had some good moments. As the tournament goes on, his manager will be looking for him to go up another gear.
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