A hard fought draw in a keenly contested tie at the Etihad sees Chelsea getting a conclusion that would suit them just fine. The Manchester team however, will be left disappointed at their second draw in 5 matches.
How did the Chelsea players fair?
COURTOIS
Despite Manchester City’s dominance, the Belgian goalie had surprisingly little to do, as a stop from Sergio Aguero in the first half was his only difficult save before the goal. He again looked ordinary for the goal that seemed destined for the net as soon as Lampard’s feet touched it. RATING- 6\10
IVANOVIC
After doing well by playing a crucial part in Chelsea’s assist, the Serbian was left gazing down in disappointment after he allowed Lampard sneak behind him to tap in Milner’s cross, yards from the goal. RATING 4\10
TERRY
The English defender had an average game by his standards. He made an admirable attempt to block Lampard’s shot for the goal. RATING-6\10
CAHILL
The former Bolton man was struggling to cover the space left by Ivanovic’s overlapping runs and struggled to contain David Silva who usually moved to the left to exploit the space. RATING 5\10
AZPILICUETA
A good defensive display as usual, but was severely lacking in attack. His absence in most of Hazard’s attacking runs ended up leaving the Belgian alone in the midst of the opposition defense. RATING 5\10
RAMIRES
The Brazilian was energetic as usual, running down from one end of the pitch to the other. He put in good tackles and provided an outlet in attack… nothing game changing though. RATING 6\10
FABREGAS
The Spaniard failed to influence the game as he usually does, although he worked hard in the center of midfield, trying to help contain the bullish Toure. He tried to make a couple of passes through the center but the Manchester city Captain Kompany, usually saw them coming and thus intercepted most of them. RATING 5\10
WILLIAN
The diminutive Brazilian showed real stamina while he was on the pitch. He however needlessly lost the ball by making obvious dribbles and passes, which left his team on the end of dangerous counter attacks from the opposition. RATING 4\10
HAZARD
The Belgian wasn’t going to skip past defenders like he did on Wednesday; neither was any one expecting him to. An assist to Diego Costa after starting the move in the first place, was his only true contribution, in a match that saw him fail to complete many of his dribbles. RATING 6\10
DIEGO COSTA
Costa failed to score today, but made himself a handful. The striker’s contribution to the goal, coupled with his involvement in Zabaleta’s sending off, meant his time on the pitch was profitable for the Blues. RATING 7\10
SUBSTITUTES
DROGBA
The Ivorian failed to impact the game at all in his few minutes on the pitch. RATING 3\10
SCHURRLE
The German scored the decisive first goal, but was also guilty of allowing Milner get passed him to assist the equalizer. RATING 6\10
MIKEL
John Obi Mikel was brought in to defend the lead and also to help control tempo. The former Lyn Oslo man did neither of these things. It was an average showing, from an obviously average player. RATING 5\10
Chelsea will be hoping that the next time they meet the Champions at the Bridge; a win is what they eventually go home with.
