Chelsea vs. Leicester City player ratings: Fofana, Soyuncu and Tielemans steal the show as Werner struggles
Werner #Werner
For the first time in their history, Leicester City are FA Cup champions after beating Chelsea 1-0 at Wembley thanks to a dashing second-half goal by Youri Tielemans.
But how did each player perform in this one? Here are our player ratings for the match for every starter, substitute and manager.
All ratings are out of 10, and the higher the number the better. A zero would be a first-minute red card. A 10 would be like a dominant hat trick.
Chelsea ratings
(GK) Kepa
90
After a quiet first half Kepa swept up danger proactively when he beat Jamie Vardy to a ball over the top. He could do nothing about Tielemans’ wonderful goal.
6
(DEF) Reece James
90
Redeployed into an unfamiliar role on the right of the back three, James excelled from the off and brought the pace needed to quell Vardy and Kelechi Iheanacho. A crucial block on the former denied Leicester their best chance of a goal in the first half but his clumsy pass set the stage for Tielemans’ opener.
6
(DEF) Thiago Silva
90
A brilliant cross in the direction of Cesar Azpilicueta was the outstanding creative moment of the first half and for a moment it seemed he had teed up an equaliser for Chilwell. At the other end he was consistently the man in the right position to block Leicester crosses or compete with Vardy, on whom he made a brilliant tackle in the 85th minute.
8
(DEF) Antonio Rudiger
90
Rudiger dealt proactively with Kelechi Iheanacho, whenever the ball came towards the Leicester danger man Chelsea’s No.2 would be in close proximity, denying him the chance to turn and run. However he twice wasted good positions with clumsy shots.
6
(MID) Cesar Azpilicueta
74
The captain came within inches of opening the scoring in the first half but Timo Werner’s header seemed to slip the ball away from where Azpilicueta needed it. A steadying presence at right wing back but he was sacrificed as Chelsea chased parity late on.
5
(MID) Jorginho
74
The Italian slipped one or two excellent passes into dangerous areas and looked solid in defense. However you could not quite shake the feeling that Chelsea needed someone capable of playing the killer pass rather than the ones in the build-up.
5
(MID) N’Golo Kante
90
A propulsive force in the Chelsea midfield, especially in a second half where he found plenty of space down the right side of the pitch. He was perhaps their most effective creative force but then that was something of a problem as well.
6
(MID) Marcos Alonso
67
A customary Alonso performance, dangerous in attack but a little too open when Timothy Castagne darted in behind. He might have done better with the game’s first shot on target, a tame header that he looped towards Kasper Schmeichel.
5
(FWD) Hakim Ziyech
67
The game rather passed him by. Where in the past ZIyech might have been on hand to pick up any crosses from Werner he was off the pace today and could not have complained when he was the first to exit the contest.
4
(FWD) Timo Werner
81
Twice in the first two minutes he timed his run right to burst in behind Caglar Soyuncu but the Foxes did not seem to fear him, dropping off and challenging him to shoot from range. He proved them right.
4
(FWD) Mason Mount
90
A gorgeous flick in the 21st minute set up a shooting chance for Ziyech, Mount kept drifting into awkward positions for the Leicester wing backs to deal with. he must have believed he had equalised when Schmeichel somehow denied him in the 87th minute.
6
Ben Chilwell
Alonso, 67′
Twice he nearly broke the hearts of his former club with a header at the back post that drew a fine save from Schmeichel. And one could hardly blame him for being a hare offside on his last minute called-off goal.
6
Christian Pulisic
Ziyech, 67′
The star of last season’s FA Cup Final loss, this time he could not get on the ball without being hassled and harried back towards his own goal.
5
Callum Hudson-Odoi
Azpilicueta, 74′
Among the most effective of Chelsea’s substitutes he added spark down the right flank where most of the Blues’ best attacks came from late on.
5
Kai Havertz Jorginho, 74′ Struggled to make an impact on a contest where his creativity could have been vital. 5 Olivier Giroud Werner, 81′ Soyuncu dealt quite excellently with the aerial threat that Giroud offered late on. 5
Thomas Tuchel
5
James might have impressed in the back three but it was hard to shake the sense that Chelsea missed his crossing from the right. As for the front three, Werner and Ziyech might have found form before but they are not the most consistent of options and struggled today. Tuchel has consistently excelled since arriving at Stamford Bridge but this was a rare misstep.
4
Leicester ratings
(GK) Kasper Scheichel
90
A superstar performance. He made some absolutely incredible saves late, including one on Mason Mount that his dad will be proud of. A champion once again, and he was massive.
8
(DEF) Caglar Soyuncu
90
The towering Turkish defender does it all. He was just sensational in every aspect. He kept attackers in front, he was dominant in the air and largely composed especially under added fire after Evans’s injury.
9
(DEF) Johnny Evans
34
Came out in the first half due to an injury. Was strong until that point but could not carry on. He was surely gutted.
6
(DEF) Wesley Fofana
90
Exceptional positioning in the box to contain Timo Werner. Timed his challenges well, intercepted the ball masterfully and continues to look like a budding superstar.
9
(MID) Thomas
82
Another quality outing from the youngster. Got the assist on Tieleman’s goal with an attentive pass to feet and his effort lifted up those around him.
8
(MID) Timothy Castagne
90
Kept wide and was readily available to get forward. Delivered in some quality passes as well. At times he was maybe a tad slow in defending but nothing alarming.
6
(MID) Wilfried Ndidi
90
Very strong in the middle. Always strong in his tackling, read passes well, was composed and disciplined.
7
(MID) Youri Tielemans
90
⚽ 63′ What more can you say about the goal scoring hero? Took his chance masterfully from range for one of the most memorable FA Cup final goals in a while. An instant club legend.
8
(MID) Ayoze Perez
82
Didn’t do anything in attack, really, but he was still key. His pressure and touch on the ball led to the turnover that then led to the opening goal.
6
(FWD) Kelechi Iheanacho
45
Never got going. Chelsea were dominating the ball in the first half and he couldn’t find space or time. Taken off early in second half.
4
(FWD) Jamie Vardy
90
The hustle was there as always, but he never looked like a major threat. Chances were hard to come by, but credit to him for his drive to defend in the final moments.
6
Marc Albrighton
Evans (34′)
Came on in the first half and held his own. In the air he was quite good, but where he stood out was applying pressure to not let attackers turn.
7
James Maddison
Iheanacho (64′)
Came on right after the goal to give his team a bit more possession. Didn’t have a lot of looks going forward but was sharp late to see out the remaining time.
6
Hamza Choudhury
Perez (82′)
Brought on to boost the backline for the final minutes and held his own.
6
Wes Morgan Thomas (82′) Similarly to Choudhury, he came on to see out the game. He was on the wrong end of a late goal from Chelsea but was saved by VAR. Decent enough. 5
Brendan Rodgers
4
His name will forever be written in the club’s history for leading them to their first ever FA Cup crown. He’ll be a hot commodity for some other big clubs, but getting Leicester back into UCL and with a trophy, how could he leave? Deserves so much credit for his team’s drive and ambition. Deserved to be champs.
9