Chelsea player ratings vs Manchester United

Chelsea are through to the FA Cup final after an impressive victory over Manchester United at Wembley. The Blues had the better of the play in the first half and made their dominance in possession count shortly before the break. Cesar Azpilicueta made a strong run down the right wing and whipped in a low cross to the near post which was turned home by Olivier Giroud from close range.

David de Gea will feel he could have done better with Chelsea’s first goal, and their second was the result of some more poor handling from the United stopper. Brandon Williams gave the ball away cheaply in his own half and Mason Mount’s tame effort from the edge of the box squirmed under De Gea’s hands and into the net. To cap a disappointing afternoon for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, United captain Harry Maguire turned into his own net to book Chelsea’s place in the FA Cup final.

There was a glimmer of hope for Manchester United late on as Bruno Fernandes converted a penalty after Calum Hudson-Odoi tripped Anthony Martial in the box. But there was no dramatic comeback and Frank Lampard’s side book their place in the FA Cup final against Arsenal on 1 August.

Chelsea player ratings 

Willy Caballero – It was a fairly quiet afternoon for the experienced stopper with none of the drama that marred his last trip to Wembley under Maurizio Sarri. Had little chance with the goal from a Fernandes penalty and will be hopeful of keeping his place in the team when they return for the final in two weeks’ time. 6/10

Cesar Azpilicueta – Playing on the right of a back three allowed him to get forward at times and the Chelsea captain showed his ability on the ball with a brilliant low cross to set up the opener. Was more reserved from then on and showed his experience to ensure there was no United comeback. 7/10

Kurt Zouma – Playing in the middle of a back three seemed to suit his tough-tackling style and he dealt well with United’s attacking threat throughout. Any defensive slip would have been pounced on by Fernandes but Zouma’s positioning was spot-on throughout, limiting the service for Rashford and Martial. 7/10

Antonio Rudiger – The Italian capped a solid performance by forcing a third goal to book Chelsea’s place in the final, his clever movement in the box prompting Maguire to nudge the ball into his own net. Seems better suited to this new system and should keep his place for the foreseeable. 7/10

Reece James - Chelsea’s wing-backs were central to Lampard’s game plan at Wembley and the extra license to get forward definitely played to James’ strengths. He coped well with Rashford when he moved out wide and caused problems for United going forward. 7/10

Jorginho – Has struggled to hold down a starting place this season but was central to Chelsea’s early dominance, his confidence in possession allowed Chelsea to resist the pressing from United. His workrate has been questioned at times but he was constantly harrying against United. 7/10

Mateo Kovacic – The former Real Madrid man put in another solid performance in the middle of the park with strong tackling to disrupt United’s rhythm. Not as influential as he can be but formed a good partnership with Jorginho in the absence of N’Golo Kante. 6/10

Marcos Alonso – Similar to James, Alsonso’s willingness to get forward was perfectly suited to the new formation and he provided width to allow Mount to drift inside. Was caught out of position a couple of times as United looked to spring the counter-attack but was able to recover. 6/10

Willian – The Brazilian has had a renaissance since the restart and started off well again at Wembley, stretching the United backline with his powerful running. Seemed to fade out in the second half though and was rarely able to get in the game, possibly a touch of fatigue setting in for the 31-year-old. 6/10

Olivier Giroud – Giroud is enjoying a run in the team for the first time under Lampard and repaid that faith with a nonchalant flick for the game’s opener. His workrate and link-up play is never in question and he excelled with his back to goal to bring Mount into the game on a number of occasions. 7/10

Mason Mount – An exciting performance from the young Englishman who was given a free role from the left hand side. With Alonso providing the width Mount was free in drift inside and it was from there that he fired in the game’s second goal, albeit thanks to a goalkeeping howler. 7/10

Substitutes

Tammy Abraham – The young forward has slipped down the pecking order and was only given the final ten minutes at Wembley, providing fresh legs to see out the game. 6/10

Calum Hudson-Odoi – The Englishman’s main impact after coming on was to give away a penalty for a clumsy foul on Martial, luckily for him it came too late to spark a comeback. 5/10

Ruben Loftus-Cheek – The Chelsea academy graduate was brought on for the impressive Kovacic as Lampard looked to close out the game and did his job. N/A

Pedro – Brought on in place of Mason Mount in injury time. N/A