Thomas Tuchel’s Chelsea cruised to all three points against relegation battlers Leeds United in 3-0 victory at Elland Road.
Mason Mount got the Blues off to a flying start just three minutes into the match when he guided a wonderful strike into the top right corner.
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In the 24th minute, Daniel James received his marching orders after a dangerous challenge on Mateo Kovacic, which saw the Croatian forced off the field just six minutes later.
As the first half continued, the visitors were pushing for a second, and they very nearly had it courtesy of Romelu Lukaku, but he was ruled offside after he put the ball past Illan Meslier.
The second half saw Chelsea further dominate and shortly into it, their efforts were rewarded as Christian Pulisic doubled the lead.
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The route was completed when Romelu Lukaku added a third for the visitors and helped the Blues ease their way to the finish line.
here is how absolute chelsea rated the Blues’ performance against Leeds:
Edouard Mendy – 6/10
It was a quiet and comfortable evening for the Senegalese goalkeeper, he was not once required to make a save.
Trevoh Chalobah – 7/10
There has been a severe lack of game time for Chalobah in recent weeks, featuring in just one of the last nine games for the Blues. After the performance in this match, it would be surprising to see him go on such a long run of absences again. He was composed at the back and dealt with everything that came his way from him.
Andreas Christensen – 6.5/10
After the absolute horror show put on against Arsenal, this game was one that Christensen should take confidence from. There was not a whole lot to do, but there were no silly mistakes from the Danish defender and he helped to maintain the clean sheet.
Antonio Rudiger- 6.5/10
The Real Madrid bound centre-back has not been up to his usual standards in recent weeks, so a good game against struggling opposition was of imperative importance. It was a much needed comfortable game for the German and he did not put a foot wrong.
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Marcos Alonso – 6/10
The majority of creativity for the visitors came from the opposite flank, meaning there was not a whole lot of involvement for Alonso. Once again he put in a good performance though, proving why he is worthy of a place in the team.
Reece James – 7.5/10 [77]
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Since returning to the squad fully a few weeks back, the right wing-back has been one of the standout players despite some poor results for the team. He took his time and teed up Mount superbly for a delightful opening goal. He turned in a high quality performance and was substituted by Tuchel to protect him and likely have him as one of the first names on the team sheet for Saturday’s FA Cup final.
Jorginho – 7/10
Whilst playing against lower opposition in the league, Jorginho is able to thrive. On occasions the Italian general can struggle to find that killer pass, but when it comes to dictating the possession, there are few better. He controlled the flow of the game in midfield and led Chelsea to three points that further secures their spot in the top four.
Matthew Kovacic – 6/10
Having made an appearance from the bench at the weekend against Wolves after a period away from the side due to injury, Kovacic was handed the opportunity to start against Leeds. Unfortunately, he was only on the pitch for 30 minutes after he suffered an injury from James’ nasty challenge. This could be a massive loss for Chelsea, as he may now miss the FA Cup final against Liverpool.
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Mason Mount – 9/10
The dream start was handed to Chelsea when their Premier League leading scorer fired home a beautiful strike. It was simply sublime from Mount and as so often has been the case this season, he was the difference for the Blues. He went on to provide a divine assist with a deft flick to set up Pulisic ten minutes into the second half. The Englishman worked himself consistently into space and operated to the highest level whenever in possession, he was a defensive nightmare for the hosts. The Man of the Match award was never in doubt.
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Christian Pulisic – 7.5/10 [77]
The American put in a strong display against Wolves at the weekend and was rewarded with a consecutive start for the game against Leeds. The first 45 minutes were relatively quiet, but he got his name from him on the scoresheet early into the second half with a composed finish into the bottom left corner. He came close to adding a second just moments later but his effort just sailed wide of the post. The level of performance has improved a lot as of late and it will be interesting to see what role he plays against Liverpool.
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Romelu Lukaku – 8.5/10
Beautifully lobbed a helpless Meslier midway through the first half but was unfortunate to be called for offside. Looking more and more like his old self from him, the performance against Wolves has definitely provided the Belgian with a confidence boost. He did have multiple opportunities to wrap up the game and looked as though he was going to miss out on getting on the scoresheet, but in the 83rd minute he finally managed to put one home. An excellent overall display with arguably
bench:
Ruben Loftus-Cheek – 6.5/10 [30]
Coming on for the injured Kovacic just 30 minutes into proceedings at Elland Road, the Lewisham born midfielder had more involvement in this match than he would of expected. He put in a good performance from midfield, and with it looking as though Kovacic may miss the FA Cup final, he could end up playing a major role.
Hakim Ziyech – 6.5/10 [77]
Despite his limited minutes on the pitch, Ziyech was able to be constantly involved after he was introduced He provided an assist to Lukaku, and had a strike go narrowly wide of the post.
Cesar Azpilicueta – 6/10 [77]
He has not been in his usual reliable form in recent weeks and had his role in the starting XI taken away from him against Leeds. He had little impact after coming off the bench.
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