Overview
Despite a 1-0 defeat on the night, Chelsea saw out the two-legged tie against Porto with minimal fuss and were never in danger of being knocked out, achieved comprehensively thanks to positive showings from every starting defender and midfielder.
Chelsea gave up the ball and dared Porto, a team mostly used to playing on the counter, to break us down. Porto played hard but ultimately could not lay as much as a scratch on the Chelsea defence until Mehdi Taremi scored one of the best goals of the competition.
Chelsea’s ability to switch from a swashbuckling ball-dominant team to one happy to shut out opponents without the ball in the span of three days is a source of encouragement. The team will be asked to switch often considering the mix of easy and hard games in the schedule and will need to be at our sharpest mentally and physically.
Match statistics
Statistics from fbref and wyscout.
Note: some statistics on the player charts might not corroborate with those presented in the “stats of note” sections. This is because the stats for the charts are obtained from a different source and not fbref. In most cases, the differences will be minimal — such as Hudson-Odoi having 3 successful dribbles according to fbref and 2 according to Opta.
Individual ratings
Thomas Tuchel
Selected a team that kept a good balance between rotation and maintaining the momentum built over the last week. Tuchel’s smart choices mean that Chelsea now have a surplus of in-form players across defence, midfield and attack.
In a hectic season such as this one, Tuchel’s decision to opt for a safety-first approach was the right one. Chelsea did not break a sweat in seeing through a tricky game ; Porto had more of the ball but could not string together cohesive sequences of possession. All in all, this was a thoroughly comfortable outing despite the unflattering scoreline.
RATING: 7
Édouard Mendy — GK
Could have done nothing about Taremi’s goal but needs to cut out stray passes from his game.
RATING: 6
Reece James — RWB
Was picked in place of Hudson-Odoi to provide defensive solidity and did his job with aplomb. Did not provide the sort of incisiveness on the ball that we have come to expect from our wing-backs of late however.
Stats of note
6 aerial duels won (8 contested) - 3rd among Chelsea players
2 tackles - Joint 3rd
7 clearances - Joint 3rd
RATING: 6.5
César Azpilicueta — RCB
Was solid defensively, bouncing back after a slightly shaky pair of games. Both Azpilicueta and James were excellent in the air against the likes of Uribe (182cm), Sanusi (182cm) and Otavio (171cm).
Stats of note
7 aerial duels won (7 contested) - 2nd
7 clearances - 3rd
2 tackles - Joint 3rd
7 clearances - Joint 3rd
RATING: 7
Thiago Silva — CB
It was surprising to see him have only 1 progressive pass and 1 pass into final third considering how good he looked on the ball during the game. Marega did not possess the quality to trouble Silva and was dealt with easily.
Stats of note
2 shots blocked - 1st
8 clearances - 2nd
RATING: 7
Antonio Rüdiger — LCB
Had a fantastic display, locking up Porto’s right-flank players every time they tried to get close to the box. He had a clear understanding of what was needed on the night and cut out the risky elements of his game.
Note: There are discrepancies in his statistics from Opta (the chart below) and fbref (stats of note) but regardless of the differences, he had a great outing.
Stats of note
15 clearances - 1st
10 aerial duels won (12 contested) - 1st
2 carries into final third - Joint 2nd
11 loose-ball recoveries - Joint 2nd
RATING: 7.5
Ben Chilwell — LWB
Was rock-solid defensively against rumoured Chelsea target Jesus Corona and got into some promising locations while attacking. However, he was not found often due to the lack of risks taken on the ball.
Stats of note
3 interceptions - 1st
3 carries into final third - Joint 1st
3 tackles - 2nd
3 touches in penalty box - Joint 3rd
RATING: 7
N’Golo Kanté — RCM
Showed signs of rustiness on the ball, as is to be expected after an injury-enforced break. His fluency on the ball improved as the game went on and he was his usual buzzing self off the ball, even if his precision in winning back the ball was not at peak levels yet.
Stats of note
24 pressures - 1st
4 passes into final third - Joint 1st
3 carries into final third - Joint 1st
3 shot-creating actions - 2nd
4 progressive passes - 2nd
4 progressive carries - 2nd
11 loose-ball recoveries - Joint 2nd
2 tackles - Joint 3rd
RATING: 7
Jorginho — LCM
Played at a level Porto players could not get near. His reading of the game was at its best, leading to some tricky ball-recoveries being made to look easy. His vertical passing was terrific too and was often the foundation of Chelsea’s transitions.
Note: Like Rüdiger, there are minor discrepancies in his statistics from Opta (the chart below) and fbref (stats of note) but regardless of the differences, he had a great outing.
Stats of note
7 progressive passes - 1st
2 passes into penalty box - 1st
6 tackles - 1st
17 loose-ball recoveries - 1st
22 pressures - 2nd
2 interceptions - 2nd
2 passes into final third - Joint 2nd
RATING: 8
Christian Pulisic — RW/R-AM
The term brave does not begin to describe Pulisic’s performance. Showed incredible maturity to soldier on despite multiple blows from Porto players, some of which would not have looked out of place in the 1980s. Could have done better at finishing his chances to cap off what was a lion-hearted performance.
Stats of note
Fouled 11 times
3 shots - 1st
4 shot-creating actions - 1st
2 key passes - 1st
6 touches in penalty box - 1st
3 successful dribbles (3 attempted) - 1st
7 progressive carries - 1st
2 passes into final third - Joint 2nd
4 progressive passes received - Joint 2nd
3 progressive passes - 3rd
RATING: 8
Kai Havertz — CF
Did not receive a lot of service in dangerous areas and therefore could not perform at a level similar to the weekend game against Crystal Palace. His hold-up play on the ground was excellent against one of the best defenders in recent memory in Pepe, though he could have done better in the air.
Stats of note
6 progressive passes received - 1st
2 shots - Joint 2nd
5 touches in penalty box - 2nd
RATING: 6.5
Mason Mount — LW/L-AM
Outside a blocked shot in the second-half, Mount did not have many opportunities to change the game — either creatively or by scoring. He worked diligently to keep Sergio Oliviera and Wilson Manafa in check.
Stats of note
2 carries into penalty box - 1st
4 passes into final third - Joint 1st
6 progressive carries - 2nd
2 shots - Joint 2nd
2 carries into final third - Joint 2nd
4 progressive passes received - Joint 2nd
2 shot-creating actions - 3rd
16 pressures - 3rd
2 tackles - Joint 3rd
3 touches in penalty box - Joint 3rd
RATING: 6.5
Substitutes
Hakim Ziyech (86th minute) — Created a good chance for Pulisic to wrap the tie up.
Olivier Giroud (92nd minute) — Nothing of note.