Tottenham vs Chelsea player ratings: Scores out of 10, analysis of how the Blues’ strikers shine

LONDON – It was a lot of fun dishing out player ratings between Tottenham and Chelsea in a wild London derby.

These two always deliver drama.

After Dominic Solanke and Dejan Kulusevski had given Spurs an early 2-0 lead, Chelsea held their nerve and brilliantly made it 2-2 thanks to Jadon Sancho and Cole Palmer. Enzo Fernandez then increased the score to 3-2 and Palmer crowned the victory with a cheeky Panenka penalty to make it 4-2. Heung-min Son made it 4-3 in injury time, but Chelsea held on and secured victory.

Below are Tottenham vs Chelsea player ratings out of 10, with analysis of each player.

Tottenham player ratings

Fraser Forster: 6 – Could he have done better with Sancho’s goal? Perhaps. Still, I made some great stops and was so exposed.

Pedro Porro: 6 – Great on the ball and going forward. Offers Spurs so much in attack. Good fight with Sancho but tired defensively.

Cristian Romero:6 – He was substituted when Spurs were 2-0 up and the game seemed to change as a result. Visibly upset about the injury having just returned.

Micky van de Ven:7 – Did his best to keep things together at the back and some great marauding runs up front. It was so difficult to get back on your feet straight after an injury and he was substituted in the second half, more as a precautionary measure.

Destiny Udogie:6 – Some sloppy passing from the back and Palmer gave him a torrid time in the second half.

Pape Matar Sarr: 6 – Worked so hard to keep Chelsea out of midfield. But he missed a silly penalty for fouling Palmer late, making it 4-2.

Yves Bissouma: 5 – It was good to push up in midfield but the penalty was missed. Then crumbled.

Dejan Kulusevski: 8 – Scored a beautiful goal, created so many chances and was brilliant at moving around and starting counterattacks.

Brennan Johnson:6 – Great cross for Solanke’s goal but faded in the game after Cucurella adjusted his boots.

Dominic Solanke: 8 – The right strikers get to his goal, harassing Colwill early on and running to the ground to take chances.

Heung-min son:7 – He almost scored a nice goal in the first half, giving Caicedo a strong performance at right-back. Wasted a great chance in the second half, possibly ruled out by VAR, and scored a late consolation goal.

Substitutions
Radu Dragusin (substituted for Romero in the 15th minute): 5 – Struggle to cope with Chelsea’s movements and moved everywhere.
Timo Werner (for Johnson in the 53rd minute): 5 – Had a few good runs on the right but no end product.
Archie Gray (for Van de Ven 79′): N/A
James Maddison (for Kulusevski in the 79th minute): N/A
Lucas Bergvall (substituted for Bissouma 79′): N/A

Chelsea player ratings

Robert Sanchez: 5 – Some really sloppy balls from defense in the first half. The game calmed down in the second half, but poor play gave Chelsea a poor start.

Moises Caicedo: 6 – Poor first half at right-back, but better when back in central midfield. Won the decisive penalty to make it 2-2.

Benoit Badiashile: 6 – Shaky display on the ball and Solanke let it run all over the pitch.

Levi Colwill: 6 – See above. Dug in there, but Solanke defeated him in battle.

Marc Cucurella:6 – Recovered well after two slips early on led to Spurs’ two goals. He changed his boots and he was back to normal. Bizarre.

Romeo Lavia: 7 – Really good in the first half, winning the ball back and playing incisive balls quickly. Substituted at half-time, Gusto at right-back and Caicedo in midfield. Picked up a knock before half-time so hopefully he’ll be okay.

Enzo Fernandez: 7 – Scored a huge goal to make it 3-2 and it was a beautiful volley finish. Overwhelmed the Spurs midfield in the second half.

Pedro Neto: 8 – Some powerful runs down the right were too much for Udogie in the second half.

Cole Palmer: 8 – Two penalties, including a panenka, and oozes class. Always appears in dangerous positions and influences the game.

Jadon Sancho: 9 – Excellent display. Scored the first goal after a drive. Beautiful ball that led to Chelsea’s first penalty, which Forster parried from close range. He was so good on the ball.

Nicholas Jackson:7 – Ran well back and got a couple of good blocks. He looked disappointed when he was substituted.

Substitutions
Malo Gusto (substituted for Lavia in the 46th minute): 7 – Some great forward runs from the right back and largely blocked Son.
Christopher Nkunku (for Jackson in the 76th minute): N/A
Noni Madueke (substituted for Neto 86′): N/A
Renato Veiga (used for Cucurella 90′): N/A
Joao Felix (substituted for Palmer in the 90th minute): N/A