Zouma epitomises Chelsea naivety in 4/10 display vs. Man United

Published on: 11 August 2019

Kurt Zouma conceded a penalty in Chelsea's lopsided loss to Manchester United.

In their first competitive outing under new manager Frank Lampard, Chelsea fell to a 4-0 defeat against Manchester United at Old Trafford on Sunday. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's side failed to beat any top-six sides at home last season, but secured the three points through a Marcus Rashford brace and goals from Anthony Martial and Daniel James.

Positives

Chelsea began the game looking lively, holding a 4-2-3-1 formation well and making life difficult for United, who initially struggled to get in behind the visitors' midfield. Pedro and Emerson put in decent performances in a team of otherwise underwhelming ones.

Negatives

Starting with the fifth-youngest XI of the Premier League's opening weekend, Chelsea showed a real lack of maturity. Kurt Zouma, so calm and confident on loan at Everton last season, didn't display such qualities in Chelsea's back four. The Frenchman looked clumsy and out of place, giving the ball away and recklessly conceding the penalty for Rashford's opener. Sloppy passing was a theme of Chelsea's play all across the pitch, with Ross Barkley, Mason Mount, Tammy Abraham and Christian Pulisic all guilty of losing possession.

Manager rating out of 10

4 -- In his first competitive game as Chelsea boss, Lampard handed a debut to academy product Mount, but his faith in youth proved detrimental. The Blues looked naive going forward, and the substitution of Pulisic early in the second half did little to change matters, while the introduction of Olivier Giroud came too late.

Player ratings (1-10; 10 = best, players introduced after 70 minutes get no rating)

GK Kepa Arrizabalaga, 5 -- Had questionable distribution early on, giving the ball away to Luke Shaw. Could do little to save Rashford's accurate spot kick, or any of the goals for that matter.

DF Cesar Azpilicueta, 6 -- Showed a typical desire to get forward and contribute to Chelsea's attack, but didn't make much of an effort to challenge Rashford for United's third goal.

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DF Andreas Christensen, 6 -- The more comfortable of the centre-back partnership, Christensen cleaned up some of the danger United posed in the 18-yard box.

DF Kurt Zouma, 4 -- Gifted the ball to Martial in a dangerous area early on, and was lucky not to concede from it. Recklessly gave away a clear penalty in the 17th minute, the first time he had done so in his career.

DF Emerson Palmieri, 7 -- Unlucky not to net a first-half equaliser for Chelsea, smacking a shot onto the post from a narrow angle. Saw another powerful strike saved well by David De Gea early in the second period.

MF Jorginho, 6 -- Showed good vision to send Pedro darting through the middle. Led a late first-half resurgence from the Blues.

MF Mateo Kovacic, 6 -- Had a fairly quiet game and looked comfortable in possession without creating anything going forward.

MF Pedro, 7 -- Showed great awareness to flick a header on to Azpilicueta on the right wing, with Abraham almost netting from the cross. In the absence of the now-departed Eden Hazard, Pedro was the most lively and creative player in Chelsea's attack.

MF Ross Barkley, 5 -- Slowed the pace in the final third and gave the ball away near Chelsea's 18-yard box to give Rashford a chance. Substituted before the hour mark.

MF Mason Mount, 5 -- Making his debut, showed lovely interplay with Abraham on occasion. Found himself in a promising position on the 31st minute to shoot, but delivered a poor cross instead.

FW Tammy Abraham, 5 -- Crashed a powerful shot against the post early on. Got muscled off the ball too easily by United defenders, and lost a physical battle with Harry Maguire that led to United's second goal.

Substitutes

MF Christian Pulisic, 5 -- Came on for his debut, replacing Barkley in the 58th minute. Gave the ball away in a move that led to United's third.

FW Olivier Giroud, 6 -- Came on for Abraham in the 66th minute, by which time it was too late to get the Blues back in the game.

MF N'Golo Kante, NR -- Came on for Jorginho in the 73rd minute. Didn't cover himself in glory for Daniel James' goal.

Source: espn.co.uk

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