Chelsea 1-0 Manchester City: 5 hits and flops | FA Cup 2021

#3 HIT: Thiago Silva (Chelsea)

Thiago Silva with a rock solid performance

It was another top performance by Chelsea's leader of defense, Thiago Silva. The Brazilian had to deal with one of the best attacks in Europe and he was up for the challenge. Silva had a 100% tackle success rate against City and also won 100% of his aerial duels. Adding to this, the 36-year old had more clearances than anyone on the pitch

Thiago Silva's game by numbers vs. Man City:100% aerials won100% tackle-success100% passing accuracy55 touches44/44 passes completed6 clearances (most)3/3 aerials2 interceptions1 clean sheetThiago '100%' Silva. pic.twitter.com/3Wq0zvUWR9

— Squawka Football (@Squawka) April 17, 2021

Thiago Silva is enjoying his life at Chelsea. He has had some fitness issues and was replaced by Zouma today as well, but his short span at Chelsea has been terrific so far. A new deal might be on the cards for the defender.

#2 FLOP: Raheem Sterling (Manchester City)

A rough night for Raheem Sterling

It has been a rough couple of weeks for Raheem Sterling. The winger is one of the first names on the team sheet more often than not, but his recent form has made him an irregular figure regarding play-time. Sterling had a good chance to prove his worth to Pep Guardiola but the Englishman had a night to forget. He had no impact on the game whatsoever and even lashed a good opportunity over the bar.

You just have to believe that Torres, Jesus and Sterling will do enough for you with their quality but that's two games now that they've been very poor, and surely they won't/can't be picked together again

— Sam Lee (@SamLee) April 17, 2021

Sterling will have to pull up his socks with the likes of Phil Foden, Ferran Torres and any potential future signing breathing down his neck for a place in the starting eleven.

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#1 HIT: Antonio Rüdiger (Chelsea)

Rudiger has earned his respect with the Chelsea fans

Another Chelsea defender makes the list with an impeccable performance. Rudiger was immense for Chelsea and dealt with everything that was thrown at him. He was aware of the opponent's positioning at all times and didn't allow the City attackers to even get a sniff of Kepa's goal.

The German's long balls over the top were a significant threat as they released Werner and Ziyech and allowed them to start quick counter-attacks.

Chelsea have conceded just 3 goals in Antonio Rudiger's last 16 starts. That's roughly a goal every 5 games. Rudiger has made a great comeback into Chelsea's starting eleven and deserves all the praise he is getting.