How did Torres, Mata, Azpilicueta, and Luiz fare against Swindon?

Fernando Torres, Juan Mata, Cesar Azpilicueta, and David Luiz all had different reasons to do well against Swindon. They needed a good performance in order to force their way into first-team reckoning. As promised, Mourinho gave them an opportunity to prove themselves in the League Cup against Swindon. How did they rate in Chelsea’s 2-0 win over Swindon?

Fernando Torres

Even though he started the season as the first choice, he was quickly relegated to the bench after the arrival of Samuel Eto’o. The Cameroon international started the last three matches in a row.

Torres did well with his chance by scoring one and assisting the other for Ramires. He poked in a Mata shot that was saved by Swindon goalkeeper Wes Foderingham to open the scoring. His assist for Ramires, though, was probably his best moment of the match. After managing to wriggle away from two defenders, he slid in a perfect pass for Ramires to score with a chip.

On the negative side, he was guilty of missing glaring opportunities, most notably towards the end of the match.

Key stats: three shots, three key passes, and 77% pass accuracy

Verdict: It is one thing to score a goal against League One opposition, but he still looks way short of confidence in several situations.

Rating: 7.5/10

Juan Mata

This has been the big talking point. A World Cup, European Championship, and Champions League winner has not been deemed working hard enough by Mourinho. Assistant coach Steve Holland stressed the importance of pressing the ball ahead of the match. It is exactly what Mata did for the 90 minutes.

Speaking to Chelsea’s official site, Holland said,

“Tonight, for sure, we’re very, very pleased with Juan’s contribution with and without the ball.”

Mata was also doing what he does best (assisting others) when he was not defending. His performance is sure to give Mourinho a selection headache ahead of the visit to Tottenham.

Key stats: two shots, one key pass, and 95% pass accuracy

Verdict: It was a solid performance from the Spaniard.

Rating: 8/10

David Luiz

After starting the matches against Everton and FC Basel, Luiz was completely left out of the starting line-up against Fulham. There is no denying that the flamboyant style of Luiz leaves the team open in certain situations, but he is also very crucial in various aspects as he proved against Swindon.

Luiz almost opened the scoring with a wonderful freekick in the first half. After Drogba and Lampard, he is probably the best free kick taker in the team. There were times in the first half when Chelsea looked devoid of ideas. In those situations, it was Luiz’s foraging runs from central defence that threatened to open the opposition.

On the negative side, he was guilty of trying to be too cute at times, which is always bad for a central defender. A cheeky backheel in the first half could have been punished had it not been for the covering defenders.

Key stats: 4 tackles, one interception, and 84% pass accuracy

Verdict: Flamboyant, heart on sleeve, and a couple of errors – a typical Luiz display

Rating: 7.5/10

Cesar Azpilicueta

The Spaniard has been on the pitch for just one minute this season prior to this match. Branislav Ivanovic has made the right back spot his own, but Azpilicueta had a great opportunity to reclaim the last spot.

Unfortunately, it was not one of the Spaniard’s best nights. He was average in defence, but was very poor in attack. If he can’t deliver against a third tier opposition, it is difficult to see him forcing his way into the first-team anytime soon. A clean sheet was probably the only consolation. Ivanovic seems so much better than Azpilicueta right now.

Key stats: 5 tackles, 3 interceptions, and 79% pass accuracy

Verdict: Room for a lot of improvement

Rating: 6/10