Maresca Laments £95m Star’s Poor Display in Stalemate

Chelsea’s new season hasn’t got off to the best start, with Enzo Maresca’s exciting new-look side only managing a 0-0 draw at home to Crystal Palace.

In truth, Chelsea were a bit lucky when Eberechi Eze’s superb free-kick goal in the first half ended up being ruled out by VAR.

Ultimately, the points were shared, but Chelsea could easily have ended up on the losing side here as the club’s multiple summer signings didn’t really justify the hype.

Read on for our Chelsea player ratings for the Palace game…

Chelsea player ratings

Robert Sanchez – (7/10) – Though he didn’t have a huge amount to do, Robert Sanchez made four saves when he was called upon, preventing what could’ve been an even worse result for Chelsea.

Reece James – (6/10) – Decent going forward, but Eze did well for Palace down that side of the pitch, with Reece James clearly struggling against his fellow England international.

Marc Cucurella – (6/10) – Positive with his movement forward, but nothing quite clicked for him in terms of an end-product, with the Spain international perhaps still adjusting to playing alongside new signing Jamie Gittens on the left flank.

Trevoh Chalobah – (6/10) – Solid, if unspectacular, Trevoh Chalobah did a decent job of showing Chelsea have a capable backup for the injured Levi Colwill.

Josh Acheampong – (7/10) – Considering his relative inexperience, Josh Acheampong imposed himself well on this game, doing his job at the back and looking confident on the ball as well.

Moises Caicedo – (7.5/10) – An energetic and purposeful performance in the middle of the park, Moises Caicedo showed why he’s so important to Chelsea, even if he couldn’t quite help things click at the other ends of the pitch.

Enzo Fernandez in action for Chelsea against Crystal Palace

Enzo Fernandez in action for Chelsea against Crystal Palace (Photo by Ryan Pierse/Getty Images)

Enzo Fernandez – (5/10) – Looked a little off the pace and sluggish, failing to really deliver when Chelsea needed him in a tight game, but it’s perhaps just rustiness from the Club World Cup schedule.

Cole Palmer – (4.5/10) – Disappointing by his high standards, Cole Palmer didn’t provide enough of a threat, which is far from ideal when the team generally tends to flow through him.

Jamie Gittens – (6/10) – A decent debut, but not the best – easy to see how his directness will be an asset for Chelsea once he settles in and clicks with his teammates better.

Pedro Neto – (5/10) – A considerable dip from his fine form at the Club World Cup, Pedro Neto just couldn’t get anything to quite come off this afternoon, and that’s the kind of performance he can’t afford when there’s now so much more competition for a place in attack.

Joao Pedro – (5/10) – Starved of service, Joao Pedro did as much as he realistically could, but didn’t impose himself on the game enough either. He’ll need to do better to keep his place in the starting XI.

Subs: Estevao Willian (6), Li

am Delap (6), Malo Gusto (6), Andrey Santos (6)