Chelsea 3-1 Southampton: Player ratings as defensive duo save the day

Cahill and Terry were on the score-sheet as the Blues win again.

It was a good day for Chelsea who bounced back from their 1-0 Champions League defeat to FC Basel by coming from behind to beat Southampton 3-1.
Jay Rodriguez gave the visitors the lead in the first minute, but second half goals from Gary Cahill, John Terry and Demba Ba ensured the gap between the Blues and Arsenal remains at four points.
Here’s the best and worst from the match with the fanatix player ratings.


Chelsea
Petr Cech – 6/10: Apart from allowing Rodriguez to score – which the goalkeeper could do nothing about – had a fairly quiet afternoon.
Branislav Ivanovic – 7/10: Kept the Saints attack quiet although offered little going forward.
Gary Cahill – 7/10: Scored the equalising goal with a well taken header although was somewhat at fault for Rodriguez’s goal.
John Terry – 8/10: It was a captain’s performance from the veteran centre-back, who not only scored but controlled the back four.
Cesar Azpilicueta – 6/10: Solid again from the Spaniard, leaving little chance of Ashley Cole being recalled.
Michael Essien – 2/10: An absolute shocker from the midfielder, who looks well off the pace and was rightly substituted at half-time after gifting the away side a goal with an awful back pass.
Ramires – 9/10: Arguably the best player on the pitch as the Brazilian dominated the midfield and set up Ba’s goal.
Juan Mata – 7/10: A bit quiet in the first half but came to life in the second and provided two assists from corners.
Oscar – 5/10: Not a great day for the South American who looked like this was one game too many.
Eden Hazard – 6/10: Looked sharp but did nothing of note during a run of the mill match for the Belgian.
Fernando Torres – 7/10: Despite having only just returned from injury the striker looked sharp and bothered the Saints defence all game.
Frank Lampard – 7/10: Came on to help Ramires out in the middle and posed a dangerous threat.
Demba Ba – 9/10: An inspired substitution by Jose Mourinho as the forward changed the dynamic of the match and deserved to get on the score-sheet with a sharp finish.