Champions League final player ratings: Who stood out for Chelsea and Man City?

Kai Havertz scored the only goal of the game in Porto

Andrew Gamble
Sunday 30 May 2021 06:23 EDT
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Kai Havertz nets winner as Chelsea sink Manchester City in Champions League

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Chelsea won the Champions League as Kai Havertz scored in a 1-0 win over Manchester City in Porto.

Havertz opened the scoring when he rounded Ederson and tapped into the empty net to win the famous trophy for the second time in club history.

The match started with a remarkably fast tempo as Timo Werner fluffed an excellent chance while Antonio Rudiger made an unbelievable challenge to deny Phil Foden before Havertz’s goal.

In the second half – moments after Kevin De Bruyne was forced off with injury – City were left incensed when VAR decided not to award a penalty after Raheem Sterling’s shot appeared to strike the arm of Reece James.

Pep Guardiola’s side dominated the second half but could not find a way through, condemning the Spanish manager to just his second career defeat in a final.

Chelsea

Edouard Mendy – 6. To the pleasure of Chelsea fans everywhere, Mendy was completely anonymous. He plucked Aguero’s dinked cross out of the air.

Cesar Azpilicueta – 6. The Spaniard made a necessary intervention after Mahrez’s cross towards the back post.

Reece James – 9 James started the final brilliantly, and dominated Sterling throughout. One of Chelsea’s many stars.

Thiago Silva – 6. Unfortunately, the Brazilian’s night ended prematurely after picking up a muscle injury.

Antonio Rudiger – 7. Rudiger has ended the season with a string of quality performances, and he denied Foden perhaps a certain goal with a crucial sliding block.

Ben Chilwell – 8. The England international was a consistent presence on both ends of the field, and dominated Mahrez.

N’Golo Kante – 7. The dominant French midfielder was less combative than usual, but he made a number of crucial tackles and interventions to disrupt City’s attack.

Jorginho – 6. A quiet night for the midfielder, the Italian sat back and allowed others to flood forward on the counter, playing his role perfectly.

Mason Mount – 8. The England international made a confident start to the game, leading many of Chelsea’s counter attacks while also helping out defensively with several key interceptions. His through ball was brilliant to tee up Havertz, but he was quiet in the second half.

Kai Havertz – 9. Unlike Werner, Havertz showed his composure in front of goal as he held his nerve to round Ederson and give the Blues the lead. His hold up and interplay was excellent throughout.

Timo Werner – 4. The German looked set to continue his torrid form in front of goal when he swung his boot and skewed the chance after Chilwell’s cutback. He perhaps should have done better after good work by Mount.

Substitutes:

Andreas Christensen – 6.

Christian Pulisic – 6. The American should have doubled the Blues’ advantage.

Mateo Kovacic – 6.

Manchester City

Ederson – 6. The Brazilian made a smart save to deny Werner, and did well to not bring down Havertz for the Chelsea opener.

Kyle Walker – 6. Walker got caught out a number of times, notably allowing Mount to break through and pick out Kante. He was perhaps unlucky to not find Mahrez with his drilled cross, and his late cross narrowly evaded Aguero and Foden.

John Stones – 5. The English centre-back had a nervy start to the game and was nowhere as Havertz scored what proved to be the winner.

Ruben Dias – 6. While Stones struggled early, Dias picked up from where he left off in the Premier League, adding composure and defensive steel to the City backline. He struggled one on one with Havertz.

Oleksandr Zinchenko – 5. After a nervy start where the Ukrainian appeared to struggle against James down the right, Zinchenko made the crucial error of the first half when he allowed Havertz to burst through the middle to score.

Kevin De Bruyne – 6. After a quiet start, the Belgian made a smart pass to find Foden before the England star was denied by Rudiger’s excellent tackle. It was horrible to see him withdrawn early.

Ilkay Gundogan – 6. Gundogan was lucky to avoid a red card for a high and late challenge on Mount.

Bernardo Silva – 5. A night to forget for the Portuguese international.

Riyad Mahrez – 6. The Algerian perhaps should have gotten on the end of Walker’s cross, although it did flash across the penalty box.

Raheem Sterling – 6. The England forward broke through the Chelsea line on several occasions, and perhaps should have been awarded a penalty when his shot struck the arm of James.

Phil Foden – 6. A night to forget for the budding star, although he would have given City the lead if Rudiger hadn’t made an excellent block.

Substitutes:

Gabriel Jesus – 6.

Fernandinho – 6.

Sergio Aguero – 6.

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