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Chelsea v Man Utd player ratings

Chelsea’s unbeaten league record was lost in controversial circumstances against Manchester United. Here’s how we rated the Blues players in their 3-2 defeat.

Petr Cech: 6
Desperately unlucky to see United’s first goal bounce past him off David Luiz, and was left exposed by his defence for the second goal. But he will be disappointed not to have held Robin van Persie’s shot which was scrambled off the line in the build-up to United’s winner.

Branislav Ivanovic: 5
Left referee Mark Clattenburg with little option than to send him off when he clipped the heels of Ashley Young. Failed to impress either defensively or in attack prior to his dismissal.

Gary Cahill: 7
Culpable early on as United threatened to run riot but soon reasserted himself and was far and away Chelsea’s most assured defender. Unlucky to see David De Gea push away his goalbound first-half header.

David Luiz: 6
The own goal could not be helped but he allowed Antonio Valencia to cross for the second and was guilty of ambling back casually far too often. Almost made amends with a swerving free-kick which De Gea kicked away.

Ashley Cole: 6
Found life difficult early on against Valencia as United tore down the right flank. But, like Cahill, he eased himself into the match as it wore on.

Jon Obi Mikel: 7
Solid performance from an often maligned player, who did the simple things in midfield to allow the more creative players to shine.

Ramires: 7
Took his header superbly and ran his legs off when his side were short staffed.

Eden Hazard: 7
Occasional flashes of brilliance posed United problems. Set up Chelsea’s first when his trickery forced a frustrated foul from Wayne Rooney and Juan Mata curled in the resulting free-kick. Withdrawn for Sturridge as Chelsea chased an equaliser.

Oscar: 7
The brightest spark in the opening minutes of each half, crossing for Ramires to equalise shortly after half-time. Sacrificed for defensive cover in the form of Cesar Azpilicueta in the wake of Ivanovic’s dismissal.

Juan Mata: 8
After a quiet start, once again underlined his class, directing many of Chelsea’s most promising attacks. Inspired the comeback with the goal of the match, his sensational free-kick expertly placed beyond the otherwise supreme De Gea.

Fernando Torres: 6
Hopelessly isolated early on, he showed some useful touches in the latter stages of the first half, and was denied a goal by an outstanding save by De Gea. Unlucky to be sent off.

Cesar Azpilicueta: 6
Plugged a gap at right-back when Ivanovic was dismissed.

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This post was last modified on 29/10/2012

Andrew Raeburn

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  • Luiz a 6? Hilarious!! He's so bad he makes Frank Sinclair look like Franz Beckenbauer.

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Andrew Raeburn