Chelsea's 'Good the Bad and the Ugly'

[bennythedip2]

Paul Merson's Chelsea grades (Dec 18 2015)

Jose Mourinho's departure from Chelsea marks the end of an interesting second stint, which ended with the Blues under-performing in the Premier League. But who were the biggest culprits under Mourinho's tenure this season?

Paul Merson says Louis van Gaal will be looking over his shoulder following Chelsea's sacking of Jose Mourinho


Chelsea currently sit 16th in the Premier League having won the title last season, and the club announced on Thursday that they had parted company with the 52-year-old.

Paul Merson grades Chelsea's players this season... who is the best of a bad bunch and who sits bottom of the class?

Thibaut Courtois B+

He's done nothing wrong really. He hasn't made any major, major mistakes, and has also made some big saves. There's nothing wrong with him for Chelsea going forward.

Branislav Ivanovic D-

He could have been expelled! He has been nowhere near the player he was last season. He set unbelievable standards over the last few years. For me he was the best right-back in the country last year, and this term he has been completely and utterly all over the shop. He's gone from an A to D- in a matter of months.

Kurt Zouma B

I think he has done OK. I think Chelsea will look towards him as their main centre-back alongside Gary Cahill in the future, and I don't think he has done anything majorly wrong. I wouldn't like to single him out for criticism given he has recently come into this team.
Prices on Jose Mourinho's next club

John Terry B

I haven't seen a game where John has got the absolute runaround, nowhere where I've thought: "Wow, John's gone here." I think he was picked on by Mourinho, and when things are going wrong it looks like John's fault. But I haven't seen anything different from John this year compared to last year.

Profiles

Willian
Cesc Fabregas
Oscar
Diego Costa
John Terry
Loic Remy
Kurt Zouma
Falcao
Eden Hazard
Pedro
Branislav Ivanovic
Gary Cahill
Ramires
Cesar Azpilicueta
Thibaut Courtois
Nemanja Matic

Gary Cahill C

He has just dropped off a little bit. He again set good standards last year, and I thought he would have gone on to improve yet again, but he hasn't. There's talk that he's going to be the next Chelsea captain, but he hasn't yet stood up this season and shown it. Again, I've never really seen him given the runaround left, right and centre, but he hasn't been as good as I expected him to be.

Cesar Azpilicueta C-

I don't receive the statistical analysis that these players get these days, but on Monday night in the defeat by Leicester it did not take a genius to work out Riyad Mahrez should not be shown onto his left foot. If Azpilicueta had shown him down the line on his right and he'd created or scored a goal with his right foot, you hold your hands up. But he did the wrong thing. I don't think he has been one of their worst players, but he's drifting away in recent weeks.

Cesc Fabregas D-

He is not there. He has been so disappointing. We're talking about a top, top drawer player who should be winning games for Chelsea, taking the game by the scruff of the neck. He has not got anywhere near his standard, not even close. I can't remember a game this season where he has been outstanding, or even for an hour of one game.

Ramires C

He hasn't played too much, but he's a runner. He's one of those players that if he wasn't playing well, he'd still be running around and sticking his foot in, which the fans like. Even though he isn't playing particularly well, he can cover it up with his energy.

Oscar C

Like Ramires, he hasn't played too much this season, which may change now Mourinho has gone. He will count himself unlucky because there are players who should have been out the team instead of him.

Eden Hazard E

Shocking. People were putting him in the world class bracket, he won every award in the Premier League last season, but how can you play for Chelsea, in that position, with the way Chelsea play, and not score any goals? I don't understand it. Hazard won the league for Chelsea last year, and I used to love watching him play. I just don't see it now.
Next Chelsea manager odds

Nemanja Matic D-

Again, not good enough. But Mourinho involved him in a way you should never do as a manager by subbing him on and then off in the 3-1 defeat by Southampton in October. Do not put on one of your most important players and then bring them off. It's a killer for confidence. Since then he has not looked the same, he hasn't been anywhere near a 6 out of 10 in any game, let alone a 7, and he was a 7.5/8 out of 10 every game last year. Mourinho lost him.

Willian A-

He has been their best player by a million miles. I think he'd be getting in any Premier League team this season; he's got on the ball, tried to make things happen and his attitude has been great. When the rest of the class are throwing chewing gum around and messing about, he's got his head down doing the work.


Pedro C

It's sometimes hard for a player coming from La Liga to the Premier League, but he's played for the world's best team, and you would expect him to give Chelsea something different. He was brought in the team to take Willian's place, and he's a million miles away from taking that at the moment. It was a bit of a surprise that he hasn't had the success we expected, I thought it was a great signing at the time. But it does take a while to get used to this league, and he's in a team performing very poorly as a whole.

Diego Costa C

Sometimes I feel sorry for him; he gets a lot of stick, gets battered by players, they get away with it and he reacts. I think he needs to concentrate more, but he's not getting the service either. He's living off scraps really. How can you be living off scraps playing for Chelsea? He has become very, very frustrated.

Loic Remy C

I don't think he's a true Chelsea player. He hasn't been given a run but I don't see him being given a run either.

Radamel Falcao C

He hasn't really been given a chance either. Costa is being given the chances and I see that continuing under a new manager.

[Tony2005]

I thought Merson was off the drink now .....


The ONLY player who has performed to any half decent standard is Willian and the rest should be D-