Chelsea vs Liverpool Player Ratings

A poor first half performance by Liverpool was punished by Chelsea and even Andy Carroll's spirited introduction in the second half couldn't make a difference.

In a cagey intro, both sides were unable to really carve out an opening until some poor defensive work by Jay Spearing and Jose Enrique allowed Ramires to rampage down the right wing. His cool finish, just like against Barcelona, helped score the first goal for Chelsea. 

Chelsea were dangerous on the break and in the second half, Frank Lampard's precise pass to Dider Drogba allowed the Ivorian to exploit the space between Glen Johnson and Martin Skrtel and after controlling the ball, he shot across towards goal and beat Pepe Reina for the second time. 

Andy Carroll was brought on and completely changed the dimension of the game as he kept towering over the Chelsea defenders and he scored.

He then nearly got a second goal but Petr Cech was up to the challenge and made a crucial save to help keep Chelsea on track for victory. 

Chelsea won the FA Cup and here's how the players rated in the game. 

Chelsea

Petr Cech - 8

He made a superb save in the last ten minutes of the game that demonstrates the importance of having a dependable man between the sticks. It might be debateable as to whether it went behind the goal-line but what is true is that some superb reflexes were needed to even make the stop in the first place. 

Jose Bosingwa - 7

He did well to close down Downing making it impossible for the winger to put in good crosses. 

Branislav Ivanovic - 7.5

The Serbian was strong and not afraid to show Suarez the physical side of the game in order to reduce his motivation to score a goal. Both of the central defenders were unable to handle Carroll's aerial threat, however, and nearly allowed Liverpool to force the game into extra time.

John Terry - 7.5

The captain was adept at marshalling his defence in order to maintain their shape and the result was that Liverpool found it impossible to penetrate and create goalscoring opportunities. 

Ashley Cole - 7

The left-back combined well with the attackers up front and was fast enough to get back and help out in defence. He fully deserves his seventh FA Cup medal. 

John Obi Mikel - 7.5

He made a bit too much from Daniel Agger's challenge in order to ensure that the central defender got a card. But otherwise, he was good at reducing Gerrard's presence in the game. 

Frank Lampard - 8

Not only did he do his defensive bit, he sent in a superb pass to Drogba that allowed his team-mate to score for the fourth time in an FA Cup final. 

Ramires - 8.5

He was a constant threat down the right flank and his pace and determination was the difference in the game. He's definitely a big-game player, the likes of which there really has been no one better in the Premier League this season. 

Juan Mata (off 90') - 7.5

It was a quiet game for the Spaniard initially but he continually demonstrated his lovely control of the ball and he initiated several attacks for his side. He was decisive with his cross-field pass to Ramires, however, that sent the Brazilian on the path towards acquiring the lead for his team.

Salomon Kalou - 6

He kept making weak challenges and kept sending in poor crosses and was Chelsea's poorest player. Luckily for him, the rest of his team was more switched on. 

Didier Drogba - 8

The Wembley specialist didn't have to do anything special until the 52nd minute when he coolly slotted the ball past Reina moments after getting the ball. Even otherwise, he was more useful than Luis Suarez as he kept the ball well and helped ensure that the Liverpool defence were always kept on their toes and didn't have any breathing space. 

He's now the only player to score in four different FA Cup finals and on this showing, he must be a sure-pick ahead of Fernando Torres for the Champions League final in Munich. 

Subs

Florent Malouda (on 90') - N/A

Sent to waste time and that's exactly what he did. 

Liverpool

Pepe Reina - 6

The Liverpool stopper rarely needed to do anything in the game at the start as both sides nullified each other's attacking threats. But he made the wrong call when he expected Ramires to shoot towards the far post and he should have covered Drogba's shot as well. His shot-stopping skills have seriously gone downhill this season. 

Glen Johnson - 6

The England international did not really do anything constructive down the right despite some determined running. 

Daniel Agger - 6.5

The Dane was solid at the back and it was unfortunate that his defensive partners let him down. 

Martin Skrtel - 6

Skrtel was impressive in the first half but in the second, he should have closed down Drogba and not allow him the time to get inside the box and lash a shot at goal. He didn't provide any option up in attack as well as he made few passes into the Chelsea half. 

Jose Enrique - 5

He was half-hearted in his attempts to muscle Ramires off the ball and that proved fortuitous and gifted their rivals the first goal. 

Steven Gerrard - 7

The Liverpool talisman dived in order to keep the ball in, ran back to make vital challenges, shouted at his players to work harder but unfortunately for the player who plays with his heart on his sleeve, he was unable to make the shots and the passes that could have made the difference. 

Jay Spearing (off 55') - 3

What a useless player. The youngster might have the nerves in order to handle such a big occasion but he just does not have the ability to merit a place in the starting XI. It was his poor control of the ball that allowed Chelsea to initiate a counter-attack and release Ramires down the right wing. And then it was his poor man-marking that allowed Lampard the time to make the pass to Drogba for Chelsea's second goal. 

Enrique had a go at him and if we were there, we would have done the same. He didn't contribute much up in attack as his passes were often astray as well.

Jordan Henderson - 4

The former Sunderland midfielder was poor as well as he could not do anything useful to help his side get back into the game. 

Stewart Downing - 5.5

The left winger made a cross into the middle in the first half when there was no red jersey within sight. That typifies his inability to think outside the box and he seriously seems like a total waste of money on this showing. 

He made a spirited challenge on Cole, however, that allowed Liverpool to grab a goal and get back into contention for a brief period. 

Craig Bellamy (off 78') - 5

The Welshman had the pace and the energy but he was starved of supply as he was always too far ahead. 

Luis Suarez - 6

The Uruguayan striker was far too closely marked in order for him to make any sort of impact in the game. He could have dropped further back and tried to get involved in the game but he kept hoping that someone would send in a good ball for him to chase. 

Subs

Andy Carroll (on 55') - 8

Talk about making an instant impact! The ponytail hero against Everton again made a name for himself as he made no mistake when presented with a goalscoring opportunity. And he constantly managed to get himself into dangerous positions and he nearly grabbed the crucial leveller for his side. 

Dirk Kuyt (on 78') - N/A

He ran with energy but he couldn't make the dangerous cross that would have made all the difference.