The Blues returned to winning form with a dominant 3-0 victory at Stamford Bridge on Saturday. Blockbuster signings Cesc Fabregas and Diego Costa stood out once more as the London giants put another stamp on their Premier League title campaign. 

Here’s our player ratings from Chelsea 3-0 Aston Villa.

 

Chelsea

Thibaut Courtois – 7.0

The globally regarded Belgian goalkeeper had a relatively relaxed day between the posts, able to rely on a strong backline to shut down any challenges from Villa.

Branislav Ivanovic – 7.0

The Serbian defender continued to confuse the opposition by pressing deep into the Aston Villa half of the pitch. Hungry to keep up an unlikely goal-scoring record, Ivanovic found space near the 18-yard box while also doing his part in keeping a clean sheet.

Gary Cahlll – 6.0

The Englishman remained calm under the face of what could have been an unpredictable Aston Villa attack, either clearing his line with a long ball or initiating a counter through Fabregas.

John Terry – 7.0 

Chelsea’s captain led from the back in keeping their first clean sheet of the season, showing the Villans why Stamford Bridge is a feared place to tread for visiting teams.

Cesar Azpilicueta – 6.0

Rounding out the Chelsea backline, Azpilicueta is another unpredictable name that can hold strong in defence or push forward with a penetrating solo run.

Cesc Fabregas – 8.0 

The Blues’ new key playmaker was once again at his dangerous peak, providing an invaluable distraction to defenders and constantly searching for openings to feed Diego Costa.

Nemanja Matic – 6.0 

A surprise standout under Jose Mourinho, Matic is continuing to build successful top flight experience with the blues and will undoubtedly improve among a team that continues to put on strong performances.

Willian – 8.0

Determined to cement a position in the Chelsea starting eleven, the Brazilian looked dangerous with every move forward for Chelsea, creating yards of space by himself on the way to scoring his first Premier League goal of the season.

Eden Hazard – 7.0 

The Belgian’s link-up play down the wing caused Aston Villa plenty of headaches at Stamford Bridge.

Oscar – 8.0

There is no room for dead weight in Mourinho’s line-up and the 23-year-old went a long way in carving himself out a starting position by scoring the opening goal for the Blues.

Diego Costa – 8.0 

The Spaniard returned to goal-scoring form and once again proved to be a giant headache for opposition defence. After relying on the midfield to produce results last year, the Chelsea fans will continue to be delighted with the output of their star striker.

 

Chelsea Substitutions 

Andre Schurrle – 6.0

Schurrle continues to ride a wave of confidence after Germany’s World Cup win and is another Mourinho favorite that can keep their defensive composure while also looking deadly moving forward.

Jon Obi Mikel – 5.0

After over half a decade with the London giants, Mikel continues to produce results and find favor with the manager.

 

Aston Villa

Brad Guzan – 4.0

It was undoubtedly always going to be a tough day for the Villa goalkeeper and the cumulative pressure from the Blues was simply too much for the American.

Aly Cissoko – 7.0 

Seemingly unshaken by the reputation of the opposition, Cissoko was a rare shining light for the Villans, surprisingly able to outpace the Chelsea midfield in his pursuit from the back of the pitch along the right wing.

Nathan Baker – 3.0

The central defender was beaten far too easily by a physically superior Diego Costa, allowing the opposition far too much space where it mattered most.

Philipe Senderos – 4.0

Despite claiming the game winning goal at Anfield, Senderos has been the figurehead of a Villa backline that has failed to cope under pressure from the top sides of the competition in the last two weeks..

Alan Hutton – 4.0

With the unfortunate job of trying to stop Eden Hazard and Cesc Fabregas from finding space on the left wing, Hutton was overcome by pace and dazzlingly accurate passes.

Fabian Delph – 7.0

Another Villa standout, the English playmaker put everything he had in trying to create space moving up the field for the visitors.

Ashley Westwood – 6.0

Although holding his own in the centre of the midfield, Westwood could only watch as the Blues decimated his teammates on the wings.

Tom Cleverley  5.0

Manager Paul Lambert’s line-up left huge amounts of space for Chelsea to exploit out wide, leaving Cleverly to play catch-up as Hazard and Oscar pushed into the penalty area.

Kieran Richardson – 5.0 

Frustrated by a determined Azpilicueta, Richardson was unable to create space cutting back in from the wings and was stopped before the ball could be fed into the Chelsea penalty area.

Andreas Weimann – 5.0 

Villa were largely unable to locate their main targets going forward, aggravating Weimann and forcing Paul Lambert to substitute one of his most successful attacking options.

Gabriel Agbonlahor – 6.0 

Villa’s best hope for snatching a victory would have been through their on-form striker,. However a resolute Chelsea backline made sure that the 27-year-old hardly had a look on goal.

 

Aston Villa Substitutions 

Charles N’Zogbia – 5.0 

Villa’s attack was nearly suffocated by the Blues, managing only a few semi-threatening attempts at Courtois’ goal even after the introduction of N’Zogbia in the second half.

Darren Bent – 5.0

Paul Lambert utilized all of his offensive options in trying to make a dent on the scoresheet, however Bent met nothing but a brick wall after being introduced near the end of the match.