Chelsea went into the last match of their grueling 69-game season knowing that a win would secure a third-place finish, allowing them to avoid the Champions League qualifying rounds. Everton were never going to make that easy, though, as they wanted to see outgoing manager David Moyes off with a win away at a "Big Four" club.
The atmosphere at Stamford Bridge was at its very best, with Bobby Tambling presenting Frank Lampard with a golden boot before kickoff in recognition of the midfielder's epic goal-scoring record.
Chelsea took the lead after seven minutes when Tim Howard fumbled Demba Ba's shot and Juan Mata reacted quickest to scoop the ball past the 'keeper. It looked set to be a comfortable end to what has been a difficult season for the Blues, when Everton took advantage of a lack of concentration at the back and got the equaliser through Stephen Naismith. The visitors continued to test Petr Cech, until the 76th minute when a well-taken Fernando Torres strike put Chelsea back in front.
Rafa Benitez then made some bizarre substitutions as Chelsea ended the game with three right-backs on the pitch. Unlike some of the questionable choices he has made this season, it was ultimately a good decision as Chelsea hung on for the win and Paulo Ferreira was able to get on the pitch in his last match for the club.
Player ratings are for the starting 11. All players start on 5/10 and points are awarded or deducted based on attitude, work rate and contribution to the game. Goals scored by defenders are weighted higher than those scored by strikers, and a yellow card gets an automatic 0.5 deduction. Stats are taken from whoscored.com.
~Bleacher Report - Chelsea~Read more... http://www.chelseamashup.com/2013/05/20/rating-the-chelsea-players-in-2-1-epl-finale-win-over-everton/
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