High-flying Chelsea were halted in their pursuit of the Premier League title by a brave Burnley side. The Clarets were outstanding in defence, not allowing Chelsea to play in their usual attacking flow.
Pedro gave the visitors the lead early on with a smart finish but Robbie Brady levelled the scores with a brilliant free-kick on his full debut for Burnley. Sean Dyche’s side held on from there to secure a vital point, while Chelsea can also be happy with the point in a tough match.
Burnley
Tom Heaton (6/10)
Barring a few tame efforts from the Chelsea attackers, the Burnley stopper didn’t have too much to do. He couldn’t do much to prevent Pedro’s effort from ending up in the back of the net.
Matthew Lowton (6.5/10)
The right-back stood tall against the likes of Hazard, Alonso and Pedro. He got up to support the attack as well and probably should have done better with his effort on Courtois’ goal in the first half.
Michael Keane (7/10)
The promising centre-half was handed a very tough task of keeping Diego Costa in check and he did his job superbly. He didn’t panic when Chelsea attacked and stood strong alongside Ben Mee.
Ben Mee (6/10)
Like Keane, Mee too had a good game in the centre of the Clarets defence, not allowing the visitors to get in behind them too many times.
Stephen Ward (6/10)
Ward had to keep a close eye on Pedro who was dazzling down the right-hand side in the first half but had a much easier task in the second. He sat deeper as the game progressed.
Ashley Westwood (6.5/10)
The former Aston Villa midfielder did well in the centre of the park alongside Barton to minimalize the influence of Kante and Matic. He received a booking in the second half for a foul on Hazard.
Joey Barton (7/10)
The controversial midfielder had an outstanding outing against a very difficult Chelsea side. He did extremely well to help break up play and prevented Chelsea from moving forward with ease.
Robbie Brady (7.5/10)
The Irishman scored on his home debut for the Clarets with a sweetly struck free-kick in the first half but was guilty of being well out of position when his side conceded the opening goal. He was substituted in the second half for Scott Arfield.
George Boyd (6/10)
The Scotsman had a relatively quiet game in attack but he worked his socks off to track back and support Lowton on the right flank. He almost operated as a right-wing back in the second half at times.
Ashley Barnes (5/10)
Barnes had to drop much deeper than he is used to but was quick to move forward and support Gray whenever Burnley got the ball in Chelsea’s half. Like all of his team-mates, Barnes also put in a tireless shift to help gain a vital point at home.
Andre Gray (7/10)
Despite not getting on the scoresheet or even having a shot on goal, Gray had a fantastic game. He was often left isolated up front but it didn’t stop him from chasing down every ball that was played forward.
Substitutes
Scott Arfield (5/10)
Arfield came on early in the second half for Brady with a specific task of assisting his defenders in stop the Chelsea attack.
Sam Vokes (N/A)
The striker came on in late in the game for Gray to provide fresh legs as Burnley looked to see out the game.
Chelsea
Thibaut Courtois (6/10)
The Belgian stopper was beaten all ends up when Brady curled in a beautiful free-kick but made a vital save from Lowton to keep the score at 1-1.
Cesar Azpilicueta (6/10)
The Spaniard had a decent outing, barely putting a foot wrong. Conte moved him to right-back after changing the formation to four at the back.
David Luiz (5/10)
The Brazilian was guilty of a couple of mistakes which luckily for him, he didn’t get punished for. He was forced to stick close to Gray who threatened to get in behind him. Luiz was booked for dissent in the second half.
Gary Cahill (5/10)
Cahill looked shaky and hesitant at times with a few loose passes. The England international, though, also put in a few important challenges that prevented Burnley from getting in behind the Chelsea defence.
Marcos Alonso (6/10)
Alonso operated more as a left winger throughout the game, getting forward at every chance he got. He had a number of chances to put in good deliveries from the left-hand channel but didn’t really provide any threat to the Burnley defence.
N’Golo Kante (7.5/10)
The midfield workhorse was arguably the man-of-the-match after intercepting nearly everything in his path. Kante won the ball back whenever he lost it and broke up play whenever Burnley looked to attack.
Nemanja Matic (4/10)
It was an off day for the Serbian midfielder who struggled to get into the intensity of the game. He gave away the foul that led to Burnley’s goal and was substituted for a more attacking minded Fabregas in the second half.
Victor Moses (7/10)
Moses was quick to break on the counter and played an important role in the build-up to Chelsea’s opener. The Nigerian international did a good job defensively as well but was replaced by Willian as Chelsea looked to get bodies forward in the second half.
Pedro (8/10)
The Spaniard opened the scoring with a fantastically taken goal after a delightful first touch set him up to slot past Heaton. He provided the most attacking threat than any other Chelsea player but lacked in the finishing department after his goal.
Eden Hazard (5/10)
Hazard started the game in fine fashion as he looked to carry on his form from last week but he faded off as the game progressed. He didn’t have a meaningful shot on target throughout the game.
Diego Costa (5/10)
Costa was kept very quiet throughout the game by Burnley’s brilliant centre-backs and he couldn’t really test Heaton at all.
Substitutes
Cesc Fabregas (5/10)
The midfielder replaced Matic in the second half and provided a much-needed lift in the attacking department but couldn’t find the right ball to trouble the Burnley backline.
Willian (5/10)
The Brazilian was pegged back by the Burnley defenders after coming on for Moses. Despite seeing a lot of the ball, he failed to do anything to break down Burnley.
Michy Batshuayi (N/A)
He replaced Pedro for the final minutes of the game.
