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Chelsea’s Eden Hazard has lavished team-mate N’Golo Kante with praise, saying he feels like he’s playing with twins when he lines up alongside the Frenchman.
Kante’s dominance in midfield was on full display on Monday night as Chelsea secured a 2-1 victory over London rivals West Ham .
The 25-year-old was influential in the build-up to the visitors’ first goal, intercepting a West Ham pass in his own half before leading a rapid break that culminated in Hazard’s opener, and impressed throughout with his break-up play and relentless energy.
Since moving to the Premier League in 2015, Kante has made 214 interceptions, won 185 tackles and picked up a total of 140 points.
Such form has earned him wide praise, with team-mate Hazard the latest footballing figure to wax lyrical about the Frenchman’s abilities.
“I don't need to speak about N'Golo, everyone knows about him. He's everywhere,” the Belgian told Chelsea TV.
“I think sometimes when I'm on the pitch I see him twice.
“One on the left, one on the right. I think I'm playing with twins!
Show all 22 1 /22West Ham vs Chelsea player ratings West Ham vs Chelsea player ratings Darren Randolph – 7 out of 10 Not at fault for either of Chelsea's two goals. Made a superb reaction save in the second-half to deny Diego Costa from point blank range.
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West Ham vs Chelsea player ratings Cheikhou Kouyate – 4 out of 10 Shifted into defence so as to accommodate Noble. He committed more fouls in the first-half than Chelsea did as an entire team, which rather sums his performance up.
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West Ham vs Chelsea player ratings Winston Reid – 6 out of 10 Made two crucial first-half interceptions and proved more solid than the decidedly erratic Jose Fonte.
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West Ham vs Chelsea player ratings Jose Fonte – 4 out of 10 The winter signing struggled against Chelsea’s pace and made two first-half howlers: first doing too much on the ball and dribbling into trouble, then suffering the indignity of an air-kick as he went to boot the ball away from Pedro. Spurned two good goal-scoring opportunities in the second-half.
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West Ham vs Chelsea player ratings Aaron Cresswell – 6 out of 10 One of West Ham’s better players and overlapped nicely with Snodgrass down the left. Their partnership shows promise. Put some good balls into the box for Carroll to contest but exposed defensively by Hazard. .
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West Ham vs Chelsea player ratings Mark Noble – 5 out of 10 Struggled. The West Ham captain is too frequently overran in the big games. Lacked the pace to compete with Chelsea’s scampering midfield and offered little going forward.
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West Ham vs Chelsea player ratings Pedro Obiang – 6 out of 10 One of West Ham’s better players but he won’t want to see Chelsea’s second goal again: a Cesc Fabregas corner skimming off the top of his head and into the path of Diego Costa for the easiest of close-range finishes.
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West Ham vs Chelsea player ratings Sofiane Feghouli – 6 out of 10 Started the game impressively and initially looked to have Alonso’s number, showing promise in the final third. But faded as the game went on.
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West Ham vs Chelsea player ratings Manuel Lanzini – 7 out of 10 Took his late goal very well, firing past Courtois after being played in by Ayew. A talented, but ultimately limited to a role on the periphery tonight.
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West Ham vs Chelsea player ratings Robert Snodgrass – 6 out of 10 Made some impressive darting runs behind Victor Moses and worked nicely with Cresswell but will be disappointed he didn’t stretch the Chelsea defence more.
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West Ham vs Chelsea player ratings Andy Carroll – 6 out of 10 A hard-working performance but Carroll, rushed back from injury for this game, never looked a threat unless the ball was in the air. Even then, he was well dealt with by Cahill and David Luiz.
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West Ham vs Chelsea player ratings Thibaut Courtois – 7 out of 10 Rarely called into action but did well against the aerial threat of Andy Carroll. Made a fine save to keep Jose Fonte out.
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West Ham vs Chelsea player ratings Cesar Azpilicueta – 6 out of 10 The Spaniard had been identified as a potential weak link before the match but was rarely troubled.
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West Ham vs Chelsea player ratings Gary Cahill – 7 out of 10 Another solid performance from Chelsea’s skipper. Won an impressive 5 aerial battles and made two significant interceptions.
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West Ham vs Chelsea player ratings David Luiz – 7 out of 10 Looked confident playing alongside Cahill and also dealt with Carroll well, frequently drifting into Azpilicueta’s territory to ensure the forward didn’t isolate his smaller team-mate.
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West Ham vs Chelsea player ratings Victor Moses – 6 out of 10 The wing-back — a revelation this season — has looked a little tired in recent weeks and was again below-par for the league leaders. It may be time for Antonio Conte to give him a brief rest.
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West Ham vs Chelsea player ratings N’Golo Kante – 7 out of 10 Not the Frenchman’s finest performance but he was still a menace in the middle of the park, winning four tackles and joining the counter attack whenever possible.
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West Ham vs Chelsea player ratings Cesc Fabregas – 7 out of 10 Another encouraging performance from the midfielder which suggests he has truly revolutionised his game under Antonio Conte. No player ran further and his through-balls proved a constant threat.
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West Ham vs Chelsea player ratings Marcos Alonso – 7 out of 10 Restricted to just the one barnstorming run forward this week. Feghouli made a bright start down his flank but Alonso quickly recovered and kept him quiet for the rest of the evening.
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West Ham vs Chelsea player ratings Pedro – 7 out of 10 Looked very dangerous on the counter-attack and combined well with Eden Hazard. Should have done better with a first-half chance though, which was deflected clear by Obiang.
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West Ham vs Chelsea player ratings Eden Hazard – 9 out of 10 Brilliant against Swansea last week and tonight he was once again Chelsea’s most dangerous player. Took his goal with confidence and was a frequent menace on the counter-attack.
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West Ham vs Chelsea player ratings Diego Costa – 7 out of 10 An almost anonymous first-half during which he only touched the ball 24 times, but what does that matter when he got his name onto the scoresheet? A poacher’s finish but they all count.
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“He's a fantastic player and helps the team a lot so we are happy to have him in the team.”
But speaking after Monday’s game, Antonio Conte said that Kante still had room to improve - depsite his man-of-the-match performance.
"He made five mistakes. He has to improve in this. He has to improve," he said with a smile.
"I am joking. But I have to find one situation to tell him to improve. He's playing really well.
"He has great stamina, great quality and we are working to improve that quality. I'm pleased for him, but all my players performed very well."
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