Chelsea player ratings vs Bayern Munich: Cole Palmer can't do it all! Errors from Trevoh Chalobah & Moises Caicedo prove costly on Blues' Champions League return

Chelsea endured a disappointing return to the Champions League as they succumbed to a Harry Kane double in a 3-1 loss at Bayern Munich on Wednesday evening. The Blues - competing in Europe’s premier club competition for the first time since 2022-23 - played well for large spells but they could not build on Cole Palmer’s brilliant first-half strike as the German champions emerged victorious at the Allianz Arena.

Enzo Maresca’s side started the game brightly, creating a few openings through the marauding Malo Gusto down the right-hand side, but they fell behind when Trevoh Chalobah put the ball into his own net following Michael Olise’s low cross. And for all their good work going forward, it was soon looking like it was going to be a long evening for Chelsea when Moises Caicedo brought down Bayern star Kane inside the penalty area, with the England captain converting the resulting spot-kick in emphatic fashion.

The visitors didn't give up, though, and they reduced the arrears just two minutes later when Palmer - Chelsea's main man once again - fired past Manuel Neuer. However Maresca's men found it difficult to make inroads in the second half and after Gusto lost possession in a perilous position, Kane then latched onto Serge Gnabry's pass to kill the contest.

Here, GOAL rates the Chelsea players on show at the Allianz Arena...

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Goalkeeper & Defence
Robert Sanchez (7/10):
He was powerless to stop any of the goals going in, but he made good saves to prevent Kane and Olise extending Bayern's lead.
Malo Gusto (6/10):
The right-back registered an assist after playing a lovely one-two with Palmer in the build up to Chelsea's goal, but he lost the ball which led to Bayern's third.
Tosin Adarabioyo (5/10):
He failed to clear the Olise cross that brought about Bayern's opener, taking a swing and a miss as the ball came in, but it was fizzed in low and hard, to be fair.
Trevoh Chalobah (5/10):
Put through his own net as Bayern took the lead, but it was the type of cross which is always tough for defenders to deal with.
Marc Cucurella (5/10):
The Spain international had his work cut out against Olise, who got past him a few times.

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Midfield
Reece James (6/10):
Lost the ball but then won it again as he played a role in the build up to Chelsea's goal.
Moises Caicedo (6/10):
Gave the penalty away with a rash challenge on Kane but went some way to making amends by launching the counter-attack for Palmer's strike.
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Attack
Cole Palmer (8/10):
Chelsea's bright spark as usual, he beat Neuer with a wonderful first-time finish. He thought he scored a second late on, which he took brilliantly, but he was just offside.
Enzo Fernandez (6/10):
Operating further forward, the Argentina ace got into a couple of promising positions but was often thwarted at the last moment by Bayern's defence.
Pedro Neto (6/10):
The winger was lively on the counter but whenever he got into a good position, there was rarely anything on, meaning he was left to recycle possession.
Joao Pedro (5/10):
He was beaten by Olise in the lead up to Bayern's opener, while Chelsea's most promising moments fell to other players.

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Subs & Manager
Alejandro Garnacho (6/10):
The wide man replaced Pedro Neto in the second half and made a few good bursts down the left flank.
Andrey Santos (6/10):
Replacing captain Reece James, the young midfielder thought he set up a second goal for Palmer, but the forward was narrowly offside.
Estevao Willian (N/A):
A late second-half substitute, he didn't really have enough time to make an impact.
Enzo Maresca (5/10):
Opted to start Gusto at right-back and while the former Lyon man provided an assist, he was at fault for Bayern's third.

Goalkeeper & Defence

Midfield

Attack

Subs & Manager