Manchester United travelled to face Chelsea at Stamford Bridge. The result was surprising as Manchester United managed to attain a draw against the Blues despite facing poor form in the Premier League in the past matches.
1st Half:
The lineup announced before the game surprised the fans. It was surprising to see Cristiano Ronaldo on the bench against the league toppers. Eric Bailly replaced Harry Maguire while Bruno Fernandes was appointed the captain. Fred, McTominay and Matic were deployed at the midfield while Marcus Rashford and Jadon Sancho played as joint strikers.
The match started and so did the domination by Chelsea. In the first two minutes, Hakim Ziyech made his first shot at goal. In the first few minutes, Manchester United played a bit too defensively. One could see all of the Red Devils behind the line as Chelsea defenders and midfielders exchanged passes right in front of them at their half, and there was no challenge from the opposition.
The first half was uneventful. Despite many attempts from Chelsea and a few from United as well, both teams failed to score before the halftime whistle. The only noteworthy performance was from David de Gea as he saved a kick to the goal from Hudson-Odoi.
2nd Half:
The 2nd Half saw United gain some possession in the final third. The opening goal of the game surprisingly came from United’s side. Jorginho made a terrible mistake which in turn gifted Sancho a clear opening on the goal and then shot past Mendy. Thus, giving them the advantage.
However, their happiness was short-lived as Wan-Bissaka caught Thiago Silva with an outstretched leg in the penalty box. The referee pointed to what looked like a kick on Thiago’s ankle. Despite pleas from Manchester United, the referee awards Chelsea the penalty. The penalty was scored by Jorginho as Chelsea equalised the scoreline.
What followed was a poor attempt of increasing the scoreline with both teams creating many chances but in the end missing them. Fred got a great chance at the 87th minute but he made a poor attempt to chip the ball into the goal, only to lift a tame effort into Mendy’s hands. Chelsea’s last attempt came at the 90+7th minute as an unmarked Rudiger blasted his shot over the bar.
The match ended with a positive result for United’s side given their managerial chaos and poor form in the Premier League. Chelsea on the other hand was not too happy.
However, with the upcoming arrival of Ralph Rangnick, it’d be pretty interesting to see how Manchester United line-up under him.
The new interim manager has stated: “My job – the job – is to improve players. Players follow you as a manager if they feel that you make them better. That’s the greatest, most sincere motivation there is.”
