Man Utd 2 Chelsea 1
Erik ten Hag went head-to-head with Mauricio Pochettino at Old Trafford with both managers in desperate need of a win to relieve the pressure. Chelsea had not beaten Man Utd away from home for over ten years.
Man Utd sported very interesting new training tops as they marched out onto the pitch in the multi-coloured outfits. Not that they needed much help in looking like clowns this season. The fans were hoping they had a point to prove after a lacklustre display at St James’ Park.
United started on the front foot and as Shaw spotted the run of Hojlund, the Danish striker got a first-time shot away which Sanchez got down well to save. It was a bright start by Erik ten Hag’s side, much to the delight of the fans.
As the hosts continued to apply the pressure Antony went down in the box with barely an appeal from any of his teammates. The match continued until the ball went out of play, then the referee was told not to restart the game by VAR.
Credit: @premierleague
The referee was then sent to the monitor to review the incident. As the replay showed, Enzo Fernandez did stamp on the foot of the Brazilian. Chris Kavanagh reversed his initial decision and pointed to the penalty spot.
Bruno Fernandes stepped up to take it and his poorly hit penalty was saved by Sanchez. The Chelsea players surrounded the keeper celebrating the fact he had kept the scores level. Man Utd really are like a bag of revels this season, you just do not know what you are going to get.
The game then turned into an end-to-end affair and as Amrabat gave the ball away to Palmer, he slid a pass into the path of Mudryk. The Ukrainian ran through on goal, only to see his shot strike the outside of the post.
Garnacho got to the byline before cutting the ball back to Maguire, whose shot was blocked. It rebounded to McTominay, who took one touch to control it, before firing the ball into the back of the net to give Man Utd the lead.
Amrabat was then penalised for a foul on Fernadez, who leapt to his feet to take the free kick quickly. He played it to Jackson who ran towards goal before laying it off to Sterling. As the winger cut inside, he went down looking for a penalty.
VAR reviewed the incident and decided that there was no contact from Lindelof which would have sent him to the floor. In that instance, the referee really should be brandishing a yellow card as it is the only way we will stamp out simulation in the game.
Credit: @ManUtd
Bruno Fernandes clipped in a pinpoint cross to the head of McTominay, who headed straight at Sanchez. As the ball came back out to him, his second effort was straight at the keeper once again. It was a huge chance to double the lead for the hosts.
Raheem Sterling then broke away, leaving the Man Utd defence in his wake. With Jackson alongside him for support, he squared it to the striker. As he took a touch before shooting, he gave Onana the time to come out and block his shot.
This is the problem with Nicolas Jackson, he does not look like a natural finisher. A good striker would hit the shot first time and not need to take the extra touch. Pochettino looked bemused that his side had failed to draw level.
Despite Man Utd’s dominance in this game, the visitors had their fair share of chances. Another dropped to Mudryk but as he ran towards goal, with defenders backing off him, he dragged his shot wide.
Soon after, the Ukrainian redeemed himself a little as he spotted a pass into Palmer. As the former Man City forward weaved towards goal, he shot through a sea of red shirts, to see his effort nestle into the bottom corner.
Old Trafford fell silent as Chelsea equalised. For all their attacking play, there is a definite soft underbelly to this ten Hag side. They concede goals all too easily and seem incapable of defending a lead. If this side is going to achieve anything this season, this is something that needs addressing.
Reece James joined the action at the interval and it was his loose pass that created the first chance of the half for the hosts. Fernandes found Antony whose shot hit Thiago Silva to deflect wide for a Man Utd corner.
United came forward again with Reguilon, who passed it to Garnacho out wide. He lifted a ball to the back post where McTominay headed in to give the Red Devils the lead. It was the midfielder’s fifth goal of the Premier League season.
This underpins a lot of United’s problems that the Scottish midfielder is now the top scorer for his side in the league this season. Nobody in the top fourteen sides in the Premier League have scored less goals than Erik ten Hag’s side.
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