Casemiro rose to head home his first goal for the club in injury-time, giving Manchester United a deserved point in a dramatic finale against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Saturday evening. Chelsea vs Manchester United battled to a 1-1 draw, which is the fifth straight draw between the clubs.
Manchester United took the lead in the first 45 minutes, but didn’t maintain the position before the first half ends, with Antony wasting a great chance and Kepa saving twice from Marcus Rashford.
Half an hour later, Graham Potter made a tactical and formation change, replacing Marc Cucurella with Mateo Kovacic to help Chelsea gain a better foothold in midfield.
Graham Potter’s side came out at the start of the half with more intensity and took back a bit more possession of the game, but clear-cut chances were still few and far between for both sides.
Raphael Varane came off injured in the 60th minute and showed great distress in doing so, leaving the pitch in tears and covering his face with his jersey. Obviously, he worries about his World Cup chances with France.
Jorginho broke the deadlock with his goal from the spot in the 87th minute, giving Chelsea a narrow win when he sent goalkeeper David de Gea the wrong way from the spot after substitutes Scott McTominay and Armando Broja tangled at a corner three minutes from time.
Defeat would have been harsh on United but United answered back in the 94th minute through Casemiro as his header bounced off the post and eluded Kepa, only just trickling over the line.
Casemiro‘s looping stoppage-time header gave Manchester United a deserved point in a dramatic finale against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge. The result for Chelsea vs Manchester United is 1-1 draw.
Disappointments for Chelsea & Potter
Chelsea are now winless in their last 10 Premier League games against Manchester United (D7 L3) – only against Blackburn (12 between 1992 and 1998) and Arsenal (19 between 1995 and 2005) have they ever had a longer winless run in the competition.
Chelsea manager Graham Potter must have thought he was on the way to his second victory over United this season after Jorginho calmly slotted home late on.
Potter, who won at Old Trafford with Brighton on the opening weekend, was also set to see his side earn a sixth successive clean sheet in all competitions until that late Casemiro intervention.
In reality, however, Chelsea would have been fortunate to win. Indeed, so outmanoeuvred were they in the first half that Potter was forced into a tactical reshuffle to bolster his struggling midfield after only 36 minutes, Mateo Kovacic coming on for Marc Cucurella.
Chelsea were grateful to goalkeeper Kepa in that period but they improved after the break – albeit they were still unable to force De Gea into any serious work, the one anxious moment for the visitors coming when Trevoh Chalobah’s header glanced off the top of the bar.
The hosts ultimately could muster just two shots on target in a game that failed to live up to its billing – but there will be real disappointment that they could not close out the win after taking the lead so late.
Potter was at least able to maintain his unbeaten record as Chelsea manager but it could have been so much more satisfying.
Chelsea manager Graham Potter told Sky Sports: “It’s disappointing because at 1-0 you can see the end but over the course of the game, a point is about right. I don’t know whether we did well enough to win it. It was a fighting performance; we improved a lot after 30 minutes. In the end we take what we get.
“I didn’t feel we had enough control of the game, we probably needed an extra body in midfield to try and put a bit more pressure on, create turnovers to win the ball. I thought we were better after that.
“The boys gave everything, we can improve a lot in terms of our attacking play because we can create a bit more but we were playing against a good side.”
Man United focus on performance and Ten Hag satisfied
Ten Hag will be happy with a point after coming close to leaving with nothing. When the dust settles, however, he will know this was a missed opportunity.
Rashford and Antony should each have done better when clean through and it looked like they would pay for their profligacy before the outstanding Casemiro’s first goal for the club provided the sting in the tail.
United’s manager has brought clear improvements to the team, who now press more effectively and play with more intensity.
He has also dealt firmly and strongly with Ronaldo’s insubordination, leaving him out of the squad here to deliver a clear message clear that there will only be one man making the decisions at Old Trafford.
However, United will worry about Varane, who collapsed with what looked like a muscle injury as he went to challenge Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.
The defender’s tearful reaction clearly suggests it is a problem that threatens his World Cup chances.
Match Details
Chelsea: Arrizabalaga, Azpilicueta (c), Chalobah, Silva, Cucurella (Kovacic 35), Loftus-Cheek (Chukwuemeka 79), Jorginho, Chilwell, Mount, Sterling (Broja 79), Aubameyang (Pulisic 74)
Subs not used: Mendy, Gallagher, Zakaria, Havertz, Ziyech.
Goal: Jorginho 87 (pen)
Booked: Jorginho
United: De Gea; Dalot, Varane (Lindelof 59), Martinez, Shaw; Casemiro, Eriksen (McTominay 80), Antony, Fernandes (c), Sancho (Fred 52); Rashford (Elanga 80).
Subs not used: Heaton, Malacia, Iqbal, Pellistri, Garnacho.
Goal: Casemiro 90+4
Booked: Antony, Fred, Shaw, Martinez
