Manchester United suffered a 4-3 defeat to Chelsea in the Premier League at Stamford Bridge on Thursday night. Erik ten Hag’s men fought well, but conceded two goals in the last couple of minutes of the match to end up on the losing side.
Conor Gallagher opened the scoring for the Blues and Cole Palmer followed up with a brilliant hat-trick at home. For the away side, young Argentine Alejandro Garnacho scored a brace and captain Bruno Fernandes scored the third goal.
The defeat leaves the Red Devils sixth in the Premier League table with 48 points from 30 matches. On the other hand, the Blues climbed to the 10th position with 43 points from 29 matches. Here are the key takeaways from the Chelsea vs Manchester United game:
1. Entertaining Football On Display
Both teams dished out entertaining, end-to-end stuff on the day. However, Chelsea were the more dominant team and had more attempts as well with 28 as against 19 for Manchester United. The Blues had 57% ball-possession and made a lot of inroads into the final-third with the help of Gallagher, Palmer and Nicolas Jackson.
For the Red Devils, Antony started on the right flank and had a good battle with Marc Cucurella throughout the game. However, the Brazilian winger committed a foul inside his own penalty box to concede a penalty that led to the home side’s second goal.
More drama was on offer in the second half, as the visitors equalised and then took the lead. However, Mauricio Pochettino’s men then scored twice during the final minutes of the injury-time to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat.
2. Garnacho And Palmer Shone With Individual Brilliance
Garnacho strengthened his claim as United’s most influential player this season by scoring a brace for them. The Argentine winger has now scored nine goals this season. He once again scored a goal with a marauding run while dribbling past opposition defenders.
Palmer, meanwhile, has scored 21 goals in 39 matches this season (stats via Transfermarkt) that puts him up with the best attacking players in the Premier League this campaign. Yes, he needed a bit of luck to score the match-winner, as his shot took a deflection off Scott McTominay before going in.
3. Tricky Test Ahead For Manchester United
Manchester United will face Liverpool at home this Sunday and another reversal in that match will worsen their position. They should find it extremely difficult to finish inside the top-four, as fifth-placed Tottenham Hotspur are a good nine points ahead of them.
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Should United fail to ensure qualification for next season’s UEFA Champions League, Ten Hag will find it very difficult to save his job. On the other hand, Chelsea’s chances of ensuring participation in European competitions brightened somewhat with that win.
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