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Manchester United strolled past Chelsea to progress into the quarter-finals of the FA Cup. The visitors were brilliant on the night and emerged from the Bridge with a 2-0 victory.
The away side raced off the blocks and put Chelsea under immediate strife. Romelu Lukaku fired a half-chance over the bar while Ander Herrera induced a smart save from Kepa. The home side though slowly grew into the game and dominated the ball.
However, the visitors took the lead against the run of play in the 31st-minute, courtesy Herrera’s header. Moments before half time, the Red Devils doubled their advantage when the enigmatic Paul Pogba found himself on the end of a superb cross from Marcus Rashford.
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The hosts tried to turn the screw in the second period but never got going. While the victory was another shot in the arm for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, the defeat compounded Maurizio Sarri’s woes.
Here is a look at the three reasons that helped Manchester United beat their rivals:
#3 Chelsea fail to make the most of their possession
The game at Stamford Bridge assumed a familiar pattern with Chelsea enjoying the lion’s share of the ball. However, the Blues again lacked penetration in possession. Chelsea ended up with only a couple of shots on target despite having more than two-thirds of the ball.
The home side’s passing was pedestrian for large parts of the game. They tried to scythe through Manchester United’s defense, yet never looked likely of cracking open the Red Devils’ defensive safe.
Though there were bright patches of possession for Chelsea, they were very far and few in between. In addition, none of those good spells of domination ever culminated in anything substantial.
On paper, Chelsea’s attack boasted of enough firepower to rattle the Red Devils’ cage. Yet, like many a time before, the players looked bereft of confidence, ideas, and imagination.
The ‘SarriBall’ has quickly transformed into ‘SorryBall’ with Chelsea’s own players clueless on its execution. Time is running out for Sarri and another such performance could see him getting the boot before he can say sorry.
#2 Manchester United were clinical in front of goal
Manchester United arrived at Stamford Bridge hoping to put their mid-week humbling behind them. The Red Devils did exactly that and turned in an accomplished performance.
The Red Devils weren’t setting the world ablaze with their attacking verve on Monday evening. Yet, when the situation demanded, they portrayed their clinical edge.
For the first goal, Juan Mata found space between Chelsea’s midfielders and released Pogba. The latter expertly evaded the attention of his marker to whip in a delicious cross to the far post where Herrera was on hand to head past a hapless Kepa.
After creating the opening goal, Pogba took matters into his own hands (or head) and delivered the knock-out blow. The Frenchman towered above Cesar Azpilicueta to nod home the second.
In Solskjaer’s time at the helm, the Red Devils have rediscovered the attacking impetus that had inexplicably gone missing under a certain Jose Mourinho.
Thus, on a night when Chelsea’s forwards failed to make any inroads, Manchester United’s attacking players reminded the West Londoners what they’ve been missing: goals.
#1 Solskjaer outfoxes Chelsea with his system
The game at Stamford Bridge presented Solskjaer with the ideal opportunity to prove that the game against PSG was just an anomaly. Though he surprised everyone with his team selection, the Norwegian was completely vindicated by the time the game finished.
Solskjaer decided to play with Mata, Lukaku, and Rashford upfront. Mata featured primarily in the center of the attack (false 9), with Rashford and Lukaku on either side, which got everyone by surprise. The midfield trio of Pogba, Herrera, and Matic gave a spectacular account of themselves with Pogba and Herrera eventually coming up with the goals.
Throughout the game, Manchester United caused Chelsea problems with their deep runs from midfield. Both of the Red Devils’ goals were scored from the aforementioned avenue.
Moreover, the change in the system meant that the visitors could defend narrowly and they rarely allowed the likes of Gonzalo Higuain, Eden Hazard, and Pedro space to wreak havoc.
On Monday evening, Sarri was panned for his predictability and inflexibility. Yet, during the same game, Solskjaer showcased that he has more aces up his sleeve than many initially thought.
And while many thought Ole to run out of luck after the ‘new manager bounce’, he just finds new ways to come up trumps. After all, it can’t be down to fortune every time.
