Chelsea 0-0 Manchester United: 5 hits and flops as arch-rivals play out a dour goalless draw | Premier League 2020-21

Chelsea and Manchester United settled for a share of the spoils in the 2020-21 Premier League once again after playing out a dour goalless draw at Stamford Bridge earlier in the season.

With the first leg at Old Trafford also ending 0-0, it marked the first time since 1921-22 that both sides failed to score against each other during a league campaign.

Chances were at a premium, but Chelsea as well as Manchester United were guilty of missing some crucial ones late on.

Hakim Ziyech slammed his effort straight at David De Gea from close range, while Scott McTominay failed to make connect with an easy cross for a tap-in. Callum Hudson-Odoi's handball inside the area was excused after a VAR check.

Eventually, the goalless draw seemed like a fair result, as neither side were particularly dominant. But Manchester City were the biggest winners on the day, as they now lead by a whopping 12 points.

On that note, here are the five hits and flops from either team in the match:

Hit: Hakim Ziyech (Chelsea)

Hakim Ziyech put on a good shift for Chelsea despite failing to score again.

While his wait for a goal in the Premier League continued, Hakim Ziyech was impressive against Manchester United.

The Morrocan looked to make attacking runs through Manchester United's backline and also seemed more effective from a creative standpoint.

With five opportunities created, Ziyech was the most dangerous player for Chelsea without scoring, mustering a third of the total shots his side managed on target.

Chelsea boss Tuchel will hope Ziyech can build on this performance going forward.

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Flop: Bruno Fernandes (Manchester United)

Bruno Fernandes has now scored just one goal in seven games against the top six' this season.

It was another stinker from the Portuguese star, whose appalling trend of stat-padding against the supposedly lesser teams continued as he produced a no-show against Chelsea.

In what is turning out to be the best season of his career to date, Fernandes has often flattered to deceive when the stakes have been high. Against Chelsea, the Manchester United talisman was once again below par.

Fernandes managed just two efforts on goal, both of which were blocked, while he was also guilty of missing several passes and also got dispossessed once.

While his return of 15 goals and 11 assists in the league is impressive by all accounts, it doesn't tell the whole story; Fernandes ought to do better in big games.

Hit: Luke Shaw (Manchester United)

Luke Shaw was excellent in the Manchester United defence.

It's not often Luke Shaw is labelled a 'hit' over the likes of Fernandes or Marcus Rashford. But against Chelsea, he certainly was a standout performer, arguably Manchester United's best of the bunch.

He started off with a crucial block to deny Olivier Giroud an early opener and continued in the same vein thereafter, showing excellent positional awareness and also charging forward to help his team offensively.

In fact, his tally of three key passes in the match was the most by a Manchester United player in the game. That's quite something, considering Shaw is only a full-back.

Shaw has managed to stay injury free this season, and that has translated to good on-field performances, making him one of Manchester United's best players of the campaign.

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Flop: Olivier Giroud (Chelsea)

Olivier Giroud missed this chance from just a few yards out.

For all of Chelsea's extraordinary outlay in the summer, with the purchases of Timo Werner, Kai Havertz and Hakim Ziyech, their best attacker this season has been Olivier Giroud, who has netted 11 times in all competitions.

His best performances have no doubt come in Europe, where he bagged an all-important winner against Atletico Madrid in midweek. But against Manchester United, the Spaniard was quiet and rarely threatened the visitors.

His lack of mobility ensured Harry Maguire and Victor Lindelof were not tested enough. The Frenchman was also guilty of missing a good chance early on following a sensational cross from Callum Hudson-Odoi.

With Tuchel dropping Timo Werner to the bench, this was a chance for Giroud to show that he can lead the line for Chelsea in the league too. But that was not to be.

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Hit: Callum Hudson-Odoi (Chelsea)

Callum Hudson-Odoi was a decent attacking outlet for Chelsea but went off injured at the break.

The fact that Callum Hudson-Odoi lasted only 45 minutes in the match but made it to this list as a 'hit' performer tells you everything there is to know about his outing against Manchester United.

In a game where chances were few and far between, Hudson-Odoi was a lively attacking presence for Chelsea, driving forward and probing Manchester United with some delicious crosses. The Blues will hope his injury is not a serious one.

He could've bagged an assist in the first half had Giroud converted his beautiful cross from the left. But that didn't deter Hudson-Odoi from attempting a few more, which also went begging, much to his dismay.

Nevertheless, Hudson-Odoi was also lucky to have escaped conceding a penalty after he accidentally handled the ball inside the box.