Manchester United 1-1 Chelsea: It’s just these two, and there’s a long way to go
Scrappy, always threatening to explode but just avoiding it, end to end and at the end of the day, cruelly exposed the deficiencies of both sides while making sure it brought out the best in them as well.
Like it or not, Manchester United and Chelsea have made this year’s title challenge a two-horse race, and on today’s evidence it will the Premiership race will be long, tough and pretty entertaining.
Sir Alex Ferguson praised his team’s spirit and gave the boilerplate statements of the title race being a long and hard prospect, but you could see from his face that he has extremely angry at the fact that United had lost out on 3 points.
I haven’t seen Mourinho’s post-match interview but I can tell you he’d be pissed off as well. Carrick was named man of the match and he was by far the most improved player on the pitch (he’s learned to tackle!), although you could say that Vidic and Ashley Cole deserved it as well. Vidic was simply amazing in defence and the amount of knocks he took at the hands of Ballack and Drogba (and Sheva, once or twice) was unbelievable.
Ashley Cole also had a pretty amazing game, making sure that Ronaldo wasn’t given too much space. Ronaldo beat his man once or twice but overall Cole had him covered, which is a pretty big achievement considering the red-hot form Ronaldo was in today.
It was a toe-to-toe, even matchup. You can’t predict where such matches go, and credit to both Manchester United and Chelsea for making it a good fight. Chelsea’s physical strength and ability to muscle through the midfield vs United’s ability to take the ball out to the flanks and create countless attacking opportunities.
Talking Points
Ballack - What was he doing today? Apart from body-checking Vidic, Scholes and Carrick, the German captain had little to do.
Ronaldo vs Ashley Cole - Great contest, finished even - Ronaldo got his chances in but Cole had his number. It was unfortunate the way it ended, Ronaldo going out injured and Cole being unfairly booked and then booed.
The Subs - Chelsea brought on Cole and Robben, Manchester United brought on O’Shea and Fletcher. Do I need to say more?
Howard Webb - No red cards, which is as much a compliment to Webb’s officiating as it is an indication of how this match never exploded despite simmering close. Got a couple of decisions wrong, but generally kept things flowing and did pretty good.
Vidic & Carrick vs Drogba and Lampard - United’s players shaded this contest, with Vidic copping a few blows to his head and Carrick showing that he can tackle as well. Lamps had quite a lot of space in the second half but couldn’t make it count and was reduced to shooting blanks.
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Discussion - 4 Responses
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Drogba should have been red carded, it was a deliberate offence , which could be easily proved with video evidence.
Would have been bad from the neutral view.But from a united fans view that was 3 points on a platter.
We had 3 glorious chances to bury the game, we didn’t take them and chelsea on a set piece got level.Chelsea didn’t develop any worth mentioning chance from open play and our midfield came up trumps.Carrick was awesome and this should rest all doubts of his ability to be a part of United midfield.
Last Season:
ManU was not doing well. Chelsea was. ManU BEAT Chelsea at OT 1-0, courtesy Fletcher. Stamford bridge, ok let’s not get there.
This Season:
Ignore that Ballack & Sheva are in the team. They’re not giving anything subtantial right now and Chelsea isn’t in their last years form. ManU on the other hand is doing quite well, not so much in Europe but a hell lot in EPL. But ManU drop 2 crucial points at home.
This 3-point lead is hardly any breathing space considering Chelsea’s record at Stamford bridge. Also, ManU HAS to win at Emirates having dropped points at OT against the gunners. Anfield doesn’t seem like an issue for both ManU and Chelsea. Can ManU and Chelsea keep up their efficiency against bottom half? Which club will have more luck with injury issues?
Enthusiasm for your own club aside, one has to agree it is a football duopoly we’re looking at. But I feel ManU should’ve won to make things easier for themselves. At home, a draw isn’t really a draw, you know what I mean…. like a draw away is a bit more like a half-win. I guess Chelsea took the better from the match - they know what monsters they are at Stamford bridge.
P.S. I disagree Cole neutralized Ronaldo all that much. He did well but if that was really the case, Cole wouldn’t be frustrated the way he was by the end of it. Ronaldo should’ve been man of the match….
By the way Saha’s goal was creme da la creme. the way he teased two defenders before a very precise shot. N i think Ronaldo came on top with A. cole. especially in the last 20 mins. Was a shame to see him go off cause that was when he was firing all cylinders with Nitrous Oxide. A. cole was baffled n had to bring down Ronaldo every time.
I actually think Cashley outshone Ronaldo. There were a few occassions where Ronaldo started to gallop past him, but unlike against Blackburn and Lucas Neill, where this move always resulted in a dangerous cross or run into the area, against Cole his runs never came to anything because Cole was able to recover and reign him in. While Ronaldo is no doubt fast, the way Cole accelerated from zero as soon as Ronnie skipped past him to get back and cut off the angle and prevent a cross demonstrated who among the two of them has the *real* pace. For me, Ronaldo always looked second best to Cole today.