Two Comebacks & Chelsea goals in MU's net after the 90+9th minute! You couldn't come up with a more relaxed plot

Ten Hag's team lost to the Londoners, although it seemed like the match had already been won.

Chelsea and Manchester United delivered a match that makes it hard to find any words other than "wow." Even though it wasn't a top-quality game, what a show!

Chelsea and Manchester United pressed the gas from the first minutes, and open football ensued – attack after attack. Mauricio Pochettino's team was lucky to score the first goal. With Gusto's support, it was hot on Manchester's left flank as Palmer was brilliantly maneuvering past Dalo. That's where the assist came from, and it all started with a move from the young Mainu. Gallagher received the ball after a fortunate bounce and shot low, as they teach in top academies.

Chelsea scored with their first shot on target and increased their advantage with their second. In this stretch of the game, the Londoners were better. They defended effectively, transitioning from positional defense to pressing, launched sharp counterattacks, and dangerously played set pieces. In the 18th minute, a quick counterattack by the hosts ended with Mudrick's pass to Kukurelya, who was brought down in the box by Antony. Before that, the Spaniard didn't feel confident playing one-on-one with the Brazilian, but he won the episode this time. Palmer shot to the right of himself from the penalty spot, and Onana also dove to his right, so the goalkeeper and the ball didn't meet.

Manchester United struggled in the final third for half an hour, but Erik ten Hag's team suddenly scored two goals in five minutes before the break. The first was scored by Kaisedo, who rolled the ball to Garnacho under pressure. The winger took advantage of the millionaire's generous gift, converting the one-on-one chance.

And Fernandes' next goal was a result of collective creativity. Manchester United initiated a fantastic broad attack from their own goal! Onana quickly threw the ball to his teammate. Antony found Garnacho with a long pass (rarely seen excellent interaction between Man Utd wingers). He passed to Dalo, and the Portuguese perfectly crossed to the far corner of the goal. Chelsea failed to defend properly this time, finding themselves in a two-on-one situation. Bruno nodded — the ball flew into the net.

The teams collectively made 24 shots in the first half, including eight on target. That's the entertaining football Chelsea and Manchester United prepared at Stamford Bridge that evening. Gallagher even hit the crossbar with a score of 2:2 – he could have completed a brace. Meanwhile, Manchester United lost Varane to injury. Evans replaced the Frenchman after the break, and then he also needed to be substituted.

Pochettino and Ten Hag's teams tried to play without the midfield in the second half. If there's space – go forward! That's how Manchester United scored their third goal, constructing a swift counterattack against a team that had committed significant numbers forward on the opponent's half. A pickup on the right, a pass on the run, a beautiful through ball from Antony with the outside of his foot to Garnacho – and a header. Man United secured a determined victory.

Overall, Chelsea has big problems playing in the second halves; according to statistics, they are one of the worst teams in the league in this regard. With Manchester United having 70% possession, the Blues stopped creating chances at some point. It's as if they ran out of ideas, even when they still had energy. Only Palmer, who provided eight key passes, kept his creativity. If the hosts played for 1.52 expected goals in the first half, by the 90th minute of the second half, they had only 0.65.

But this game didn't let up until the end, and a magical twist occurred in stoppage time. In the 90+7th minute, a tired Dalo missed the fresh Madueke and collapsed on him in his own penalty area. It was a 50-50 episode. The referee hesitated about whether to award a penalty for a long time but eventually pointed to the spot. The VAR assistants supported him. Palmer scored the penalty in the same style as the first one.

Just a minute later, Chelsea pulled off a miracle in the style of former Manchester United coach Alex Ferguson. Ten Hag's team hesitated on the opponent's corner, and the Londoners quickly executed a set piece and overwhelmed the Mancunians: the magnificent Palmer completed his hat-trick with a deflection off McTominay. Chelsea had yet to beat Manchester United in the Premier League for seven years. Still, a victory with 47 shots in a match is worth seven ordinary ones.

Published by Patrick Jane
05.04.2024