United 2 – 1 Chelsea
A lineup that didn’t fill me with confidence
The starting XI raised a lot of eyebrows: Bayindir, Shaw, De Ligt, Maguire, Dorgu, Mazraoui, Casemiro, Fernandes, Mbeumo, Sesko, Amad. Why’s Lammens still not starting, especially after Bayindir’s poor recent form? Where’s Yoro; arguably our best centre-back? Bruno playing in midfield instead of one of the No. 10 spots again made no sense to me. At least Ugarte wasn’t starting, but the setup overall didn’t fill me with any confidence.
Fast start, early red, pressure building
The rain was pouring in Manchester as we welcomed the Club World Cup champions Chelsea. First three minutes were electric, just the kind of aggression Amorim had been asking for. Dorgu sent in a brilliant low cross for Sesko, who stretched but missed it by inches. The ball then fell to Mbeumo, whose header went straight at Sanchez.
We kept pushing and it paid off, a long ball to Sesko, who flicked it on to Mbeumo. Sanchez rushed out and made a reckless challenge outside the box. Straight red. Chelsea down to 10 men just minutes in. Maresca reacted quickly, with Estavao off for Jorgensen and Tosin on for Neto, going defensive early.
Bruno opens the scoring, Casemiro doubles it
From minute 8 to 13, we were constantly knocking. It felt like the goal was coming. And in the 14th, it did. Mazraoui swung in a cross, Dorgu headed it back across goal, Sesko missed it, but Bruno read the bounce and slotted it in. VAR checked, but he was onside. Still not a fan of him in midfield, but you can’t deny the finish.
Six minutes later, Chelsea brought on a third sub, Santos for Palmer, sitting deep and going all in on counterattacks. But we kept the pressure. At the 37th minute, another Mazraoui cross to Dorgu was headed across, half-cleared, and Shaw; sharp again, nodded it to the far post where Casemiro finished it calmly. 2-0.
A shaky second half and early warning signs
The second half kicked off evenly. Bayindir instantly gave me anxiety when he rushed out of the box to clear a ball he didn’t need to touch. On the sidelines, Maresca was seen giving instructions to Garnacho, returning to Old Trafford for the first time in Chelsea colours.
At the 60-minute mark, Chelsea were slowly growing into the game. Mazraoui kept putting in a solid shift, just like he did the last time we played them at home. If I remember correctly, he was playing left-back in that game. Might be wrong, but either way, he played well again today. In the 61st minute, Reece James fired in a dangerous low ball across the box, but De Ligt cleared it well.
Offside warning and changes roll in
Chelsea thought they had one back through Fofana, but it was offside. Amorim responded with subs. Mazraoui came off for Cunha, which pushed Amad to right wing-back. Mbeumo made way for Mount, and Maguire came off for Yoro.
Mainoo was still on the bench. We were almost at the 80th minute and Ugarte got on before him. Mainoo was good off the bench against City, so it’s a bit frustrating. I get that we were winning, but I wanted to see how we’d look if it stayed eleven versus eleven.
Chelsea push, we invite chaos
In the 79th minute, Reece James floated in another great cross. Chalobah scored with a header. 2–1. It was Chelsea’s first shot on target and it went in. Yoro lost his man and barely jumped. That goal gave them belief. Bruno tried to respond with a good dribble and shot from distance, but it only led to a corner.
Ugarte was careless again. Lost possession too many times. Chelsea were building confidence, and the game felt wide open. With five minutes to go, we were still sloppy. Ugarte and Bruno were both guilty of giving the ball away when we needed to be calm.
Bruno was finally subbed for Mainoo. Cunha became the lone striker, with Mount, Ugarte and Mainoo behind him.
Holding on and closing it out
In the 93rd minute, Chelsea created another big chance. Reece James crossed into the box and Bayindir came out strong to punch it away. The rebound fell to a Chelsea player, but his shot was blocked.
Chelsea got a corner in the 95th minute. Given our usual issues defending set-pieces, it felt tense. Bayindir came up big again and punched it clear. That probably saved us.
At the very end, Cunha picked up the ball near the halfway line and drove all the way into Chelsea’s half. He got fouled by Tosin just outside the box. We used the free kick to run down the clock. That was full-time.
Much needed win, but concerns remain
We got the win. We probably deserved it over the full 90 minutes. Casemiro’s red card changed the balance of the game. Chelsea had only one shot on target and it went in. Our set-piece defending was poor again. Deligt and Mazraoui were both very good. Bruno had another big moment.
But the midfield pairing is still not right. Ugarte doesn’t control possession well under pressure. The overall shape still feels unbalanced. Hopefully we build some momentum from this.
Till next time; YANITED!
UNITED SCRIPTED. 
Leave a comment