Manchester United once again let the result slip late on, as they succumbed to a dramatic 4-3 defeat at the hands of Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Thursday.
The visitors were leading by three goals to two till the ninth minute of added time before a penalty from Cole Palmer and a late deflected effort from the former Manchester City star handed the hosts all three points.
The Blues rushed to a two-goal lead within the first 20 minutes through goals from Connor Gallagher and Palmer, who notched a hat-trick on the night.
The Red Devils equalised within the first half with Alejandro Garnacho pouncing on a mistake from Moises Caicedo while Bruno Fernandes scored a delightful header.
Lack of control
Erik ten Hag will point to the fact that his team showed character to come back from two goals down to take the lead in the second half through the Argentine but once again, the lack of coaching seemed staggering.
Both Chelsea penalties were soft with the role of VAR once again coming into question but the United players failed to defend a quick corner for the winner as the team once again lost their head at the last minute, just like what had transpired against Brentford in the last game.
Unfortunately, Diogo Dalot, who has arguably been one of the better players this season, conceded the penalty in the ninth minute of added time while it was Antony who conceded the first one.
Chelsea 2 Manchester United 0 vs. Chelsea 2 Manchester United 2 pic.twitter.com/vsFRBpQFTL
— Ben Jacobs (@JacobsBen) April 4, 2024
It was an entertaining but chaotic game and that is why the Red Devils managed to take advantage of counter attacking situations but the players have no composure when it comes to holding on to the ball.
In added time, the players all seemed to panic whenever they touched the ball and instead of being comfortable, they always rushed and eventually handed Chelsea back the ball. Rondo sessions at Carrington must be fun!
In almost two seasons, the manager has not figured out a way to control games nor does he change this flawed system where all the players press high while the defence sits back to allow the entire midfield to the opposition to play through.
With this group of players, Ten Hag’s high transition style simply does not work but he seems obsessed with this and ultimately this might prove to be his undoing.
Ratcliffe was in attendance
Casemiro gets bypassed far too easily every time while almost all of his teammates are up the pitch without any proper structure. Individual moments of brilliance during counter attacks produce goals instead of a sustained period of possession.
Sir Jim Ratcliffe was in attendance and after reports emerged that he was displeased with the performance down in Gtech Community Stadium, Thursday’s result will do little to improve his mood as Ten Hag looks likely to lose his job.
Now with Liverpool up next and both Raphael Varane and Jonny Evans joining Lisandro Martinez and Victor Lindelof on the sidelines, the manager’s only option is the pairing of Harry Maguire and young Willy Kambwala.
As for the race for Champions League football, United once again failed to take advantage of both teams above them dropping points and they remain nine points behind Tottenham in fifth.
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