4. Where do both sides go from here?
Despite the loss I would still fancy United for the title and that is regardless of whether or not they win at Anfield. As for Chelsea I believe this win has papered over cracks that will again rise to the surface against the rest of the Premier League, teams who possess more energy in midfield than United have and can exert more pressure on them over 90 minutes. It is an ageing side and whilst they’re more than capable of achieving one-off good results like yesterday I do not believe they have it in them to produce a sustained resurgence and retain their title. What would help Chelsea is trying to find a way to incorporate Drogba in the side, he’s a talisman even if his legs aren’t what they used to be.
In Europe simply put I’d be surprised if either side make a definitive impact and I believe their respective weaknesses will prove costly, that said in United’s case I genuinely believe with the right line up they can be a match for anyone over two legs and as long as they don’t face Barcelona in a Final, then anything could happen. As for Chelsea if they are to win it then it will probably be down to that one man Machine David Luiz…
5. Opposition One2Watch: David Luiz
David Luiz Match Statistics: 1 Shot, 1 Goal, 4 Interceptions, 22/29 Successful passes, 6/7 Tackles Made, 4 Clearances, 1 Block.
Mentioned the lad briefly in the ‘Rival Perspective – Chelsea v Liverpool’ blog and stated how in such a short space of time he’d done enough in his little cameo to suggest that Chelsea have a considerable talent on their hands, not to mention having seen him feature a fair few times for his previous club, one couldn’t help but be impressed with predominantly his defensive attributes.
He’s just what I’d call a ‘Total Footballer’, a dream player in your 5 a-side team, running up and down the pitch filling in at every position and performing each role with expert precision. It’s ridiculous how good he is for his age and the fact he relishes the physical nature of the premiership should frighten the life out of any striker willing to take him on.. he has it all.
Reads the game exceptionally well, good pace, strong in the tackle, brave in the air, brings the ball out of defence well, good off the ball movement, powerful shot, fantastic technique and it seems he is now well-versed in the defensive dark arts. Is there anything this kid can’t do? He’s a bargain at £20m+. The likes of Luiz and Smalling provide neutrals with great optimism for the future of the game and I for one can’t wait to see how their development pans out as they genuinely look like they can be world class.
Conclusion
Fantastic game, 2 excellent goals and one controversial penalty… a sending off and some goalkeeping heroics from Edwin Van Der Sar. Not to mention several refereeing howlers, so a game for the neutral basically and it was exhilarating to witness a Chelsea v United game that lived up to the hype in terms of spectacle and more importantly quality. It is often said in silly scorelines, ‘ That’s what the Premier League is all about’ blah blah.. seriously folks, last night was the real deal and a game which was a proper football match and hopefully a sign of things to come in the business end of the season.
Score: 2-1Venue: Stamford Bridge Date: Tuesday 1st March Kick-off: 1945 GMT
Man Utd (4-4-2): Van Der Sar, O’Shea, Smalling, Vidic, Evra, Nani, Scholes, Fletcher, Carrick, Rooney, Hernandez. Subs: Berbatov (70th min), Giggs (70th min) Fabio (81st min).
Chelsea: Cech, Ivanovic, Terry, Luiz, A Cole, Ramires, Essien, Lampard, Anelka, Torres, Malouda Subs: Drogba (61st min), Zhirkov (71st min), Bosingwa (81st min)
Referee: Atkinson
Written By
Raees Mahmood (Follow me @ www.twitter.com/redrae7 or check out www.thebusbyway.com)
