Chelsea slumped to a disappointing 2-1 loss against a struggling Manchester United in the thrashing rain at Old Trafford on Saturday night.
The Blues seemed doomed from the moment Robert Sanchez was given his marching orders on five minutes, with United soon going 2-0 up thanks to Bruno Fernandes and Casemiro.
The Brazilian’s dismissal later in the first 45 offered Enzo Maresca a glimmer of hope. Trevoh Chalobah’s late goal sparked a mini resurgence but Ruben Amorim’s reds ultimately held on to a 2-1 victory.
Here, Daily Mail Sport takes a look at the biggest talking points from a chaotic evening in Manchester.
A nightmare start
How To Implode, by Chelsea Football Club.
Imagine those fans who only tuned in to this match after 20 minutes. They missed a breakdown in blue, and that included from Enzo Maresca in the tactical decisions he made in response to Robert Sanchez’s straight red.
Chelsea slumped to a disappointing 2-1 loss against Man United at Old Trafford on Saturday
The Blues endured a nightmare start when Robert Sanchez was given his marching orders after just five minutes
Following the red card, Enzo Maresca’s early changes were somewhat puzzling
When Sanchez was dismissed after four minutes, Maresca had to sacrifice someone for second-choice goalkeeper Filip Jorgensen.
Choosing Estevao Willian was understandable because he was an 18-year-old Brazilian, new to the Premier League, playing on the left wing when the right is his regular territory.
However, Maresca decided not to stop there. He also hooked Pedro Neto at the same time in order to bring on another defender in Tosin Adarabioyo.
With that, Chelsea were left with no wingers whatsoever and a great deal less speed for countering. They went into 5-3-1 ultra-defensive mode with hardly any attacking outlet, made even worse when Cole Palmer needed substituting as he appeared to feel his hamstring again.
Against one of the worst Manchester United teams in memory, it reeked of negativity. Chelsea had the entire second half to try to exact an explosive comeback against the same number of men, after Casemiro’s dismissal, but no dynamite left on the pitch to do so.
Transfer mistake haunts Maresca
Heading into the summer window, there were Chelsea supporters loudly telling their club that they needed a new goalkeeper. They reckoned Robert Sanchez was nowhere near good enough to take them to the next level, while Filip Jorgensen was only an understudy at best.
Chelsea flirted with signing Mike Maignan from AC Milan before the Club World Cup, but refused to commit to the numbers involved. They saw Maignan as worth £12.7million due to only having one year remaining on his current contract at the age of 30. Milan wanted £21m.
The Blues flirted with the idea of signing a goalkeeper in the summer. It seems like they should have
Reece James was particularly dangerous on the right wing on a wet day in Manchester
And so, Chelsea stuck with Sanchez and Jorgensen. They had avoided scrutiny this season but here, both brought back the same noises from before.
It was an obvious red card for Sanchez, who denied a goalscoring opportunity in fouling Bryan Mbeumo. Why his replacement Jorgensen did not come to claim Reece James’ strange clearance later in that first half, only he knows. The ball was in the air for 3.7 seconds – yes, we timed it – but he remained rooted.
That saw United make it 2-0 with Chelsea’s last win at Old Trafford coming in May 2013.
James a threat
James is one of the best crosses going in the game – if not the best – as he showed during the last international break with England. It is a wicked weapon which Chelsea could do with utilising more as another ball from their captain here led to Trevoh Chalobah making it 2-1 to set up a grandstand ending.
In stoppage time, another cross from James nearly led to an equaliser, but United goalkeeper goalkeeper Altay Bayindir and Manuel Ugarte managed to clear it between them on that occasion.
Trevoh Chalobah’s late headed goal offered the Blues a glimmer of hope, but they couldn’t find a second
James was the only Chelsea player who properly went up to the supporters in the away end to thank them for sticking with them.
Blues shaky back-line
Right to the very end, Chelsea’s defenders were making mistakes. Tosin’s sliding challenge on Matheus Cunha in the seventh minute of stoppage time gave United the chance to run down the clock and summed up the silliness that was on show from the visiting defence here.
Chelsea last season averaged the youngest side in the Premier League history. Their overall naivety showed.
