Manchester United’s slump reached a new low at Stamford Bridge on Saturday. A 2-0 defeat to Chelsea stretched their run without a win to nine matches in all competitions, their worst sequence since 1984, and left Michael Carrick’s side just a point clear of the relegation places.
The frustrating part for United is that they were very much in the game before half-time. Bruno Fernandes, recalled after being dropped for criticising the head coach’s tactics, gave the visitors energy but also squandered their best opening, blazing over unmarked from a Bryan Mbeumo cross. Penders also had to dive twice to keep out efforts from Amad Diallo. Each side had a goal chalked off for offside, Pedro Neto’s rebound for the hosts and a Matheus Cunha header for United.
The match turned within minutes of the restart. In the 50th minute Morgan Rogers picked up the ball in midfield, surged past Harry Maguire and Lisandro Martínez and dinked a lovely finish over Senne Lammens. Martínez then had an afternoon to forget. Already cautioned for bringing down Rogers, the Argentine caught Wesley Fofana in the face with his arm from a set piece only moments afterwards. After a VAR check, Bankes awarded a spot kick and sent him off with a second yellow. Cole Palmer rolled the penalty home on 64 minutes.
With an extra man and a two-goal cushion, Xabi Alonso’s team controlled the rest comfortably, and Estevão even thought he had made it three before VAR ruled him offside as well. After painful losses in the league and the cup, Chelsea bounced back and climbed above Liverpool into fourth place. For Carrick, questions over how long he can survive in the job are only getting louder.
