Mourinho Masterclass
The two inform teams in the premier league met for a big clash thriller which seen 1st vs 3rd, Mourinho vs Van Gaal, of course, it’s Chelsea vs Manchester United at Stamford Bridge. Louis Van Gaal’s Manchester United were unbeaten in 6 games and came to the Bridge high in confidence after their derby day victory at Old Trafford over rivals City in a 4-2 winner, but, that came to a crashing end with a Mourinho Masterclass with Chelsea grinding out a 1-0 winner to see them stay top of the league and 10 points clear. Manchester United dominated in possession and played some really nice football but that unfortunately played into Mourinho’s plan as he set his Chelsea team out to sit back and allow United to dominate so he could hit them on the counter and that of course came through their first shot on target as star man Eden Hazard beat David De Gea to give Chelsea the 1-0 victory.
With Manchester United missing key players like Carrick, Jones, Blind and Rojo it seen Van Gaal reshuffle his inform united team. The reshuffle seen Luke Shaw and Paddy McNair come into the defence, while Wayne Rooney was dropped into the midfield which gave Falcao a rare start upfront. Chelsea were without their top scorer Diego Costa and substitute striker Loic Remy for this game, so that gave an opportunity for Didier Drogba to start upfront. Mourinho’s tactics were seen early with the announcement of his team as he brought young and talented defender Kurt Zouma into the midfield, a role he has played comfortably under Mourinho before.
United started brightly and really should have been up within the first 10 minutes as Wayne Rooney got onto Luke Shaw’s cross but placed his shot just inches wide. The shot was so close that it had Manchester United fans and even David De Gea celebrating until they realised the shot had gone wide a few seconds later. United continued to dominate and looked the better side but Chelsea once again proved why they have been leading the race for the title after another rock solid defensive performance from them. Chelsea’s resilience paid-off when they countered and scored with their first shot on target. Chelsea broke after Terry out-muscled Falcao near the half way line and Oscar’s clever backheel played in Hazard whose shot beat David De Gea in the 38th minute.
Early in the 2nd half Chelsea had a few chances to double their lead but they couldn’t. United showed their class as they continued to take the game to Chelsea but couldn’t find the back of the net. Van Gaal continued to push his team with him bringing on the attacking options of Angel Di Maria and Adnan Januzaj but Chelsea stayed strong and United couldn’t break them down. Falcao who is still trying to find form for United had a great chance 12 minutes from time to level it but his strike hit the outside of the post. Ander Herrera was seemed to have been brought down in the box by Gary Cahill in stoppage time but referee Mike Dean denied the appeal and gave Herrera a yellow card for diving. When the final whistle blew, there was a sigh of relief from the Chelsea fans and players who seem to now truly believe they will be the Premier League champions. The player’s reactions and celebrations helps back up this statement although manager Jose Mourinho still remains persistent that it’s not over yet because they need 8 points to be crowned champions.
Mourinho got his tactics spot on and proved why Chelsea are sitting at the top of the table. His decision to bring Kurt Zouma into the midfield worked as he dominated Fellaini and kept him relatively quiet during the game. Manchester United had 70% possession throughout the game but that didn’t faze the Chelsea manager who stated that this is the way his team set out to win the game with a solid defensive performance and to catch united on the counter and to make their chances count. Of course it’s a lot easier said than done, but this performance really proved why Chelsea deserve to be champions.
brandon gallagher 