Chelsea’s full-pitch, 90 minute, 11-man victory over Manchester United provided many outstanding performances. Here are three players who particularly stood out in the 4-0 win.
To say that Chelsea FC’s 4-0 victory over Manchester United at the Bridge on Sunday was on the cards would be a massive overstatement. Manchester United made Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool look like they were caught in a tar pit just six days before. Chelsea were coming off a strong victory over Leicester, but still seemed too new in the 3-4-3 to lay waste to another top-four contender.
Antonio Conte’s boys marked Matthew Harding’s remembrance by inflicting on Jose Mourinho his (and Manchester United’s) worst defeat in the Premier League. The 4-0 scoreline was also his second-worst as a manager in all competition.
On a great day for all the men in Blue, and few performances particularly stand out.
Victor Moses excels on both sides of the ball
Victor Moses has taken to his new wing-back role with aplomb. His experience as a winger and forward set him up well for the front half of the job. But even his most optimistic supporters would not have believed that he would adapt so easily to the accompanying defensive responsibilities.
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Moses put up a strongly disciplined display against Manchester United. He made 13 defensive actions – 3 tackles, 6 interceptions & 5 clearances. He complemented that with completing two dribbles (second only to Hazard), one shot and one key pass. He kept Marcus Rashford firmly in his pocket in an accomplished defensive display.
N’Golo Kante is more versatile than first thought
N’Golo Kante is making all that earlier debate about Cesc Fabregas’ continued omission a moot point, isn’t he? All the talk in his time at Leicester City was about his excellent tackles, interceptions & superhuman stamina. His two tackles and five interceptions on Sunday buttressed that point.
But at Chelsea, he is lauded more for his contributions in the attacking side. For the third consecutive game, he led the way for Chelsea in terms of pass percentage. Kante completed 87.7% of his 65 attempted passes. Only Ander Herrera and Paul Pogba attempted more.
Kante also made two key passes, the joint most of any player. Most shockingly he glided past Chris Smalling and Daley Blind with such ease you would think he was a natural-born scorer. He rifled the ball past the helplessly frustrated David De Gea for only his 2nd Premier League goal. It was enough to make Ibrahimovic green with envy.
Thibaut Courtois returned to his best
In the midst of the 4 goals, all the talk about Manchester United’s shambolic defending, David Luiz’s studs up challenge on Fellaini and everything else, it is easy to forget how impressively Thibaut Courtois played. Courtois has benefitted from the extra man in defense, but still had some work to do to earn another clean sheet.
The Belgian made five saves, including one from point-blank range from Ibrahimovic’s trademark turn-&-shoot. He also parried two long-range pile-drivers from Herrera and Marcos Rojo, and a reactive double save. He also claimed several crosses with relative ease, coming out with perfect timing and confidence to end the threat.
Antonio Conte fully deserves a massive pat on the back. Since switching to the 3-4-3 formation his Blues have scored nine and conceded none. In that time Chelsea have gone from eighth place with a +1 goal difference to fourth place with a +10 goal difference. They have closed the gap with league leaders Manchester City from eight points to one.
Antonio Conte’s shift in formation garners the most attention. But his biggest achievements stem from how he is using his players. His new roles for Cesar Azpilicueta, Kante and Moses have created new dimensions to their individuals games and Chelsea’s team performance. Conte has also sent Branislav Ivanovic to where he should have been a long time ago… the bench.
Next: Chelsea tactics and transfers: Building on victory over Manchester United
Conte and the Blues may not need those defensive reinforcements he has been contemplating since the summer. Long may it continue…
All data from Stats Zone.