Chelsea complacency may cost them in Manchester United clash
Chelsea must be wary of over-confidence as they head into a huge FA Cup clash with Manchester United. An upset may well be on the cards.
Chelsea welcome Manchester United to Stamford Bridge on Monday evening, with a spot at Wembley Stadium on the line. The Blues are the favoured side heading into the FA Cup clash, but complacency could hand the visitors the upper hand and cause Antonio Conte’s men to fall flat on their face.
Flying high at the top of the Premier League, Chelsea have been dominating English football over the last six months. United, meanwhile, have grown into the season. They haven’t lost in 17 league games and if it weren’t from some horrific finishing, they could be sitting in second place.
Bearing that in mind, United will represent one of Chelsea’s greatest challenges in recent months. With Jose Mourinho at the helm, the Red Devils will certainly have the tactical nous to foil the Blues.
However, the general feeling floating around Chelsea social media at the moment is one of confidence. Or, dangerously, over-confidence. Fans seemed convinced that the Blues will dispatch United in the same way they did earlier in the season. This seems extended to the club in general, with Chelsea’s mocking of United’s unbeaten run indicative of the attitude.
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That 4-0 win was in fact the Manchester club’s last league defeat and there is no doubt that Mourinho will be desperate to avenge the humiliation. Since that game, the players have bought into the Portuguese’s tactics and United’s performances have steadily improved.
A recurring theme has been their inability to finish their chances. Many United games have ended in draws despite them having 20 or more attempts on goal. The tactics are working to create opportunities, but a surprising lack of a cutting edge has let them down.
Everything is bound to click in some significant way, though. Moreover, Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s suspension will allow United to play in a slightly different style on Monday. Despite being their leading scorer, Ibrahimovic’s game may not have been suited to the counter-attacking set-up that United are likely to adopt at Stamford Bridge.
With the big Swede missing, Mourinho will be able to inject more pace from the likes of Marcus Rashford, Anthony Martial and Henrikh Mkhitaryan to hit the Blues on the break.
Chelsea may dominate possession, but that is probably what Mourinho will want. As Blues fans know all too well, the Special One often finds way to prevail in big games. After the humiliation in October, it would be typical Mourinho to win 1-0 and laugh all the way to Wembley.
What do you think? Are you also getting some ill feeling of complacency? Let us know in the comments below!