Chelsea traveled to Old Trafford to face a Manchester United side that had gotten battered by Copenhagen and Galatasaray in the UEFA Champions League, yet got ragdolled. Man United carved the Blues open at will, setting pressing traps that worked all game. To put it in context, According to Sofascore, Mauricio Pochettino's men made five separate errors leading to a shot, not including a penalty committed by Enzo Fernandez. It was a truly abysmal performance, saved by the heroics of a Robert Sanchez that was hung out to dry. Here is how the Pride of London rates the individual outings:
Robert Sanchez: 8.5/10
Sanchez was Chelsea's best player, despite a few errors. His distribution was superb and his shot-stopping was very good. He kept the away side in the game, first by saving Bruno Fernandes's spot kick, and then by going on to make seven saves throughout the game, to prevent it from being a repeat of last season's penultimate game against Manchester United at Old Trafford.
Marc Cucurella: 7/10
The decision to start Cucurella made Pochettino look foolish when he subbed off the Spaniard at halftime. Cucurella had been having a better game than the other defenders at the time he was subbed off. The issue is that Pochettino deliberately started a left back at right back, only to take him off halfway through the game because he preferred an actual right back to play there. The west London side looked better when Reece James came on, but just barely.
Axel Disasi: 5/10
Disasi wasn't poor as much as he was uninvolved, and being uninvolved as a centerback is not necessarily a bad thing - until you find out that 41% of the game was played in your defensive third. Manchester United attacked Chels' all game, but Disasi only managed one defensive action. This suggests that he was never really in a position to stop any of those attacks. His passing was good, but that was all. In a game where your team is under as much pressure as Disasi's was, passing cannot be all you're doing well.
Thiago Silva: 6/10
Silva had considerably more defensive actions than Disasi did, but he won zero tackles, and no ground duels. Like Disasi, passing seemed to be all Silva did well on the night.
Levi Colwill: 7.5/10
Colwill grew into the game. He won 7/11 duels, and more impressively, 4/5 aerial duels. His passing was nothing to write home about, but he created a big chance and was good defensively.
Moises Caicedo: 7/10
Caicedo had an alright game, but once again his ball-carrying was poor. His passing was very good, better than Enzo Fernandez's. He alone contested 12 ground duels, winning seven. He also contested many tackles, which is to be expected considering how much pressure Chelsea was under. He didn't win possession back for the Blues much though.
Enzo Fernandez: 4/10
Fernandez didn't do enough of what he's famous for. No one expects the Argentine World Cup winner to be the one doing the defensive work, but he is expected to be helping the west London side get some form of control while in possession. His passing numbers suggest that Manchester United's midfielders imposed their game on him, and not the other way around. In addition to being poor defensively, he was wasteful in front of goal.
Mykhailo Mudryk: 7/10
Mudryk didn't light up the world, but he has had worse performances in a Chelsea shirt. He completed zero dribbles and lost almost all his duels. His shooting was poor, though he created the goal that equalized the score to 1-1.
Cole Palmer: 6.5/10
Palmer, as usual, tried some things. Many of which didn't come off. He contributed negatively defensively as well, making an error leading to a shot, making many wonder why he was so close to his box in the first place. He scored a very well-taken goal to level the score in the first half, ensuring that Chelsea was level at halftime.
Raheem Sterling: 6.5/10
Sterling was OK, all things considered. He won three important fouls for Chelsea but lost all six defensive duels he got involved in. He created a clear-cut chance for the Blues though.
Nicolas Jackson: 7/10
Jackson ran the channels well. He was isolated for a lot of the game but he received passes very well and linked up beautifully. Unfortunately, he was wasteful in front of goal again, and that meant he missed two big chances on a day Chelsea created five big chances and missed all five.
Reece James (45'): 7.5
James brought some balance and quality to the side when he came on, but even he made some defensive errors. He was generally good though, creating the most chances for Chelsea on the night, despite coming on at halftime. His dribbling was very good too.
Armando Broja (77'): 7
Broja was solid, he completed 2/3 dribbles in the 13 minutes he played and managed to hit the bar.
Mauricio Pochettino: 2/10
Why 2? He captained Levi Colwill. Need I say more? The decision alone to captain Colwill shows that Pochettino doesn't take many things seriously at this level. The decision to make Conor Gallagher the third captain raised eyebrows, but it is a young squad and there aren't many players in Gallagher's age range with his level of Premier League experience, so it was somewhat possible to justify that. The decision to make Colwill captain is farcical, Pochettino seems to think the armband is just something to be given to players you "like". To expect Colwill to show any form of leadership in a team that has Raheem Sterling, Enzo Fernandez, and Thiago Silva is laughable. Handing the armband to a player who has been a first-team regular in the side for five months is unjustifiable. Pochettino also deserves a poor rating for his decision to play a makeshift defense, by putting Marc Cucurella at right back, when James was on the bench. The gaffer made a lot of questionable decisions in that match, and we simply cannot cover them all.
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