The impressive Portuguese full-back was at the heart of Chelsea’s dominance against a jaded Manchester United
Selection and shape
Chelsea, with no midweek game in Europe, would have gained valuable recovery time for any knocks to clear and Carlo Ancelotti retained the same line-up for the first time this season after the thrashing of Aston Villa. That restricted Didier Drogba to the bench and allowed Nicolas Anelka to roam in isolation up front, though it was no surprise that the busier Deco was preferred to the stronger yet more pedestrian Michael Ballack. John Terry and Alex would have been delighted by the absence of Wayne Rooney but wary of the threat of Antonio Valencia and Ryan Giggs from wide. Preventing Manchester United’s wingers from getting in behind Yuri Zhirkov and Paulo Ferreira was key to Chelsea’s defensive approach.
Tactics and teamwork
Chelsea began the game in aggressive fashion and set the pace, imposing their game-plan on their hosts. Zhirkov and Ferreira got extra tight to United’s wide players and ran them back, forcing them to defend at every opportunity. They went forward with confidence as Chelsea clamped down on midfield, squeezing the play and suffocating United’s rhythm. Darren Fletcher was choked by Frank Lampard’s presence and Paul Scholes, so important for United, was unable to find Giggs in the first period. Giggs seemed marooned near the touchline, desperate for some service, and constantly having to check Ferreira’s runs on the outside. Dimitar Berbatov, marked by Terry, needed closer support but Park Ji-sung was drifting centrally and not troubling Mikel John Obi. The Nigerian was rarely pulled out of position. Terry pushed his full-backs tight and, with Joe Cole dancing down the right and Florent Malouda working slightly narrower on the left, the visitors imposed themselves on a jaded United. Gary Neville and Patrice Evra were fully occupied. Ancelotti would have been happy at half-time: Chelsea had played like the home team, on the front foot, with Petr Cech a smiling spectator.
Did they succeed?
Ultimately, yes. Although United responded by playing their back four further forward after the break, Chelsea’s determination rarely wavered. Scholes and Fletcher worked harder to find some spacedid find space, and Giggs moved further in-field, which gave more muscle to the United midfield and Evra, more importantly, the opportunity to charge into the space vacated by the veteranforward. But Chelsea increasingly held their full-backs, Ferreira and Zhirkov checking their first-half ambition and, sitting on their lead, the visitors grafted with little space between their back-line and front. The manager used his substitutions well – hard-working forwards Joe Cole and Anelka were replaced by fresh legs and real threats in Drogba and Salomon Kalou – though there was no need to change the system. Although United had more of the ball in the second period, without the individual threat of Rooney they were unable to get goal-side of a well-organised Chelsea team. Berbatov had a couple of free sights at goal but United lacked a spark after a demanding week, while Chelsea, fresher and playing with more confidence, ended deserved winners.
Premier LeagueManchester UnitedChelseaDavid Pleatguardian.co.uk
