Chelsea retained their hopes of making into the top four this season as they fought hard against Manchester United to get a point from their encounter at Old Trafford. The Red Devils looked the better side and deservedly took the lead via Juan Mata in the 11th minute of the match. The Blues, however, made their way back into the game after David De Gea fumbled on a long-range shot from N’Golo Kante with Marcos Alonso on hand to put the ball in the back of the net.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s men looked determined to get all three points as they started to attack the opposition from the word go. Luke Shaw had the opportunity to get the first goal of the match, but he laid it off for former Chelsea man Mata who pushed it into the back of an open net. Chelsea never looked like making serious inroads into the opposition box but were handed a lifeline by De Gea, who could not hold onto the shot from Kante. Alonso took full advantage of this and shot the ball past his compatriot into the goal.
Here is how the Chelsea players were rated from their draw against Manchester United.
Kepa Arrizabalaga: 6
Was perplexed by Shaw as he passed it to Mata for the opening goal. Did a decent job in goal for the rest of the match. Blocked a few shots as well.
Cesar Azpilicueta: 7
Vied for the ball throughout the match and did well against the likes of Matic and Mata. Took a few knocks in the process but stayed on his feet.
David Luiz: 7
Dished out a valiant effort to keep Rashford and Lukaku under check. His physicality came very handy for his side in that respect.
Antonio Rudiger: 6
Looked good in the backline as he dealt well with the opposition attackers. Was forced off the field with an unfortunate injury in the second half.
Marcos Alonso: 6
Did not impress much with his defensive skills. Did well to be at the right place at the right time as he scored against De Gea.
Jorginho: 5
Disappointing as always. Matic got the better of him on almost every occasion the two met in the middle.
N’Golo Kante: 6
Did his best to get the ball up the pitch with his accurate passing. It was his long-range shot which led to the error by De Gea and eventually the goal for his side. Looked a little off colour in the second half though against the physicality of Pogba.
Mateo Kovacic: 5.5
Looked out of touch and went into rash challenges. Picked up an unnecessary booking for opposing the referee’s decision.
Willian: 6
His classy footwork was good enough to deceive the opposition defence. Lacked the accuracy in his passing and shots though.
Eden Hazard: 6.5
Was fouled on a number of occasions as the United defence struggled to stop him. He, however, could not threaten the goal as his shots were blocked.
Gonzalo Higuain: 5
A disappointing outing for the Argentine. Could not make much of the chances that fell to him.
Substitutes
Andreas Christensen: 6
Did well after he had to come on for Rudiger.
Ruben Loftus-Cheek: NA
Played too little to warrant a rating.
Pedro: NA
Played too little to warrant a rating.
