Chelsea 0-2 Manchester United: 5 Tactics from Solskjaer that won the game

#4 False 9

Chelsea v Manchester United - FA Cup Fifth Round

When the team news was announced, it was expected that Mata and Rashford would play on either side of Lukaku, who was supposed to be the central striker. As the game started, it was observed that Mata had been deployed as the false 9, with Rashford on the right and Lukaku on the left. And it was a strategy that worked brilliantly on the night.

Lukaku and Rashford ran through the wide channels, while Mata played as the withdrawn forward, threading in passes and linking the midfield and the forward line. It also freed up Pogba, who started in his midfield role and evaded the attention of the Chelsea midfield himself.

When United had the ball, Mata looked left and right to free up his forwards. The Spaniard was almost as effective as Lingard in the formation. Mata pressed the back four and always had an eye out for Jorginho. Most importantly, it was his diagonal runs that opened up space for both the goals.