Manchester United 0 Chelsea 0 - Five talking points

Whenever Manchester United play Chelsea, chances are that the spectator will witness a firecracker of a match. However, things were a bit different last night. After the borefest, that was the draw last night, we bring to you the top talking points from the match.

1. 90 minutes of football spoilt by modern day patience

A streak of endless horizontal passes, deep lying defensive units and an evident lack of imagination – not something one expects from a United-Chelsea encounter that has seen 16 goals in the last 4 league games. Yet it happened, as both set of managers were unwilling to show any kind of urgency throughout the game. While the crowd expected at least one of the two sides to throw a rash punch on the other, the game soon converged into a showdown of pure resilience.

And at the end of it all, it just looked like caution suited both the managers in this early season bout. While Mourinho could take a few pointers to improve his forward line from the tame stalemate, David Moyes won’t mind sharing the points against the title favourites either.

Yet, for the core Premier League enthusiast, this game could serve as disheartening indication of fewer goal-fests as the managers remain keen to leave no margin for errors. An encouraging sign for teams with European ambitions but it also invites long spells of uneventful football – something you’d not want to associate with the Premier League.

2. Moyes did get it tactically right but failed to land a sucker punch

After all the pre-match swipes from his opposite number and the utter incompetence displayed in the transfer market, Moyes did have a point or two to prove on his first home game at Old Trafford. And for once, he did manage to get things right from the outset. Moyes won the first round by starting Rooney in a free central role and Welbeck on the left – ensuring enough strength and attacking options to make it more of an even contest.

Yet with setting the stage perfectly for a late onslaught from the home side, Moyes opted for more cautious approach. Instead of bringing in Shinji Kagawa, squad’s most creative element into the game, that could have naturally provided a lot more overlapping space for Evra on the left wing, Moyes chose Giggs to steer them through safely.

Overall, it does reflect one of the most composed performances against Chelsea in recent times for United. However, it doesn’t make sense to complain for lack of creative talent in the side when one fails to make use of it in the most crucial moments of a big game.

3. Mourinho’s fancy ‘striker-less’ setup reflects lack of confidence in the forward line

It was a night decorated with all the talk about how much Mourinho needs a marquee forward and it ended on a rather similar note. The Portuguese, who rather opted for a striker-less setup led by Andre Schurrle in a ‘false 9’ role in the search of ‘mobility’, was left with little attacking prowess to show in the opening phase of the game.

In fact, at the end of first half, with United defence barely moving for their deep defensive lines, made Schurrle look nothing more than a clueless midfielder slotted in as a centre forward. All and all, the game where Mourinho said to have been left to experiment to find a result looked more of a ‘Plan B’, largely as a cover-up for his misfiring bunch of strikers.

Clearly, after playing Ba, Torres and Lukaku for at least more than 40 minutes in the first two games, Mourinho has been left to ponder a lot more than what he started the game with.

Now, with Rooney pursuit finding no end results, it may not be surprising if Jose snaps up someone like Samuel Eto’o from the market to fill up the void. As for the rest of the attacking options in the Blue outfit, things don’t look promising at all, with the manager looking to sacrifice his favourite setup to hide their collective mediocrity.

4. Rooney dictated the proceedings – on and off the pitch

It was one of a kind reception for Wayne Rooney at Old Trafford as both set of crowds were behind him throughout the game. However, regardless of all the confusion surrounding his future commitments, Rooney preferred to relish the moment.

Deployed in a free central role by David Moyes, we saw the Rooney we’ve known for all these years in a Red shirt. His incredible passing range allowed United wingers to get behind the Chelsea full-backs, while his defensive work-rate ensured United kept enough possession to keep the away side on their toes.

A goal would have definitely helped in burying the transfer saga for good, yet he did enough to earn a handshake from the manager at the final whistle. He showed the world why Moyes is reluctant to sell him and also the reason why Mourinho sees him as a perfect fit for the Blues – Rooney remains a commodity that will always have its fair share of suitors in the English game.

5. Chelsea looked vulnerable without the ball

While Mourinho played a Chelsea XI that was tailored to chase the ball and hit-back on counter-attack, it still remained a work in progress at the end of the game. This setup did reap benefits with the 2005 Chelsea squad but the Portuguese may never be able to recreate that magic with the current lot of players.

With players like Hazard, Oscar, De Bruyne – all of them primarily creative players dependent on the possession kept by the side – a new setup didn’t seem to rub off that well on the players. The first half saw none of the Chelsea players being able to reach the attacking third of the pitch, as they were anything but dominant in terms of retaining the ball.

They were by far the second best side in the aerial duels and on-field interceptions throughout the game – underlining the fact that Mourinho may need a bit more time to tweak his Chelsea unit into a winning machine.

Full-time Score: Manchester United 0 Chelsea 0