Romelu Lukaku outduels Alvaro Morata and other things learned from Man United's win over Chelsea

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Mail
  • Pinterest
  • LinkedIn
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • WhatsApp
  • Pinterest
  • LinkedIn
  • Romelu Lukaku rode to the rescue and produced arguably his finest performance in a Manchester United shirt by scoring one and assisting one in a comeback victory over Chelsea.

    Willian fired past David De Gea after a United lapse at the back in a first half that ended with the away side in complete control.

    But Lukaku took on Anthony Martial’s neat pass and smashed home himself, before setting up Jesse Lingard’s winning header as United hung on.

    Here, we look at three things learned from Old Trafford.

    Raw Lukaku wins over refined Morata

    Lukaku finally has a display in his locker that he can pull out for when the cynics doubt his ‘big game’ ability, but even then, this was no masterpiece from the big Belgian.

    Too often in the first half the ball was repelled by his boot just as United were working tight positions through the middle. Even in the build-up to his goal Lukaku looked on the cusp of botching the chance before eventually doing just enough to bring the ball down.

    It was a fantastic finish and, in a habit that goes unnoticed, Lukaku often brings his team-mates into play with a lovely left peg that Lingard was the grateful beneficiary of on Sunday.

    That assist was just about as refined as Lukaku gets, yet whether he’s bulldozing through defences or bumbling in the face of them, he has at the very least a presence.

    Alvaro Morata, on the other hand, is like a polished vase tucked away in a forgotten part of the room. You forget he’s there until your eye lazily wanders over to him, and when he has your attention, his play is pretty enough to look at. But his function? Chelsea are still trying to figure that out.

    Matic wakes up

    Chelsea outplayed the hosts in the first half to such an extent that in the opening period, Eden Hazard had created three chances on his own while United had not put together even as many combined.

    Willian was running amok, Marcos Alonso had the freedom of Manchester down the left while Scott McTominay and Nemanja Matic were running through treacle.

    When the Blues emerged out of the tunnel after the interval, however, the life was sucked out of them by one man.

    This may have been Lukaku’s best game in a United shirt and it was certainly Matic’s best 45.

    Chelsea were feeding Willian and Hazard – who was bizarrely substituted for Pedro – at will before the break but Matic, aided by a much-improved McTominay who was guilty of letting Willian go for the Brazilian’s goal, calmly set about destroying.

    Four tackles, four interceptions and three clearances made him by far the most effective shield on either side of the pitch. Antonio Conte wasn’t kidding when he said he was going to be a ‘big loss’ for Chelsea – it’s quite literally resulted in one.

    Pogba’s mixed bag

    While this was a game for one mega-money signing’s scrapbook, Pogba may have been up for the scrap but pitched in an altogether scrappy performance upon his recall to the starting XI.

    The Frenchman, save for a wasteful Ashley Young, did his best to stretch the field on the left of a midfield three, long touted as the position Jose Mourinho must play him in by Pogba apologists.

    With the ball at his feet and running at men in Blue he looked like a genuine threat. When the ball left his foot, however, too often the passes were errant or the wrong option entirely.

    His lack of physicality in the challenge is also a worry at times. United committed a catalogue of errors in the build-up to Willian’s goal and Pogba made the first, out-jumped by the diminutive Victor Moses before falling flat on his face and watching Chelsea break from the floor.

    At 24, Pogba is running out of time to afford being mired in an identity crisis. Perhaps he just needs a consistent run of games, a manager who loves him, another world-class midfielder alongside him. Perhaps he’s just asking for too much.

    Recommended