By Samuel Akpan
Chelsea produced a clinical 2-0 victory over Manchester United at Stamford Bridge, a second-half surge delivering all three points through goals from Morgan Rogers and Cole Palmer.
Manchester United extended their miserable form to nine games without a win in all competitions — their longest such run since 1988 — after losses or draws against City, Brighton, Fulham, Tottenham, Atletico Madrid, Leeds, Como, Bournemouth and now Chelsea, with their last success coming against Sabah in September.
Cole Palmer became only the second Englishman to score 50-plus Premier League goals for Chelsea after Frank Lampard (147), reaching the milestone faster than any Blues player since Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink (84) and Diego Costa (85).
Morgan Rogers supplied the spark of class the fixture demanded, collecting a ball won by Romeo Lavia before dancing through half the United side to open the scoring.
Under a high, fierce sun, interim boss Michael Carrick shielded his eyes and tried to organise a side that rarely seemed to hear him, while United fans hurled personal abuse at Sir Jim Ratcliffe and Jason Wilcox amid remorseless scrutiny.
Lisandro Martinez, booked minutes earlier for a reckless challenge on Rogers, leapt with Wesley Fofana and elbowed him in the face to concede a penalty.
Bruno Fernandes offered only a half-hearted protest as Carrick walked past without a glance, the Argentinian’s earlier public challenge to the club and defensive lapse that allowed Rogers’ goal sealing his fate.
Both teams squandered chances and struggled with basic defending, making it hard to recall when these European rivals once contested a Champions League final, yet the afternoon belonged to Chelsea’s second-half surge and the enduring doubts over Xabi Alonso’s methods that this latest hammer blow for Carrick has done nothing to erase.
Author
Leave a comment