Manchester United 0-2

Guardian:

Marcus Rashford and Manchester United sink Chelsea to reignite title race
Man Utd 2 - 0 Chelsea

Daniel Taylor at Old Trafford

The only possible complaint that could be directed at Manchester United after this game is the question of why they have not played with this kind of authority more often this season. Oh, this was more like it from José Mourinho’s team. They have never looked so accomplished in his era and, in the process, they have opened up the title race in a way that makes it bewildering they are so far back in Chelsea’s wing-mirrors.

Mourinho can certainly take enormous satisfaction from the way his players out‑thought, out-ran and out-fought those from Stamford Bridge, even if a man with his ambitions must also harbour a deep sense of regret that it still leaves his team 15 points back, not even guaranteed the prize of Champions League football next season. Mourinho had devised a tactical masterclass.
His players were enthusiastic students and Chelsea were rattled. How rattled? Well, it probably sums it up that N’Golo Kanté, of all people, was responsible for losing the ball before the second goal. It was, Mourinho said, a “special performance against special opponents”. Or, to use Ander Herrera’s description, “almost perfect”.

Chelsea still have a more obliging run-in than Tottenham Hotspur in second place but Conte’s men have seen a 13-point lead whittled down to four in just under a month and, if nothing else, it has applied an element of vulnerability to what was in danger of becoming a procession. Conte admitted afterwards that Spurs were now “the best team” and though it would be out of character for Chelsea to lose their nerve, perhaps United have shown the blueprint now for beating, or at least negating, the league leaders.

Mourinho cannot have found it easy to leave out Zlatan Ibrahimovic but the decision to drop his leading scorer was based on boldness rather than conservatism, and fully justified bearing in mind the chasing Marcus Rashford gave David Luiz and Gary Cahill. Rashford was exceptional but Herrera pushed him close to be recognised as the game’s outstanding performer on a day when the Spaniard was assigned an old-fashioned man-marking role on Eden Hazard. Herrera stuck to his man like a limpet but he also weighed in with the second goal as well as setting up the first for Rashford with an exquisite piece of vision.

To give Chelsea their due, Herrera also got away with an obvious handball before the opening goal, seven minutes in, but Conte did not try once to use that as an excuse for everything that followed. United’s starting XI had managed only 12 league goals all season but Mourinho had worked out everything to a T. It was his first win against Chelsea since leaving the club and though Conte still leads 2-1 on that front, it was also a reminder that opposition fans might have been a little premature this season in serenading United’s manager with chants of “you’re not special any more”.

Mourinho’s formation – a fluid 3‑1‑4‑1-1 – was certainly unorthodox but it was also designed to minimise Chelsea’s counter-attacking threat. Matteo Darmian, like Herrera, had his own specialist role, rarely leaving Pedro’s side. Ashley Young, an unusual choice for captain, seemed inspired by the role and was applauded off by his manager when he was substituted late on.
Ibrahimovic, Mourinho explained, has looked tired recently, but there was more to it than that. Mourinho not only started with Rashford but also had Jesse Lingard operating just off the striker, a decision based on the suspicion that Chelsea’s centre-backs would be vulnerable to quick, penetrative running.

That was certainly the case with the opening goal and the controversy surrounding Herrera’s handball should not entirely obscure the fact it was a beautifully weighted pass once the referee had given him the benefit of the doubt. All the same, it was easy to understand why Chelsea were aggrieved.
They had been on a promising counter-attack of their own when Herrera used his left hand to intercept Nemanja Matic’s pass. At this level it was poor from the referee, Robert Madley, to let it go, and in a matter of seconds Rashford was clear, running behind David Luiz, taking a couple of touches to steady himself and then angling his shot past Asmir Begovic.

Begovic was in goal for Chelsea because Thibaut Courtois had injured himself in a promotional basketball shoot for the NBA and as if that was not galling enough for Conte, there was more disruption in the warm-up when Marcos Alonso was forced out with a virus.

Kurt Zouma was fast-tracked into the defence, with César Azpilicueta initially switching to Alonso’s role as a left wing-back before swapping places with Victor Moses on the right. It did not work on either side.

Chelsea had lost their full-strength XI with unfortunate timing but that does not fully explain their lack of cohesion. Moses was removed eight minutes into the second half and however much of a pest Herrera was, Conte is probably entitled to think Hazard ought to be accustomed to the close attention of opposition players. As for Diego Costa, he had one of those days when he seemed to base his entire strategy on antagonising whoever was marking him. It seems like old hat now, and Mourinho’s defenders had been drilled not to react.

If anything, the ordeal could have been even worse for Chelsea bearing in mind the dangers Rashford posed his markers and the lack of activity in David de Gea’s penalty area. Four minutes into the second half, Kanté’s heavy touch from a penalty-box clearance allowed Young to dispossess him. As Young moved into the penalty area, Zouma prodded the ball away and Herrera let fly from 20 yards. The deflection off Kanté wrong-footed Begovic and Chelsea, for the first time in a long while, no longer seem immune to danger.

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Independent:

Jose Mourinho masterclass sees Manchester United beat Chelsea to reignite Premier League title race
Manchester United 2 Chelsea 0: Goals from Marcus Rashford and Ander Herrera saw Mourinho thoroughly get the better of Antonio Conte to shake things up at the top of the table
Miguel Delaney

A Manchester United win, a personal Jose Mourinho triumph, and a transformation for both this team and the title race?
The Portuguese said before this game that he would be “killed” if he dared play a second team and, while his selection understandably raised eyebrows before the game, it offered what may have been his best performance as a manager since January 2015 and may well have given new life to this title race.

It is not just that there is now a mere four-point gap between Tottenham Hotspur and Chelsea after Antonio Conte’s side were steamrolled 2-0 at Old Trafford, but also that they - and their entire system - looked so vulnerable. There are many caveats to that defeat like the fact injury to the evidently crucial Marcos Alonso denied them proper balance on the left, but there are no caveats to the way United beat them to everything.

This laxness was anathema to everything we know about Conte, and his response will be interesting.
United’s response to everything in this match, meanwhile, was emphatic and impressive intensity. This was by far their best performance of their season, and it’s difficult not to think that Mourinho was properly fired up by the idea he might lose all three games to his old team and their new manager in one season.

In that and how the Portuguese seemed to so willingly talk down the game, much of it was reminiscent of the famous 2-0 victory with Chelsea at Anfield in April 2014. Much of the performance was not, though, because this Mourinho team was so much more proactive and energetic than his team on that day. It was reminiscent of much better Mourinho teams.
From that, it was genuinely the type of win that should be a juncture moment for United, and give them a new belief.
It was that comprehensive and commanding a win.

What’s more, and what was most remarkable, was that it was Chelsea that suddenly looked jaded from a Europa League slog while United looked like the side that had a week off. The tone - and pace - was set as early as the second minute when Marcus Rashford ran right at David Luiz and immediately caused the type of problem that the Chelsea defence hasn’t had to deal with for some time. It was as if the directness surprised Conte’s backline, and as if Mourinho had specifically used his prior knowledge from working with the Brazilian centre-half to tell Rashford exactly how to get at him. And get at him he did. Within six minutes, through the same route, Rashford had given United the lead. It may have come from a handball - and divine pass - from Ander Herrera, and Mourinho’s side might have got lucky in that regard, but Chelsea got slack in how so many of their players looked to the referee rather than how to try and stop the attack.

Even allowing for that, and the Portuguese’s knowledge of David Luiz and so many in this Chelsea team, it was still Mourinho at his tactical best. He had so clearly worked out how to forensically stop how the league leader’s attack, but even more impressively used that defensive work as the foundation for some fearsome counter-attacks. In that, it was impressively reminiscent of his Internazionale 2010 side. There were little tactical victories all over the pitch that added up to one big win.

Eden Hazard was rendered utterly ineffective by a supreme man-marking job from Herrera, while the use of two forwards with proper running in them caused Conte’s three centre-backs so many problems that it was one of those games where you felt like other teams will in future look to it as a blueprint as to how to finally get at this system. Not many of those teams will have Rashford, though, who was relentless in this game and offered a compelling argument as to why it would not be a disaster if Zlatan Ibrahimovic left. His running gave Mourinho’s side a mobility and zip that they have frankly lacked with the Swede up front.

United did have some luck in all this, of course. Marcos Alonso’s absence through injury completely removed Chelsea’s balance, as well as some of Hazard’s threat since there was no danger of Cesar Azpilicueta overlapping.

That still doesn’t excuse how amazingly slack the leaders were, and a telling moment came in the 22nd minute when the lively Paul Pogba more than met the tone of this game with a brilliant tackle on Diego Costa to stop a Chelsea attack, and start a United one. It was one of many such moments.
It was also one of many impotent Chelsea attacks. That they did not register a single shot until the 45th minute was telling.

This combination of United’s ferociousness, Chelsea’s fickleness and a little bit of fortune going one way appropriately came together for the decisive moment, just after half-time. Rashford led another attack, Chelsea barely managed to clear, before the ball came out to Herrera who drove him through a deflection.
With the way both teams were playing, and how completely commanding United were in virtually all areas, that really was the winning it.

There was yet another one of those symbolic moments on 80 minutes when N’Golo Kante, of all players, was so easily beaten in a tackle by Ashley Young, of all players.
It is no exaggeration to say this might be Mourinho’s finest piece of management in three years.
It is no exaggeration to say that the title race is now properly on. Chelsea have to get back on track, but their next opponents? A Tottenham Hotspur who so evidently believe in themselves, and will now have new belief about the title. That comes in the FA Cup but could genuinely be one of those juncture games in the title race given the context around it.
This looks a juncture moment for United. This looked a proper Mourinho team

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Telegraph:

Man Utd 2 Chelsea 0: Jose Mourinho tactical masterclass blows title race wide open
Jason Burt

Once more Jose Mourinho was determined not to be the clown at the circus.
This time he custard-pied Chelsea, his former club and champions-elect. Now, with their lead at the top over Tottenham reduced to four points with six matches to play, let the carnival begin.

Mourinho cannot win the Premier League title, not this season – just as he could not three years ago when his Chelsea team arrived at Liverpool. Like United now, they were between vital European matches, complaining about fatigue and fixture congestion, apparently fielding a weakened team – and won.
And by the same scoreline. Mourinho was even wearing a gilet that day, and was again sporting one here, and again he tapped the club crest at the final whistle.

At Anfield, Mourinho said he was determined not to be the “clowns” in “their [Liverpool’s] circus”, and this performance had the same kind of edgy, passionate feel to it, revved up by the fact that he was sacked by Chelsea and that they had angered him with their celebrations in the humiliating 4-0 league win at Stamford Bridge earlier this season. They also knocked United out of the FA Cup.
Unsurprisingly, Mourinho returned to that game. “I had the feeling before that match at Stamford Bridge that we would be playing against Tottenham Hotspur in the semi-finals,” he said, a pointed reference to the referee at Stamford Bridge, Michael Oliver.

That day Ander Herrera was sent off by Oliver for a second bookable offence, fouling Eden Hazard. Here, again, the midfielder was at the centre of things. He was detailed to man-mark Hazard – and did so superbly – but also managed to claim an assist and a goal himself in an outstanding performance.
There was, as ever, controversy with referee Bobby Madley failing to penalise Herrera for a clear hand-ball in the build-up to United’s opening goal but beyond that admittedly crucial detail Chelsea can have few complaints. They were soundly beaten, outfought, out-thought, and did not even record a shot on target.

For their manager Antonio Conte this was a troubling display. He lost goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois to injury and then Marcos Alonso to illness in the warm-up, but that did not explain how flat and overwhelmed his team were.
Mourinho had complained about tiredness but it was Chelsea who looked jaded – who looked, in fact, like a favourite and front-runner desperately straining for the finish line. There are 18 points to be won. They need to win five of those games to be mathematically certain, if Spurs keep winning, but suddenly it is no longer a procession. As recently as March 18 Chelsea were 13 points clear.


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Mail:

Manchester United 2-0 Chelsea: Jose Mourinho gets the better of his former club as Marcus Rashford and Ander Herrera strike to ensure the Premier League title race is alive and kicking

By Martin Samuel

Revenge being a dish best served cold, not to mention wet and miserable in the North West, this was very near to the perfect afternoon for Jose Mourinho.
He may claim it was just another game for him, but who believes that? This was a special event for El Specialissimo. He put Manchester United back in the hunt for the Champions League places, and did so making his old charges at Chelsea look second best.

Chelsea did not have a shot on target for the first time in a Premier League game since September 23, 2007. The result that day was 2-0 to Manchester United, too. It was Avram Grant’s first game as manager, after Mourinho’s first Stamford Bridge dismissal.
Just under a decade on and Mourinho is now Chelsea’s nemesis. Certainly this performance would have put a considerable dent in some big blue egos.

Eden Hazard was anonymous against Ander Herrera, Pedro rarely threatened, while Diego Costa was ineffectual, having started too many feuds to play a coherent game. This was the classic performance of a Mourinho side, all the more impressive because a Thursday night fixture in Brussels had given him so little time to prepare.
But he obviously did. He threw a blanket over Chelsea’s creativity and worried them with pace and width. He left out Zlatan Ibrahimovic and was rewarded by the best performance of the season from Marcus Rashford, who received a standing ovation from the crowd and a hug from his manager when he was substituted after 83 minutes.

Herrera’s job on Hazard was quite magnificent. To rub it in, the man sent to destroy Chelsea even scored United’s second goal. There were 41 minutes remaining at the time, but still looked to be no way back. It is hard to remember a Chelsea so ordinary, or a chance that caused a bead of sweat to break out on David de Gea’s brow.

Manchester United were a different class on the day, just as Chelsea had been at Stamford Bridge when these teams met in the Premier League earlier this season.
So, the good news is we have a title race again — just four points separating Chelsea and Tottenham now. The bad — Chelsea do not play a team of Manchester United’s substance again, while Tottenham must face United and Arsenal and have a London derby at West Ham.

Still, we are closer to a scrap than we looked likely to be a month or so ago, and the hope in north London is that Chelsea will be rattled by playing a match they deserved to lose at such a crucial moment in the season. There is a difference between battering the hell out of Crystal Palace and coming away with nothing, and being battered by a Manchester United team they put four goals past in October.
For what is without doubt is United were worth this. True, both of their goals had an element of good fortune about them, but only a blue-eyed fool would claim Chelsea were hard done by.

Break No 1 came with a handball in the build-up to Rashford’s opener, unnoticed by referee Bobby Madley. In his defence, he got most of the rest of it right and any official spending 90 minutes in the company of charmers like Costa and Marcos Rojo deserves our sympathy — but he messed up here. The goal came in the seventh minute — surprisingly United’s fastest of the season in the Premier League — after Nemanja Matic had been dispossessed carrying the ball upfield.

What Madley failed to spot was that Herrera had intercepted using an arm, clearly outstretched, clearly handball. Madley was unresponsive, Herrera was not. Seizing on his advantage he broke forward and played a lovely pass into the path of the outstanding Rashford who drew Asmir Begovic and finished smartly past him.

The second came after some uncommonly sloppy play at the back from Chelsea and a deflection. A clearance was sent cheaply back into the path of Ashley Young, whose cross found Herrera.
Replays showed Gary Cahill choosing to offer Jesse Lingard a hand up as play went on when he may have been better off focusing on the problems ahead — but Herrera’s shot ricocheted off his defensive partner Kurt Zouma, giving Begovic little chance.

It was an uncomfortable afternoon for Chelsea’s stand-in goalkeeper, promoted after Thibaut Courtois suffered an injury. The suggestion was he turned an ankle playing basketball for a promotional film, though Antonio Conte would not confirm this. His frosty response, however, suggested he was not best pleased that this particular white man couldn’t jump.

When Marcos Alonso withdrew from the pre-match warm-up having woken up feeling unwell, Chelsea’s misery was complete. The most settled starting XI in the Premier League was to include understudies and battlefield promotions — Zouma to central defence, Cesar Azpilicueta into Alonso’s wingback role.

Not since the visit to White Hart Lane on January 4 have Chelsea been as comprehensively outplayed as they were here. They were simply no threat and it did not help that Costa decided to have one of those games when he takes on the world. Focused, he’s dangerous; on afternoons like this he can be a menace.

He was at war with Eric Bailly, with Rojo, with Madley, his assistants and the Old Trafford crowd. He started by pushing Bailly off the field as they tussled for a ball in the six-yard box, which angered the United players. He was booked for a foul on Paul Pogba after 33 minutes, and was then involved in a wrestling match with Rojo that could have brought further trouble. The pair jumped, Costa landed on Rojo’s hip, the United man took it personally and grabbed him around the neck.

Costa flailed around on the ground holding his face as if struck, Rojo did likewise with other parts of his anatomy. They were both such rotten actors that Madley saw through it all and did nothing.
Yet Chelsea looked hesitant, particularly David Luiz, who was caught in possession by Lingard after five minutes, the ball sent through to Rashford whose shot was wastefully wide. It was all United after that. Young had several good attempts and Rashford was magnificent.

One run, in which he fought Luiz off all the way, ended in a fine Begovic save at the near post. Another shot saw Cahill almost turn the ball into his own net trying to block.
‘We’re top of the league,’ crowed Chelsea’s fans throughout, but by the end it sounded more bravado than boast. Tottenham’s meeting with Manchester United looms large.
If United’s manager wants to make sure of Champions League football next season, he may yet have to hold his nose and do his old club a favour on May 14.

GRAHAM POLL - THE OFFICIAL LINE

Bobby Madley will have enjoyed the second half of this game much more than the first. The players’ attitude early on was really poor and typified everything I don’t like about the modern game.
They were simulating contact, exaggerating injuries and trying to get fellow professionals sent off. Diego Costa and Marcus Rojo (right, top) should be embarrassed by their conduct. It was a complete nightmare to referee and while Madley tried his best, he was on a hiding to nothing given the attitude of the players.

The moment of the first half came after just seven minutes. Chelsea were breaking forward when Manchester United’s Ander Herrera clearly handled the ball (right) to intercept Nemanja Matic’s pass. Madley indicated he’d seen the incident and waved play on. He was wrong.
Missing a handball in the midfield area would not usually be so controversial but Herrera then played the ball through to Marcus Rashford, who went on to score.

Thankfully, football took over in the second period and Madley could get on with refereeing the game. Perhaps observers should appreciate his ‘sensible’ approach in the first half, in particular to Rojo and Costa, as it helped the game considerably.

Manchester Utd (4-3-3): de Gea 6.5; Valencia 6.5, Rojo 7, Bailly 7, Darmian 6.5; Fellaini 7, Herrera 8, Pogba 6.5; Lingard 7 (Carrick 60, 6), Rashford 8.5 (Ibrahimovic 83), Young 6.5 (Fosu-Mensah 90)
Subs not used: Blind, Romero, Mkhitaryan, Shaw
Goals: Rashford 7, Herrera 49
Yellow cards: Herrera, Rojo, Ibrahimovic

Chelsea (3-4-2-1): Begovic 6, Zouma 6 (Loftus-Cheek 83), Luiz 5, Cahill 5; Moses 5 (Fabregas 54, 5), Kante 5.5, Matic 6.5 (Willian 66, 5), Azpilicueta 6; Pedro 6, Hazard 5.5, Costa 5
Subs not used: Ake, Batshuayi, Terry, Eduardo.
Yellow cards: Costa, Cahill, Fabregas

Man of the Match: Ander Herrera
Referee: Robert Madley (West Yorkshire)


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Express:

Man United 2 - Chelsea 0: Herrera and Rashford strike to hand Tottenham title boost
THIS was the game that was expected to effectively confirm Chelsea as champions but in the end it set the title race alight.

By RICHARD TANNER

Their comprehensive defeat was greeted as gleefully among Tottenham followers as it was by their Manchester United counterparts. A result that intensified not only the championship chase but also the race for top-four places.
It is two defeats in the last four for Chelsea, no clean sheets in the last 10, while Diego Costa is going through a barren spell – no goals in his last five League games.

On top of all that, Spurs could inflict more damage on their confidence and score a major psychological blow in the title race by beating them in the FA cup semi-final on Saturday.
And they will go into that game on the back of their most insipid performance since those back-to-back defeats by Liverpool and Arsenal in September that forced Conte to change his system.

Chelsea have held something of an Indian sign over United in recent years – they had not lost to them in the previous 12 encounters, home or away.
But that all changed yesterday with United dominating the game from start to finish with a pace, aggression and tactical plan that worked to perfection.
Chelsea did not win a corner for more than an hour and failed to register a shot on target for the first time in a Premier League game since their visit to Old Trafford in September 2007.

They had to re-shuffle when Marcos Alonso pulled out feeling unwell just before the game while No1 goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois was out injured. But it is hard to believe the presence of those two would have made much difference, so good and fired up were United on the day.
There were United heroes all over the pitch but Ander Herrera enjoyed his finest hour in a red shirt. He was sent off for two cautions when United went out of the FA Cup at Stamford bridge last month – the second of the fouls being on Eden Hazard.

He must have had his worries when Jose Mourinho detailed him to man-mark the Chelsea danger man. But not only did he do that job well he took time off to make United’s first after seven minutes and score the second four minutes after the break.
The Spaniard clearly handled as he won the ball from Nemanja Matic but referee Robert Madley gave him the benefit of the doubt that it was accidental.

There could be no arguments about the quality of his through pass, however, which allowed Marcus Rashford to race away from David Luiz and slot his shot past Asmir Begovic.
It was the earliest goal United have scored this season and provided a massive injection of confidence and belief in their play. The second summed up Chelsea’s miserable day. N’Golo Kante of all people was robbed by Ashley Young, who set up Herrera to fire past Begovic with the help of a deflection off Kurt Zouma’s shin.

The result stretched United’s unbeaten Premier League run to 22 games – 12 wins and 10 draws – going back to that embarrassing 4-0 defeat at Stamford Bridge in October.
After last month’s FA Cup exit, Mourinho was desperate to avoid a hat-trick of defeats to his former club. But more than any personal motive, he will just be relieved United are still fighting for a Champions League place on two fronts. After wins for Tottenham, Manchester City and Liverpool this was a game United simply had to win.
And they did in some style.

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Mirror:

Manchester United 2-0 Chelsea: Red Devils hand Spurs title lifeline - 5 things we learned
The Blues are now just four points clear of Tottenham at the top of the table after goals from Marcus Rashford and Ander Herrera

BY DAVID MCDONNELL

Manchester United handed Tottenham a huge lifeline in the Premier League title race by recording a 2-0 victory over Chelsea at Old Trafford.
The defeat leaves Antonio Conte's side four points clear of Spurs at the top of the table.

Marcus Rashford fired United ahead in the first half, latching on to Ander Herrera's inch-perfect lobbed through ball to slot past Asmir Begovic in the Chelsea goal.
And Herrera turned scorer after the break, his deflected effort wrong-footing the Bosnian to double the Red Devils' advantage.
Here are five things we learned...

1. United lucky with handball decision

Ander Herrera's pass around the Chelsea defence for Marcus Rashford to plunder United's opener after seven minutes was majestic, but the midfielder got away with handball moments before providing the assist.
Chelsea's players were rightly aggrieved with ref Robert Madley for spotting that Herrera had used his hand to stop the flight of Nemanja Matic's pass.

2. Hazard man-marked out of game

In the modern game, man-marking is often seen as an out-dated, old-fashioned tactic, but Ander Herrera's stalking of Eden Hazard, following the Chelsea forward wherever he went on the pitch, worked for United.

Hazard was unable to exert his usual influence on the game and Chelsea's most potent attacking player was rendered impotent. The same could be said of Pedro, who suffered a similar fate at the hands of Matteo Darmian.

3. Rashford takes his chance

With Zlatan Ibrahimovic left out of United's starting line-up in the Premier League for the first time, Marcus Rashford was handed the chance to show he can lead the line and play effectively through the middle.
The 19-year-old was up to the challenge, scoring United's opener, getting in behind Chelsea's defence and terrorising them with his pace and clever movement off the ball.
He had further opportunities to score, but confirmed here he can thrive as an out-and-out striker.

4. Herrera gets revenge on Chelsea
Ander Herrera was cast as the villain of the piece at Chelsea last month, when two fouls on quick succession saw him earn two cautions and a subsequent red as United lost 1-0 in the FA Cup.

Herrera felt hard done by on that occasion, and played like a man intent on atoning here, setting up Rashford for United's opener and scoring their second with a deflected strike.

5. Chelsea suffer with late change

When Marcos Alonso was injured in the warm-up, Chelsea boss Antonio Conte was forced into a late reshuffle, bringing Kurt Zouma into his defence, an enforced move that undermined the visitors at the back.
There was no communication or understanding between Zouma and David Luiz, with United taking full advantage of their uncertainty at the back.

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Sun:

TITLE RACE BACK ON Man United 2 Chelsea 0: Marcus Rashford and Ander Herrera stun league leaders to throw title race wide open

Antonio Conte's side are now just four points clear of Tottenham in second place
By Neil Custis & Richard Forrester

GOALS from Marcus Rashford and Ander Herrera have blown the title race wide open as Jose Mourinho’s side punished sloppy Chelsea.
Just four points separate the league leaders and Tottenham in second as United remain firmly in the hunt for a top four finish.
Chelsea's pre-match preparations were thrown in disarray when Marcus Alonso pulled out of the warm up with Thibaut Courtois already sidelined.

And it may have had an impact just seven minutes into the clash when the outstanding Rashford fired the Red Devils ahead in controversial fashion.
Nemanja Matic's pass hit the arm of Herrera before the midfielder slotted a wonderful pass through to the striker who outpaced David Luiz before finishing past Asmir Begovic.
The away side struggled to find any rhythm in the opening 45 minutes and frustration mounted as Diego Costa was brandished a yellow card for a late challenge on Paul Pogba.

Chelsea's only chance of the half came from Costa whose shot from distance flew harmlessly wide.
Antonio Conte had plenty of thinking to do at half-time but just three minutes into the second period the provider turned goalscorer when Herrera's deflected shot flew past Begovic.
Half of Old Trafford were celebrating when Rashford's thunderbolt clattered the side netting as United looked to put Chelsea to the sword.
The visitors dominated possession in the final 20 minutes as they looked desperate to find a way back into the game but United held firm to claim three crucial points.


Herrera handball? Ex-ref Mark Halsey's view

REFEREE Robert Madley made the wrong decision when he failed to award a free-kick to Chelsea for deliberate handball by Manchester United’s Ander Herrera.Herrera had his hands outstretched and in a unnatural position and he made a movement towards the ball.Robert was in a great position and he’s seen the incident because he makes a crossed arms sign to communicate that he had made his own decision.I can only assume he did not think it was deliberate.But Robert got it wrong. United got away with that one.Diego Costa and Marcos Rojo had a battle throughout the game. It was great to see the aggression but both players could have controlled themselves more.Robert could have stamped his authority earlier in the game. In the end they got deserved cautions.Gary Cahill was lucky not to get a red card for a high challenge on Marouane Fellaini. It was serious foul play and endangered the player’s safety.He was fortunate to get a yellow card.

FACTS, STATS, GOALS & LOLS

This was undoubtedly United’s best performance since Sir Alex Ferguson bowed out of the club.
There have been doubts over Marouane Fellaini but he was a hero yesterday breaking up Chelsea’s play.
Ander Herrera was asked to stop Eden Hazard as he was in the Cup quarter-final defeat at Stamford Bridge.
Then Herrera ended up with a red card. In this game he not only stopped Hazard but created one goal and scored another.
This was the first time Zlatan Ibrahimovic had been left out a United league line up when he has been available.
Mourinho’s decision was born out of the tired final 20 minutes in Anderlecht from the Swede.
He needed a rest and United needed a bit more pace and zip and Marcus Rashford supplied it with his goal and all round performance.
Mourinho and Conte have clashed on the touchline this season but not yesterday.
Mourinho made  a point of not celebrating either goal in contrast to the antics of his opposite number in these  contests.
The handshake at the end was brief with no words exchanged. For Mourinho it was job very well done.


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Star:

Manchester United 2 Chelsea 0: Jose Mourinho's men open up title race by beating Blues
THE TITLE race is on again.

By David Woods

But after their former boss Jose Mourinho masterminded their first away loss in the league since title rivals Tottenham beat them on January 4, things suddenly look all together different.
Super-charged Spurs, who have won a magnificent seven in a row scoring 21 goals in the process, are just four points behind.
In fact this Chelsea effort was reminiscent of their no-show at White Hart Lane, with a host of their star performers putting in below-par displays.

Just like at White Hart Lane, Diego Costa was at his frustrating worst.
He was fortunate to escape with just a booking for kicking the excellent Paul Pogba and aside from the fact he appears to be going back to the dark days of last season, boss Antonio Conte must be seriously worried that it is now six games since his star striker last scored.

While Costa was off his game, United’s main striker Marcus Rashford was superb, grabbing the first and being a constant threat with his pace and dribbling.
He just shaded man of the match from Ander Herrera, who still managed to score the second despite appearing to be super-glued to Chelsea’s playmaker Eden Hazard for most of the match, following his orders from Mourinho.

For the Portuguese coach this victory must have tasted sweet, especially after United’s 4-0 thrashing at Stamford Bridge earlier in the season and their FA Cup defeat.
He accused Conte of disrespecting him at the end of their meeting after the Italian fired up the home crowd with his team already cruising to victory.
His handshake with Conte at the final whistle yesterday was just about the minimum you could get away with.
Throughout the second half Chelsea fans sang “we’re top of the league,” over and over, as if to reassure themselves.
What they saw could not have inspired or even reassured them.

Despite Mourinho fielding a weakened side without star striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic - as he appears to concentrate on the Europa League - United were superior from the off.
Rashford had an early chance after Jesse Lingard robbed a dithering David Luiz, but he dragged his shot horribly wide.

But in the seventh minute he did not fail after Hererra dispossessed Nemanja Matic.
The ball hit Herrera squarely on the arm but as Chelsea appealed in vain for handball, the Spaniard threaded a perfect pass through for Rashford to burst onto.
His touch took him wide but as Asmir Begovic tried to cut down the angle his right foot shot clipped off his left, giving it enough lift to take it beyond the keeper.

Costa was involved in plenty of nonsense before and after his 33rd minute caution, but offered precious little goal threat.
In the 37th minute he reacted like he has caught with a bat in the face when he was touched by Marcos Rojo.
Gary Cahill almost headed into his own net and Ashley Young blazed over before United went two up in the 47th minute.
Young dispossessed N’Golo Kante in the box, giving the Frenchman a taste of his own medicine.

The ball broke off Kurt Zouma to Herrera and his firmly-struck shot hit the same defender’s leg and flew past Begovic high into the net.
Lingard fired wildly over after he was teed up by Rashford who then blasted into the side-netting with parts of Old Trafford thinking he scored again.
Just like in their loss at Spurs, Chelsea failed to suggest they were likely to stage an epic fightback.
To quote United’s legendary former boss Sir Alex Ferguson, this is now “squeaky bum time” for Chelsea.

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