Manchester United 1-0

Guardian:

Chelsea 1 - 0 Man Utd

Álvaro Morata heads Chelsea to victory over Manchester United


Dominic Fifield


This is the kind of result to stifle talk of crisis at Chelsea. The Premier League’s summit may remain distant but the joyous din which erupted inside the ground at the final whistle was an outpouring of relief. Antonio Conte celebrated manically, fists raised in triumph towards those in the upper tier of the East stand, before striding out on to the pitch to acknowledge each side of the ground in turn. José Mourinho waited near the tunnel to shake his counterpart’s hand but eventually gave up. He looked distinctly unimpressed to be enduring Conte’s moment.

It may seem vaguely ludicrous that a head coach who has now overseen 37 wins from his 49 Premier League games in charge could be considered under pressure but Conte had needed this victory. That humiliation in Rome in midweek had left him embattled, with suggestions the hierarchy had not taken kindly to the realism with which he has approached a cluttered campaign, and the first murmurings of discontent within the playing squad surfacing with every setback.


Yet against imposing opponents in Manchester United, and not for the first time since he arrived in England, his major decisions paid off: his side played with the same system, style and swagger as at Atlético Madrid in September; N’Golo Kanté’s reintegration in midfield was key to a second clean sheet in nine games; Andreas Christensen, preferred to David Luiz in the middle of the back three, was mightily impressive.

The Brazilian had worn heavy strapping on his right leg at the Stadio Olimpico but had been omitted here for “tactical reasons”, according to Conte, with the implication it was down to shoddy form. The Italian had pointed pre-match to Christensen’s early-season displays and to the fact “the club likes to bring in a young player” when it came to Ethan Ampadu, a 17-year-old without any experience of top-flight football, being preferred on the bench over David Luiz.


After the match Conte suggested David Luiz would have “to work really hard, or [risk to] be on the bench or in the stand”. As it was, the defender sat behind the dugouts next to his compatriot Kenedy, whose yawn in Thursday’s debrief had been noted, and watched his team-mates put in their most convincing display for more than a month. It will be intriguing to see how such a charismatic figure now forces his way back into the fold. Certainly his team-mates have demonstrated they can do without him.

It was tempting to wonder whether Mourinho’s presence in the dugout had merely coaxed the best from Chelsea, as it once did so often when he was on the payroll. His current team never showed any real control on this occasion, their few chances squeezed out on the break – they mustered only two on target all afternoon – until a late rally which threatened to earn them an equaliser they would not have merited. Their own gap from Manchester City is now eight points, which “is not the same as eight points in the Portuguese league, La Liga, the Bundesliga”‚ according to the manager.


The disappointment was in their inability to wound their hosts, with Marouane Fellaini’s late volley, turned away smartly by Thibaut Courtois, the closest they came to reward. Marcus Rashford’s was a pesky presence but there was no real rhythm to their approach and, without their injured absentees, they were forced too often into retreat. Romelu Lukaku, one spin and shot from distance aside, was isolated and contained. Teams far less imposing than United have created considerably more against these opponents this term, and that ended up feeling rather damning.

Admittedly Kanté’s energetic presence was significant and inevitably bolstered Chelsea’s collective. The champions had kept only one clean sheet during his six-game absence, with a hamstring injury sustained on international duty with France. Yet it was the home side’s attacking play which truly caught the eye. Their goal had been forged in familiar fashion, César Azpilicueta flinging over one of those trademark diagonal crosses from which Diego Costa and Álvaro Morata have benefited in recent times. The Spaniard met it emphatically, having trundled unnoticed into the space between United’s centre-halves with Chris Smalling drawn towards Tiémoué Bakayoko’s run, to plant his header beyond a static David de Gea and leave Mourinho cursing another miserable homecoming.


But Chelsea should have had more to show for their dominance. The excellent Eden Hazard, whose ankles had been kicked raw by the end, was denied regularly by De Gea, Cesc Fàbregas nodded into the side-netting from close range, Bakayoko missed two glorious opportunities and the referee, Anthony Taylor, penalised Morata for a push on Phil Jones early on after the defender had inadvertently conjured a volley as he crumpled clumsily which arrowed the ball into the top corner.

Each miss had left Conte agonised on the touchline, his impatience drawing warnings from the fourth official, Craig Pawson, for encroachment as Mourinho watched on, presumably wondering if he would be treated quite so leniently. But this was the Italian’s day. “We can win or lose but our spirit must be this,” said Conte. “We started this season with a lot of problems. We were up and down. But this game showed that, if we want it, we can do it.”



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Telegraph:

Chelsea 1 Manchester United 0: Antonio Conte comes out on top as Alvaro Morata scores winning header

Jason Burt


This was the afternoon when Chelsea reignited their season and, maybe, sent the Premier League torch on its way back towards Manchester. Not to United, who were beaten here, their dull limitations exposed by Chelsea’s vibrancy, but across the city to the Etihad Stadium.

An eight-point lead has been established going into the international break, nine in effect when Manchester City’s vastly superior goal difference is factored in, and even though we are only 11 rounds of matches into this campaign, it is already appearing to be a formidable gap to close.

Of course, it can happen, Jose Mourinho said so, and a serial winner such as the United manager should know, but the words of Chelsea head coach Antonio Conte before this predictably spiky encounter were the most prescient: the “big problem”, he said, were City. “If they continue in this way, it will be very difficult to fight for the title,” Conte had said.

City are continuing in this way, sweeping aside Arsenal, despite Arsene Wenger’s protestations of incompetence from the officials, and cheating from City, and it may soon begin to be an almighty tussle simply to finish in the top four behind them. Either way, Chelsea could not afford to lose this fixture, Conte could not afford to lose it, for sure, given his position, given the tension and given his antipathy towards his predecessor, Mourinho. There was always that edge.

It was there before kick-off, when Conte did not look Mourinho in the eye as the United manager offered his hand, and it was there at the final whistle when the Italian fist-pumped in delight before studiously marching away on to the pitch. He simply did not want to acknowledge, to receive, to interact with, Mourinho who has got under his skin but did not get the points.

“Antonio, Antonio,” rang round Stamford Bridge and it washed away some of the angst that had resurfaced with the chaotic Champions League defeat away to Roma and which had provoked recriminations and inquests and led to David Luiz being unceremoniously dumped from the team and his future questioned.


Given Luiz’s status, his popularity with the Chelsea hierarchy, it was a decision that might have deeper consequences although his replacement, Andreas Christensen, 21, was outstanding. Maybe Conte should trust in youth a little more, also. But, in truth, the biggest difference was the return of N’Golo Kante who has been sorely missed for six matches with a damaged hamstring – Chelsea only won three of those games, and only one convincingly – and eclipsed Nemanja Matic. So much has been made of Matic’s controversial move to United but his importance to Chelsea has been overblown as Kante proved on this dominant occasion.

It was not the only direct matchup with consequences with a comparison to be made between Alvaro Morata and Romelu Lukaku, the two big-money strikers, neither of whom has scored for six matches. And Morata could as easily have lined up for United as Lukaku could have gone back to Chelsea. Instead it was the other way round and Morata came out on top.

His towering header settled it and although he spurned a number of other chances, making a terrible hash of an injury-time opportunity when he was set clear on goal by substitute Willian, before falling over, the young Spaniard deserved the plaudits. In the first-half, he had cut a frustrated figure, even appearing to twice to throw himself to the turf in search of punishment for the United defenders he felt had roughed him up, but then he ghosted between them to reach Cesar Azpilicueta’s cross to send an imperious, trademark header back across David De Gea and high into the net.

United had lost the ball to allow that goal, Henrikh Mkhitaryan was the guilty party, and despite Mourinho’s protestations of parity between the two sides, they played a curious game. They initially went for it, they cut loose but then they, tactically, appeared to be caught between two approaches and ultimately paid the price for not continuing to go at Chelsea when they were gettable.

Chances had been traded. It was thunderous, at times, a bit too bone-jarringly frantic also, and, in fact, the ball was in the United net inside the first 10 minutes with Phil Jones volleying spectacularly past a bemused De Gea. Fortunately for United, Morata was adjudged to have pushed the United defender.


Then, at the other end, Marcus Rashford should have scored as he met Ashley Young’s cross only for him to cushion his header on to the roof of the net with Thibaut Courtois stranded. The openness continued – Tiemoue Bakayoko side-footed wastefully wide, Lukaku turned sharply but could not bend his shot around Courtois and then Cesc Fabregas headed into the side-netting from close-range as he met a rebound when De Gea had superbly beaten out a fierce drive by the impressive Eden Hazard. On half-time there was one, final clear chance as Christensen reached a corner only to head – or rather shoulder – the ball over the cross-bar. There were recriminations after that, also, among the United players and they will have continued at the interval with both managers, presumably, imploring more. But it was Chelsea who seized the initiative. United paid for their rising conservatism, in fact.

After Hazard had swept a first-time shot, from a fine Fabregas cross, straight at De Gea, Chelsea struck through Morata and United appeared shaken. It took them time – too long – to rally with Chelsea racking up more chances as United substitute Marouane Fellaini was caught in possession by Bakayoko who shot, when he should have played the ball through to Morata and then Hazard was guilty of the same offence although at least he drew a save. Finally, United created an opening with the ball dropping to Rashford on the edge of the area but he flashed a snapshot narrowly past the post. They went closer when Fellaini chested the ball down and shot low only for Courtois to push it away before, after Morata’s blunder, Rashford’s free-kick was deflected just over the bar.


But Chelsea had their win, and deservedly so while for Mourinho it is now 10 games, no victories and just one goal in away games against the other ‘top six’ clubs, as first Chelsea and United manager. That is not a good statistic for him.

And neither is the gap that has now emerged at the top of the Premier League table.



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Mail:

Chelsea 1-0 Manchester United: Alvaro Morata seals deserved win with world-class header to leave Jose Mourinho's Premier League title hopes in tatters


By Ian Ladyman

For Jose Mourinho and Antonio Conte, this is beginning to feel less like a football season and more an exercise in problem management.

Manchester United, it is worth pointing out, are second in the Premier League. Chelsea, after this thoroughly deserved win, are up to fourth and just a point behind.

But the feeling at both of these clubs is not one of great optimism. Issues swirl around both like smoke from a bonfire, whatever the results on the field.


United have problems surrounding their style, especially away from Old Trafford. On Mourinho’s 15-month watch, they have scored a single goal away against one of the traditional top six clubs.

After two defeats in three Premier League games, United are now eight points behind Manchester City and maybe we are finally beginning to see evidence of the limitations that seemed apparent at the end of the summer transfer window. Better – quite good, in fact – but maybe not quite good enough yet.

On Sunday, Mourinho was left to suggest that things will improve once injured players return. This from a manager who claims never to use injuries as an excuse.

As for Chelsea, Conte continues to swim against a tide that seems destined, at some stage, to wash him out of the door at Stamford Bridge.

This was an emotional, tense victory for the Italian, one earned by a towering header from Alvaro Morata and celebrated with such intensity at full-time that Conte decided he didn’t have time to shake hands with Mourinho. That was a mistake.

Afterwards, though, talk turned almost immediately from victory to his omission of the Brazilian David Luiz.

With Conte dissatisfied with Luiz’s training performances, the Chelsea manager decided to proceed without him for this game and has suggested this stance will not change anytime soon.


Victory here enabled him to get away with that. Today it looks brave, an example of a manager exercising his authority. But what happens when Conte leaves one of his big names out and his team loses?

That is when the problems will begin.

At Chelsea, managers who take on players – especially those favoured by the owner Roman Abramovich – tend to run in to difficulties very soon. Mourinho knows this better than anyone.

So this was the context within which this game was played.

If matches that do not involve rampant City already feel as though they will only influence the order of the runners-up prizes, this one was always unlikely to provide conclusive truth of the direction in which Chelsea or United are travelling.

From United we certainly didn’t really see anything that surprised us.

Mourinho’s team were competitive and drilled and were never going to be easy to beat. But they were lacking in potency when they had the ball.


Centre forward Romelu Lukaku has now not scored since the end of September, for example, and United continue to look utterly incapable of dictating play against good sides.

Only after Chelsea scored ten minutes in to the second half did United really come alive, Mourinho throwing on the big Belgian Marouane Fellaini to try to blow the house down.

Prior to that Mourinho’s team had been in the game but never in charge of it. Chelsea were better from the get-go and the way they responded to defeat in Rome in the Champions League was very impressive.

The home teams two best players were Morata and Eden Hazard. No surprise there. Morata’s play with back to goal was terrific and he was prepared to run the channels too. It was hard not to compare that to Lukaku’s rather more laboured efforts at the other end.

United survived a Phil Jones volley in to his own net early on – Morata was adjudged to have fouled him – and escaped again when the unconvincing Tiemoue Bakayoko spooned a good chance wide from 12 yards.

United goalkeeper David de Gea then beat out a waspish Hazard shot with Cesc Fabregas heading the rebound in to the side netting. At this stage all that United had to show for their occasional journeys to the other end of the field was a header over from Marcus Rashford and a shot from 18 yards by Lukaku that Thibaut Courtois saved low to his right.

Chelsea never wore the look of certain winners but a blue victory always seemed the most likely outcome. Hazard may have done better than shoot at the goalkeeper early in the second half but when Cesar Azpilicueta dropped a cross on Morata’s head soon after the way he directed the ball back across De Gea and in to the top corner was sublime.

It was a goal fit to win a big match and eventually it did so. United did press hard latterly with Fellaini working Courtois and then appealing for a penalty as he grappled with Gary Cahill.

Conte certainly should have gone to Mourinho to shake hands afterwards, no matter the previous bad blood between them. But as the dust settled later, that was not even the main post-match issue. That, in itself, spoke volumes.

Inevitably this did bring United a bit of territory as the game entered the final third. Chelsea also seemed comfortable sitting back and trying to kill the game on the break.

Ander Herrera volleyed a half chance wide from a corner and then Chris Smalling was penalised for jumping all over Courtois at another set piece.

There was something of a haphazard threat about United as they tried to get back on terms but still the more controlled attacking football came from Chelsea, albeit on the counter.

Bakayoko was lacking in composure and cleverness when a mistake by Fellaini allowed him to run clear. It would have made sense to turn on to his left to open up the goal as red shirts retreated he seemed to want to go right and when he did he was only able to shoot wide of the near post.

Hazard then had a low shot saved by De Gea after standing up Smalling in the penalty area. This had been a good afternoon for the Belgian but he had not quite been at his sharpest in front of goal.

He was eventually replaced with four minutes of normal time remaining, the Brazilian Willian sent to help shore up the game. That came immediately after a half volley from the edge of the area by Rashford had passed the wrong side of the post by about a foot.

At such a late stage of the game, Chelsea did begin to find themselves under pressure at last. United did not try to hide the gameplan as they knocked it long to Fellaini and hoped for the best.

It almost worked, too, as the Belgian controlled a cross on his chest in the 90th minute and delivered a falling volley that Courtois dropped to save. As the ball was worked wide and crossed in to the box again, Fellaini fell under a challenge from Gary Cahill. Penalty? Probably not.

Still United would not lie down and die and after Morata spurned a 93rd minute breakaway chance Mourinho’s team earned one final chance. But Rashford couldn’t keep his free-kick down and United’s rather belated attempt at a comeback was over.


Chelsea: Courtois 7.5; Azpilicueta 8, Christensen 8.5, Cahill 7; Zappacosta 6 (Rudiger 66, 6), Bakayoko 7.5, Kante 8, Fabregas 8 (Drinkwater 79), Alonso 7; Hazard 7.5 (Willian 86); Morata 8.

Subs not used: Caballero, Ampadu, Pedro, Batshuayi.

Goals: Morata 55

Bookings: Bakayoko

Manager: Antonio Conte 7


Manchester United: De Gea 7; Jones 5.5 (Fellaini 63, 5.5), Smalling 5, Bailly 5; Valencia 5, Matic 5.5, Herrera 5.5, Young 5 (Lingard 79); Mkhitaryan 4.5 (Martial 63, 6), Lukaku 4.5, Rashford 6.

Subs not used: Romero, Blind, Darmian, McTominay.

Bookings: Jones, Herrera, Fellaini


Referee: Anthony Taylor 5

Star man: Andreas Christensen


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Independent:


Alvaro Morata seals win to reinvigorate Antonio Conte's Chelsea reign yet could end Manchester United's title chances

Chelsea 1 Manchester United 0: Striker's brilliant finish is enough to secure all three points and keep Blues in touch of Premier League leaders Manchester City

Miguel Delaney

A supremely electric response from Chelsea, crowned by an even better goal from Alvaro Morata... but it may well lead to a low-key title race. Was the day that Antonio Conte properly recharged his regime the day that also killed Manchester United's - or anyone else’s - challenge for the Premier League trophy?

If that is to be the case, with Manchester City now eight points clear in first place having earlier in the day beaten Arsenal 3-1, it was actually more down to United’s previous performances than this 1-0 defeat at Stamford Bridge.

That game against Liverpool created a pressure about this one that necessitated a change in approach, but that reactive performance against Tottenham Hotspur - that did just about pay off - was then so difficult to deviate from. Jose Mourinho’s side struggled under that pressure. Conte’s, meanwhile, revelled and revved up under theirs from the 3-0 defeat by Roma and so much speculation about the Italian's future. This was a proper response, as seen in the manager's chest-beating celebration, that has also now led to a proper run. Mourinho has lost all three of his visits to Stamford Bridge as United manager, and now looks no closer to winning the league. The run of always claiming it in his second season looks set to be broken.

Chelsea by contrast are far from broken. This game showed their resolve, and was also much more of a show than United’s last two big-six matches.

There was in fact more action in the opening 20 minutes of this than there had been in both of their games against Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur. It was both as if Mourinho wanted to make a point, and had realised the desperate need for three points after City’s win. Marcus Rashford headed over from just yards out on eight minutes, and Romelu Lukaku brought a strong save from Thibaut Courtois shortly afterwards. The only problem with such proactivity - as Mourinho might well have always been fearful of - was that they were of course so much more open at the other end, and watching Chelsea create many more chances than they were.


A Phil Jones own goal was ruled out for what was adjudged a push from Morata, Eden Hazard had a close-range shot somehow saved by David De Gea before Cesc Fabregas missed the follow-up, and Tiemoue Bakayoko seemed to find himself on the end of so many sudden breaks and bursts through the midfield. He just didn’t quite have the poise to make the best of this, most noticeably skying one effort from the edge of the box.

This still represented a dilemma for Mourinho, in more than one sense. He needed to plug the hole in midfield, but that was directly connected to the crossroads he found himself in this match, and in the season.

He needed to attack, but wasn’t completely comfortable with how that left the defence. Tthe halfway house decision of getting one of the centre-halves rather than Ander Herrera to pick up Hazard directly resulted in the holes that appeared in the backline for Chelsea’s opening goal.

That should take nothing from Chelsea and his side. The high technical quality of that 54th-minute goal reflected the focus that the champions had shown all game.

So much for the disarray displayed in Rome. This was the opposite, with their bloody-mindedness on the day also the opposite of United. There was a fire about them, something that the return of the irrepressible N’Golo Kante is always going to help with. Even allowing for that, the word from their Cobham training base was that Conte had roared into the players, determined to ensure they were fully energised for this game. An example had been made of those like David Luiz, who was dropped after his performance in Rome, but it worked as the rest of them were so wondrously revved up. It could be seen in every 50-50, every break, and especially that goal.

The ball was sprayed out to Azpilicueta and, finding himself in the type of space that Mourinho would have been lived about, he predictably used that to pick out a perfect cross for Morata. The striker was in the same amount of space and duly used it too to offer a perfect header. De Gea couldn’t even begin to try and save it, as the ball flew into the corner of the net.

Chelsea and Conte had got themselves out of a corner.

Mourinho now really had to respond, really had to go for it.

He did so by taking off the player who is notionally United’s most creative, but never really gets to show it in a system where there is only ever one player ahead of him. Henrikh Mkhitaryan was taken off with Jones, and Anthony Martial and Marouane Fellaini were introduced.

It was easy to see Mourinho’s simplistic solution: knock it long for Fellaini to flick on to Martial, Rashford and Lukaku.

The only problem with that was that United couldn’t get on the ball enough to lump it forward, and  they were now open enough that it was Chelsea who looked much likelier to score. They had so many dangerous breaks, with Hazard and Bakayoko thriving on the run, as Mourinho’s side toiled to change gear.

They are always going to find that more difficult without the injured Paul Pogba, but it still came back to the dilemma from earlier in the game. If your default in such big games is to go defensive, you are going to find it then even more difficult to successfully go proactive and attacking, no matter who you have in the team.

A lot of the criticism from the Liverpool game was because of the reluctance to go at a rival that was then low and confidence and weak, and because of the damage it might do to their title challenge when City were winning all their big games.

That title challenge might already be fatally damaged, as we saw a consequence of all that here, but there are to be no consequences for Conte. Just another conquest of Mourinho