Manchester United beat Chelsea 2-1 at Old Trafford on Wednesday night thanks to a Scott McTominay brace.
2023/2024 Premier League
2-1
Match Report
Scott McTominay relieved some of the pressure surrounding Erik Ten Hag as his double earned an improved Manchester United a much-needed 2-1 win over Chelsea.
Ten Hag's gamble in dropping both Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial amid reports of dressing-room disharmony had the desired effect for the under-fire manager, with the hosts' quality with and without the ball a world away from Saturday's dismal defeat at Newcastle.
McTominay opened the scoring on the rebound from Harry Maguire's effort (19), but Unitwd would have already been ahead had Bruno Fernandes not seen an eighth-minute penalty saved.
United dominated the opening period without adding to their lead, and were made to pay on the stroke of half-time when Cole Palmer fired home a well-placed strike from just inside the area.
The home side were less effective following the interval but McTominay restored their advantage with a close-range header from Alejandro Garnacho's cross, before the Argentine wasted a glorious opportunity to wrap up victory on the break.
It mattered little in the end, as United's performance cut through the noise surrounding the club to finally earn a first point - and win - of the season against an opponent in the top half of the Premier League, and lifted them just three points off the top four.
Match Events
0' The match is about to start!
9' Penalty Missed! (Bruno Fernandes)
15' CLOSE! Mudryk hits the post
19' GOAL! Man Utd 1-0 Chelsea (McTominay)
21' CLOSE! Antony’s shot cleared off byThiago Silva
25' Sterling goes down in the box but ref says no penalty!
28' CLOSE! Garnacho’s shot wide out
33' Mc Tominay misses a golden chance!
45' GOAL! Man Utd 1-1 Chelsea (Cole Palmer)
64' CLOSE! Bruno’s shot wide out
69' GOAL! Man Utd 2-1 Chelsea (McTominay)
85' Rashford replace Højlund
Line-ups
Man Utd XI: Lindelof, Maguire, Shaw, Bruno Fernandes, Amrabat, Onana, Dalot, McTominay, Antony, Alejandro Garnacho, Rasmus Højlund
Subs: Evans, Martial, Van de Beek, Reguilon, Altay Bayındır, Rashford, Wan-Bissaka, Facundo Pellistri, Kobbie Mainoo
Chelsea XI: Thiago Silva, Sterling, Marc Cucurella, Axel Disasi, Robert Sánchez, Cole Palmer, Mykhaylo Mudryk, Enzo Fernández, Moisés Caicedo, Levi Colwill, Nicolas Jackson
Subs: Reece James, Djordje Petrovic, Benoît Badiashile, Maatsen, Armando Broja, Leo Castledine, Alfie Gilchrist, Alex Matos, Deivid Washington