Manchester United vs Chelsea: The One With a Silly Guus

Kurt smash

When Chelsea, in all their infinite wisdom, let Jose Mourinho go, did they also decide to consciously uncouple with their opposition scout — or all common sense? I appreciate that some of the Bank Holiday squad was dictated by suspensions and illness, but that’s no excuse to start Nemanja Matic and John Obi Mikel together. Ever.

This is not in anyway a criticism of either player - they do a fine job. But -- the same job. And maybe this could have been a keen idea deployed against a formidable attacking side like Leicester or Manchester City, but it was complete overkill when facing a team who’d managed to score 2 whole goals in their last 4 games. 2 goals. In 360 minutes. In fact, with the number of times they’ve failed to score in a match this season, Hiddink could have showed some real cojones and done away with a holding midfielder altogether.

Rather than have the human full time whistle Mikel out there absorbing ‘the pressure’ from the get go - why not start Ramires and bring him on to shut up shop when / if Chelsea are protecting a lead? Ramires loves a goal against Manchester United. And a card. And what better way to build entertainment into a game that was destined to have none than guess a) when Ramires will receive his first booking and b) what colour the card will be?! Fun for the whole family.

As for playing Eden Hazard in the ‘false nine’ role, it heaped even more pressure on a player who hasn't scored since May. And - despite the expert medical opinions floating about the interweb - Hazard is injured. He shouldn’t have made an appearance on the weekend where he was the recipient of an almighty foul that definitely did not aid in his recovery. And while he gave a good account of himself, especially in the second half, an unfit player out of position isn’t really the answer.

Physical game out there for @hazardeden10... pic.twitter.com/fWvs5LNXSn

— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) December 28, 2015

There was a game beyond my shock at the starting XI - sort of. Apologies to the neutrals - this was not the game for you, or anyone else for that matter. While no one from either side was particularly bad, no one was particularly good either. Yes Matic launched a shot towards the Etihad or potentially back to Serbia but at least it provided us all with a good laugh. Despite his best effors, he found himself outdone on the night by Per Mertesacker.

In a surprise to no one, this game ended 0-0. David De Gea and Thibaut Courtois were brilliant with the few shots that they were forced to deal with. And Kurt Zouma stepped up with an outstanding tackle on bezzie mate Anthony Martial.  It would have been harsh on Chelsea had Martial managed to score. And completely out of character for this Van Gaal side.

The only other real moment of note was Wayne Rooney’s shocking* foul on Oscar. How it wasn’t a red is beyond me - but after the fouls knocking about earlier in the match that went unpunished, you can hardly blame Rooney for trying his luck. Ander Herrera’s early foul(s) on Hazard really set the tone for much of this game. But hey, it gave us all *something* to watch. Imagine that game without those fouls ….. *shudder*

But rather than be down about the whole torrid affair let’s take a look at the positives. Winning a point saw Chelsea rocket up the table to 14th! Avoiding a loss allowed Hiddink to waffle on about the positive steps the club are taking - no matter how big a stretch that is might be. And the failure to win ensured that Louis Van Gaal was not immediately relieved of his duties to see a much suaver and more Portuguese edition take his place. Bullet dodged for now.

jb xx

*I may have given Oscar a better kick