After a firm and solid defensive display at Anfield on Monday night, Manchester United could not have produced a more polar opposite display at Stamford Bridge. An early Pedro strike merely allowed the floodgates to open, with Gary Cahill, Eden Hazard and N’Golo Kante adding to the scoresheet.
How did the United team rate in their shocking defeat?
David de Gea – 6
Open to criticism for rushing out to allow Pedro to round him to open the scoring, de Gea could not really be held accountable for any of the other goals conceded due to some appalling defending in front of him proving costly.
Antonio Valencia – 5
At fault along with Juan Mata for the third Chelsea goal as their communication allowed Eden Hazard in, Valencia had his work cut out up against the Belgian. Individually he committed fewer other errors than many of his teammates, but he still failed to impress and struggled with being pinned back by Marcos Alonso and Hazard.
Chris Smalling – 3
Caught out by Pedro’s pace, Smalling’s actions at the corner which led to Gary Cahill’s strike were inexplicable. Then, he allowed N’Golo Kante to waltz past him with ease to add a fourth goal in what was an appalling display of defending by the captain for the day which was a real contrast to Monday night.
Eric Bailly – 5
Regardless of his performance on the day, the concern for United fans will be his injury as he limped off before the hour mark. However, he had struggled along with Smalling up against Diego Costa’s physical style and strength and offered little support to his partner at the back.
Danny Blind – 3
Picked ahead of Luke Shaw, who missed out on the squad entirely, Blind was held responsible for the early goal by sitting far too deep and three or four yards behind the rest of the backline, allowing Pedro to get a strong headstart on Smalling and Bailly. To say he struggled to contain the pace of the Spaniard would be being generous to the Dutchman, but he didn’t improve centrally either.
Ander Herrera – 6
A one man band at times in the first half, making more tackles than the rest of his team combined in the opening half hour, he lost focus in the second half and allowed Chelsea to dominate the midfield with no better example than Kante’s strike. He may have been one of the better performers on the day, but that is no compliment.
Marouane Fellaini – 4
Frustrated and aggressive, Fellaini produced one of the displays which has seen him become a scapegoat for United in the past. Contributing little and offering next to no protection to his backline, his substitution at the break showed that Mourinho recognised his error in selecting the Belgian.
Marcus Rashford – 6
Performing more defensive duties than he would usually like to, Rashford had no impact on the game. Marcos Alonso kept him under control and dragged him back into his own half, refusing to allow the English youngster to influence the game at all.
Paul Pogba – 5
Yet another quiet display by the Frenchman, who was lazy in tracking back and provided no outlet at the base of attack. Pogba looked lost as he roamed the midfield and questions will once again be asked over whether he can justify the £89 million price tag.
Jesse Lingard – 6
Lingard struggled to really get a grip on the game, with little service out wide and little to work with. He tracked back well and won all three of his tackles, but couldn’t replicate such success going forwards, failing to complete a single dribble or cross. He may well have been quiet but he was far from the worst performer on display.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic – 6
It was hard for the Swede to have any influence on the game with no real service. He made the most of what he could, with one late shot testing Thibaut Courtois and a first half header going close, but he dropped far too deep in search of the ball and ended up isolating himself from the play.
Substitutions
Juan Mata (for Fellaini, 46′) – 6
Some shocking defending for the third Chelsea strike saw him dragged out and leaving space for Hazard to score, but Mata did improve the attacking play of Mourinho’s side, though that was not difficult after their first half performance.
Marcos Rojo (for Bailly, 53′) – 5
A rare and unexpected Premier League appearance for the Argentinean, it was not one to be proud of. Rojo struggled with the movement of the Blues attack and was constantly caught in two minds between whether to bomb forwards or hold his position.
Anthony Martial (for Lingard, 65′) – 5
The Frenchman was intended to bring pace and skill to the United flank to try to mount a late comeback, or at least consolation strike, but failed. With a small number of touches, he didn’t get the service and was part of a side which had seemingly given up.