
Manchester United had to settle for a 1-1 draw against Chelsea in the Premier League, as the Red Devils are six points adrift from the top four in 13th place.
The first half only provided two great chances for both teams to go ahead in the game, as Noni Madueke's header struck the right post of Andre Onana's goal.
United's chance only came in what proved to be the last kick of the half with Bruno Fernandes sailing a cross to Marcus Rashford who hit the crossbar of the Chelsea goal.
The second half proved to be a lot more open and physical, United took the lead in the 70th minute as Rasmus Hojlund was brought down in the box by Robert Sanchez.
Fernandes converted the penalty at the Stretford end, but his team did not hold on to the lead for long.
The visitors replied inside four minutes through a Moises Caicedo volley which silenced Old Trafford.
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Another impressive performance from Noussair Mazraoui
The Moroccan was tasked with dealing with the very direct Noni Madueke. United's number three defended very well against the Englishman.
Holding up the Chelsea winger and trying to take a physical approach paid off for most of the game.
Not only was he good defensively but also attacking, when he would retrieve the ball, the full-back was consistently looking to play the ball forward for United to counter attack.
Mazraoui and Diogo Dalot have both had to play at both right back and left back this season with the current injury to Luke Shaw and the slowly returning Tyrell Malacia.
It seems like Mazraoui is more versatile out of the two which explains why he will play left back more than Dalot but with Shaw getting injured most seasons it looks like Mazraoui is the perfect player to slot into that position when needed.
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Andre Onana needs to play the ball quicker out from the back
When Manchester United are looking to counter attack after the opposition's shot has been saved by Andre Onana, United's forwards are making the runs that you would expect a long kick from the goalkeeper to serve.
However, multiple times not just this season but last season this has been a major factor in United’s attacking output, as there seem to be two elements in why Onana is not kicking or looking for the best pass.
It could be that under Erik ten Hag he was so used to playing out from the back that going long does not feel the right option or that he is worried that when he does try and play the long pass to an attacker it will not work.
This may or may not be a confidence issue but when Ruben Amorim takes over at the club in seven days he will want to see what many United fans have wanted to see which is going long when necessary and not having to play out from the back at every given opportunity.
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Ugarte and Casemiro can work well together in a big game
Manuel Ugarte started his second Premier League game today alongside the experienced Casemiro.
Many would not have thought that the newly signed Uruguayan would be starting in the same team as his fellow South American.
Nonetheless in games against tougher opposition like Chelsea, playing two central defensive midfielders might not be a bad idea.
United fans have been accustomed to this in recent times with Scott McTominay and Fred filling those positions and having some big performances.
As United are still trying to find their feet with a style of play it may not be a bad thing to start Ugarte and Casemiro as they have the ability to track the opposition's number eights and also supply a low block barrier in front of the defence when needed.
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Giving opposition star players too much time on the ball
Mohamed Salah, Dejan Kulusevski, Morgan Rogers and Cole Palmer are all talented players but one trait they have all possessed this season against Manchester United is having too much time on the ball.
There have been underlying issues of United's midfield and defence being stretched in yesteryear.
The last-ditch tackles from Matthijs de Ligt, Lisandro Martinez and Casemiro have saved the Reds on many occasions but how long will that last?
In the game against Chelsea, there were two chances in the second half where Palmer was allowed to run at the back two of de Ligt and Martinez.
It almost seemed like Chelsea's number 20 could not believe how much time he had on the ball.
With the arrival of Amorim and his back three, it looks like this could change but only time will tell.
Manchester United next play on Thursday in the Europa League against Greek side PAOK.

