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Manchester United’s woes on home soil continue after a 0-0 draw with Chelsea Saturday.
Game Story
In a matchup of two teams who can really score, the opportunities were few and far between.
US international Christian Pulisic had some great opportunities early on, but a nice solo effort went wide.
He had another great effort that ended with an easy save for David de Gea.
Frank Lampard’s team will feel hard done by in the first half.
Cesar Azpilicueta was held back by Reds captain Harry Maguire off a free-kick in the United box but the challenge went unpunished.
After almost gifting United the lead with a shocking pass across his own goal Edouard Mendy made a string of strong saves.
A nice block on Marcus Rashford and a save off Juan Mata kept the match scoreless in the first half.
Into the second half, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer made a double substitution, introducing Edinson Cavani for the first time in a United shirt and Paul Pogba.
The change made an immediate impact as the Uruguay man just missed early on.
An inviting cross from Reece James was missed by Kai Havertz and Christian Pulisic for Chelsea.
Some strong defending by Thiago Silva kept his former teammate Cavani off the scoresheet along with Pogba.
More good stops by Mendy in the second half meant the match finished 0-0.
Goalless
In the heavy rain at Old Trafford, both teams were afraid to take any chances going forward.
Heading into this match these teams delivered 21 goals combined in nine Premier League fixtures.
The tentative play was evident in a second half that saw only one shot on target.
Firsts
The goalless draw means the Reds remain winless at Old Trafford this season.
It’s the first time since the 1972-73 season that United have failed to win any of their first three games at home.
Dig a little deeper and you’ll find the Red Devils are without a win at home in their last five matches.
That’s the longest stretch since they went six games without a home win in 1990.
It’s the first clean sheet Chelsea has earned outside of London since a goalless draw with Leicester on the final day of the 2018-19 season.
At 33 Edinson Cavani became the oldest Man United debutant in club history since Zlatan Ibrahimovich made his debut at 34.
Mendy is the first Chelsea keeper to keep a clean sheet in both of his first two Premier League matches since Petr Cech did it in August 2004.
Man of the Match
In a game that saw few chances at either end, it’s only fitting a defender gets the spotlight.
Tonight, that was veteran Brazilian Thiago Silva.
The former PSG mainstay showed age (he’s 36) is just a number Saturday.
Critical blocks on Pogba and Cavani kept the Blues in the match.
Solid Week
It was a tough match to watch from the fan’s perspective but manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer seems pleased with the team’s performance as a whole this week.
“A good defensive performance and we created the big chances that could have given us the win. It’s a solid week we’ve had with two wins and one draw,” says Solskjaer.
“Happy with the clean sheet. You obviously want more than a point but if you come to Manchester United and you don’t concede, that’s a great base,” says Chelsea boss Frank Lampard.
What it means
The draw puts Man United at seven points from 5 matches in 15th place.
Chelsea sits in 6th place with nine points.
Next up
The Reds take a three-match unbeaten run into their next match which is Wednesday at Old Trafford against RB Leipzig at 8 pm.
In the Premier League, they’ll next host Arsenal next Saturday at 4:30 pm. (JSL)
