Man Utd 1-1 Chelsea: Player ratings as scrappy affair ends even

The spoils were shared at Old Trafford on Sunday afternoon as Manchester United played out a 1-1 draw with Chelsea.

Ruud van Nistelrooy took charge of his first Premier League outing as United's interim boss following the dismissal of Erik ten Hag, and the Dutchman will be content enough with his side's performance and the subsequent result.

There wasn't much to enjoy from an entertainment perspective before two second-half goals arrived in quick succession, and Enzo Maresca will know that his side missed an opportunity here. The Blues will end the weekend in fourth, while United climbed up to 13th.

How the match unfolded

Van Nistelrooy's presence on the touchline emboldened the Theatre of Dreams, but Chelsea did an excellent job of taming the Old Trafford atmosphere in the opening exchanges by keeping the ball in the face of a 4-2-4 mid-block installed by the interim boss.

Chelsea were far too slick for the hosts when they opted to move through the gears, but hesitancy in the final third meant Andre Onana wasn't tested in the opening 45 minutes. Noni Madueke hit the post with a header from Cole Palmer's corner, while United's best moment of the first half arrived in stoppage time when Marcus Rashford clipped the crossbar with a first-time effort at the back post.

In truth, it was a half bereft of quality and laden with infuriating decision-making in dangerous transition moments. There could've only been an improvement after the break, but the desired upsurge in tempo and intensity didn't immediately arrive.

But then, out of the blue: something. Signs of life. Robert Sanchez just couldn't help himself as he attempted to deny Hojlund from rounding him, and his outstretched arms clipped the Dane's left boot which gave referee Rob Jones no choice but to award a penalty.

Bruno Fernandes made no mistake from 12 yards, but United's joy was short-lived as Chelsea quickly responded via a sublime volley from the excellent Moises Caicedo. The two goals could've set up a thrilling conclusion as Chelsea searched for all three points, but United remained a threat on the counter and may well have snatched it themselves.

However, outside of Fernandes' effort on the edge of the area which sailed into the Stretford End, there were a lack of clear-cut openings and a pretty sub-par encounter ended all-square. Neither side would've been worthy winners.

FCIQ

In a game of incredibly fine margins, it was two defensive midfielders who made the telling contributions: Casemiro and Caicedo. The former's excellent pass led to United's penalty, before the latter responded with a glorious strike from range to tie things up.

The pair proved the importance of having goal threats throughout a squad, providing moments of magic against hard-working defences to try and drag their respective sides to all three points.

Man Utd player ratings (4-2-3-1)

GK: Andre Onana - 5/10 - Beaten by an excellent finish and wasn't particularly busy from a shot-stopping perspective. The United midfielders weren't thrilled with some of his distribution either.

RB: Diogo Dalot - 7/10 - Matched up well against compatriot Neto, but didn't offer the Red Devils too much out other than some smart one-v-one defending.

CB: Matthijs de Ligt - 7/10 - The Dutchman struggled for balance throughout, but was sturdy enough in key defensive moments. Offered some poise with the ball.

CB: Lisandro Martinez - 6/10 - Perhaps could've jumped out of the defensive line to deal with Gusto and his advanced positioning, but otherwise did a pretty good job of taming a Chelsea attack that never clicked into gear at Old Trafford. More than fortunate to avoid a review of a late challenge which caught Palmer on the knee.

LB: Noussair Mazraoui - 8/10 - This was an assured performance from the do-it-all full-back, with Mazraoui performing well up against superior athletes in Madueke and Neto. Such a cool customer in possession, too. Rarely flustered.

CM: Manuel Ugarte - 5/10 - Had a couple of nice moments, including a divine raking pass out to the right flank in the second half. However, Ugarte also had a couple of head-scratching moments with the ball and rarely timed his attempts to pick off Chelsea passes well. Looked overwhelmed at times.

CM: Casemiro - 6/10 - Pulled away from the middle of the park by Palmer's savvy movement wide, and couldn't have a major influence in central areas as a result. The Brazilian, like his partner, was up-and-down, but he delivered a lovely pass in behind which led to United's penalty.

RM: Alejandro Garnacho - 6/10 - A frustrating outing for Garnacho, who couldn't deliver in front of goal. The Argentine's dynamism rendered him a threat throughout, and there's no denying that he was a handy outlet.

AM: Bruno Fernandes - 7/10 - Cool from the spot and got through a vast amount of defensive work. His influence with the ball was fairly subtle, but he did produce a few clever flicks to bypass pressure.

LM: Marcus Rashford - 6/10 - Drifted all over the pitch, but his best work came down the left. Produced one or two electric sequences but not much else and wasn't a willing tracker of Gusto in the first half.

ST: Rasmus Hojlund - 6/10 - Threw himself around and relished the physical duel, but his decision-making was poor in transition. Hojlund, though, did win the penalty which ignited the contest.

Substitutes

SUB: Amad Diallo (72' for Rashford) - 5/10

SUB: Joshua Zirkzee (83' for Hojlund) - 5/10

SUB: Victor Lindelof (84' for Ugarte) - 5/10

Subs not used: Altay Bayindir (GK), Jonny Evans, Ethan Wheatley, Harry Amass, Jayce Fitzgerald, Jack Fletcher

Manager

Ruud van Nistelrooy - 6/10 - United still looked pretty disjointed, but his 4-2-4 mid-block did limit the visitors somewhat. Far from perfect, but the performance wasn't disastrous and there was some sense of cohesion.

Chelsea player ratings (4-2-3-1)

GK: Robert Sanchez - 5/10 - The challenge on Hojlund was needless and it spoiled what was a pretty sound showing from the Chelsea goalkeeper.

RB: Malo Gusto - 4/10 - Positioning gave United all sorts of problems in the first half, but he could not make use of the situations he found himself in. Hooked at half-time.

CB: Wesley Fofana - 6/10 - Aggression did help Chelsea tame Hojlund, but he was caught out in the build-up to the penalty and his overzealousness hindered him on occasions.

CB: Levi Colwill - 5/10 - Could've moved the ball a little quicker, and wasn't exactly pristine defensively.

LB: Reece James - 6/10 - Utilised on both flanks, but never exited the back three when Chelsea had the ball. Impressed physically, but there were a couple of unforced errors with the ball.

CM: Moises Caicedo - 9/10 - Caicedo's equaliser may have been the standout moment, but this was an excellent performance excluding that strike. The Ecuadorian was a pest throughout, contributing efficiently to Chelsea's press and relentlessly disrupting United's build-up. Moved the ball, well, too, and was the best player on the pitch.

CM: Romeo Lavia - 6/10 - The young midfielder performed pretty well in Chelsea's midfield, even if his actions weren't as clean-cut as his partner. Lavia was scrappy in possession at times.

RM: Noni Madueke - 5/10 - Madueke's enjoyed a fine start to the season, but he was quiet here. The winger got no change out of the impressive Mazraoui.

AM: Cole Palmer - 7/10 - Didn't dominate from a free-roaming role, but did offer sequences of serious quality which made the game bearable before its intriguing conclusion. Not his usual ruthless self in the final third.

LM: Pedro Neto - 6/10 - Offered some hustle and bustle down both flanks, but squandered a couple of decent chances. A mixed bag.

ST: Nicolas Jackson - 5/10 - We didn't see much of Jackson at all in this one. The Senegalese international certainly didn't get a sniff of Onana's goal.

Substitutes

SUB: Marc Cucurella (46' for Gusto) - 6/10

SUB: Mykhaylo Mudryk (70' for Madueke) - 5/10

SUB: Enzo Fernandez (70' for Lavia) - 5/10

Subs not used: Filip Jorgensen (GK), Tosin Adarabioyo, Benoit Badiashile, Joao Felix, Christopher Nkunku, Renato Veiga

Manager

Enzo Maresca - 6/10 - Not sure what he's getting out of Gusto in an inside-right position. Anyway, he hooked him at the break, and his team was okay here outside of a ten-minute spell in the second half. Deserve credit for responding to going behind.

Player of the match: Moises Caicedo (Chelsea)

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