Manchester United’s Premier League woes continued into yet another week after tonight’s 1-1 draw with Chelsea at Old Trafford.
It’s now a waiting game for both the players and fans as they anticipate the delayed arrival of new head coach Ruben Amorim, who is poised to take the reins during the mid-month international break. Until then, Ruud van Nistelrooy is doing his utmost to record some much-needed wins after a dismal start to the campaign.
Yet, the Reds finish matchweek 10 in 13th place, six points away from the Champions League places, which are currently occupied by Liverpool, Manchester City, Nottingham Forest and Chelsea. Their nine goals scored and 12 conceded make for a deplorable goal difference of minus three, with the squad only able to add one to each side throughout Sunday’s affairs.
Bruno Fernandes’ 70th-minute spot-kick conversion was almost immediately rendered in vain when Moises Caicedo levelled the scoring just four minutes later. Of United’s 11 shots, only four troubled Robert Sanchez.
Dependable Mazraoui lauded for Chelsea showing
It’s tricky to pick out the positives from such a stale encounter – the primary one being that it wasn’t a loss, of course. But amidst the club’s tumultuous form thus far, one Red has established himself as a reliable and dynamic addition to the crop of players: Noussair Mazraoui.
The Moroccan finished the match with a 92 per cent passing accuracy. He won six tackles, made six passes into the final third and completed five take-ons – the most by any defender in a Premier League game this season. As well as that, he notched two interceptions, two clearances and won two fouls, according to StatmanDave.
Laurie Whitwell of The Athletic hailed Mazraoui’s ‘aggression and quality’ against the Blues, adding that he was Van Nistelrooy’s ‘best performer’ on the night. Given that the 26-year-old cost only £12.8 million when moving from Bayern Munich in August, he’s proving to be a remarkably shrewd piece of business.
