Manchester United and Chelsea faced off in an FA Cup fifth-round tie on Monday night. The Red Devils were virtually out of the top four race in the first half of the season but interim manager Ole Gunnar Solksjaer has shown class since his arrival, winning ten out of 12 games. Maurizio Sarri, on the other hand, has been having quite a tough time. A 4-0 defeat to Bournemouth and a 6-0 thrashing against Manchester City has seen his side slip to sixth place in the Premier League table.
Although Sarri has faced questions that around whether he can make his system work at Chelsea, the Italian remained adamant in his pre-match press conference that Chelsea’s players haven’t been able to adapt to his style of football. Coming into this tie, Manchester United won all six of their away games away games under Solksjaer, and it was the man who has been revitalised under the Norweigan that put in a star performance tonight – Paul Pogba.
Paul Pogba Shines as Manchester United Reach FA Cup Quarter-Finals
Quick Out of the Blocks
A thunderous first-half performance saw Manchester United storming into a 2-0 lead through goals from Ander Herrera and Pogba. The match started evenly, both teams were testing each other’s limit and patience. Sudden bursts of pace and a few shots from outside the box were a rare sight. Gonzalo Higuain and Eden Hazard beautifully tried to combine in the box only to see Victor Lindelof arriving at the last moment.
However, a crafty movement from Pogba was utilized brilliantly by Herrera, who headed the ball home. The second goal was a matter of patience and footballing mind for academy boy Marcus Rashford. After carrying the ball to the left of the box, he waited for the right moment for Pogba to get in the box and lifted an exquisite cross into the area. What met it was a venomous header from the Frenchman to double the visitors’ lead.
Tension in the Air
The second half started with a bit of tension on both sides. Willian came on in the 58th minute as Sarri planned to make things right. There was a bit of nasty play from Antonio Rudiger and N’Golo Kante as they both received yellow cards in a span of five minutes but that sort of urgency wasn’t matched by the manager – instead, he opted to replace Mateo Kovacic with Ross Barkley, a like-for-like change when they needed something different.
Barkley was the super sub, scoring an equalizer in the 96th minute to make the score 2-2 the last time Manchester United paid a visit to Stamford Bridge earlier in the season but, this time, United kept a tight defence to close the game at 2-0.
Differing Forms
Chelsea lacked the depth to finish the game and questions have been lurking around, such as how Maurizio Sarri can find success at Chelsea. Are his tactics failing to adapt to the system of the club? It is perhaps sometimes best to adapt to the club’s system for a brief amount of time, and then shift to a manager’s own style when he gets his own players in. Since his arrival, Sarri has been given Jorginho and Higuain, two former players in his Napoli team. Yet, it is an evident fact that Jorginho has rarely produced a Man of the Match performance for Chelsea. Instead, Sarri plays Jorginho in the deep-lying role, a natural position for Kante, with the Frenchman shifted from his original position, while Jorginho connects from the back.
On the other hand, Ole Gunnar Solksjaer ended the night on a higher note. A 2-0 loss to Paris Saint-Germain at Old Trafford last week in Champions League put the morale of the team down. However, United bounced back under the leadership of Paul Pogba to book a quarter-final place. A goal and an assist at such a crucial game proves yet again why he is the most complete footballer in the present squad. United will keep the morale high going into the Liverpool game on Sunday.
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