Beating Manchester United at Old Trafford has become an extremely difficult task for Chelsea over the past 11 years. Now it’s Enzo Maresca’s turn to try to put an end to this sad record, and it’s really important that he passes this test.
Chelsea had difficulties on the road in the northwest. They haven’t beaten the Red Devils away in the Premier League since May 2013. Yes, over 11 years since their last league victory.
That came thanks to Juan Mata, also formerly of Man United, who deflected the goal in the 87th minute to earn a 1-0 victory for Chelsea and Rafa Benitez, who won the Europa League later that month.
Since then, Man United are unbeaten in their last 11 home league matches against Chelsea – winning five and drawing six. Sunday’s encounter gives United the opportunity to make it three wins in a row against the Blues at Old Trafford for the first time since 1957.
Maresca is defeated Manchester City And Liverpool already this season. Chelsea are not yet in a position to challenge for the league title, but in both performances they have shown signs of progress and are capable of competing in the long term. They now face United, who will be managed by Ruud van Nistelrooy following the dismissal of Erik ten Hag.
Six points separate Chelsea and Man United. Three points would be a big deal for the Blues for many reasons, and not just because of their horrible records at the ‘Theater of Dreams’.
On Saturday, Man City suffered a 2-1 defeat against AFC Bournemouth, while Arsenal lost 1-0 to Newcastle United at St. James’ Park, dealing a major blow to their title chances to allow Liverpool to extend his lead at the top of the rankings. .
If Chelsea collect all three points, they would overtake Arsenal by a clear two points and could finish the weekend in third place depending on the result of Aston Villa’s meeting with Tottenham Hotspur.
Arsenal await in the Premier League next weekend for Chelsea, so a victory on the road could perfectly set them up to build a comfortable gap on their London rivals before the November international break.
Nicolas Jackson and Cole Palmer will prove vital to their chances of success at Old Trafford. Chelsea will need to be clinical in front of goal, while hoping Moises Caicedo and Romeo Lavia win and comfortably control the midfield battle.
Maresca will no doubt fine-tune his tactics and systems to deal with the threats United pose, but it will be a big test of Chelsea’s full-time credentials. If they manage to get through the 90 minutes and claim victory, a huge weight will be lifted, both to end their winless match record at Old Trafford and to climb the table in their bid to qualify for the League of Champions.
