Man Utd heartbroken as Chelsea steal victory after extraordinary collapse at the death | Football | Sport
Manchester United conceded twice after the 97th minute against Chelsea to fall to an incredible 4-3 Premier League defeat on Thursday night. Sir Jim Ratcliffe watched on at Stamford Bridge as Cole Palmer’s hat-trick rescued the hosts after United had come back from two goals down.
Express Sport takes a look at four talking points as United’s hopes of Champions League qualification all but died within a few minutes at Stamford Bridge.
Cole Palmer sparks bedlam
Chelsea looked down and out after Alejandro Garnacho’s brace and Bruno Fernandes’ header fired United into a 3-2 lead after they trailed 2-0 in the first 20 minutes.
But Palmer continued his sensational first season with the Blues by netting twice from the penalty spot and scoring a 101st-minute winner to send Stamford Bridge into bedlam.
The 21-year-old has now been involved in 24 Premier League goals for Chelsea, more than any other player in their maiden season in the club’s history.
Harry Maguire explodes
Tensions spilt over between Harry Maguire and Ten Hag in the latter stages of the first half after Raphael Varane pulled up with his latest injury.
Maguire had signalled to the bench for the 30-year-old Frenchman to be replaced after identifying his issue. However, his calls went unanswered.
As Chelsea applied pressure on the United goal, the former United captain, audibly frustrated, ordered Ten Hag to make the change.
The Dutchman held off until half-time, though, before replacing Varane with Jonny Evans.
Erik ten Hag’s injuries worsen
However, Ten Hag’s injury woes didn’t take long to worsen through his latest blow at Stamford Bridge.
Only 20 minutes after stepping in for Varane, Evans pulled up with an issue of his own.
Willy Kambwala took his place alongside Maguire in the back line. They are the only two centre-backs available after Ten Hag also lost Lisandro Martinez and Victor Lindelof earlier this week.
Added to the fact he has no left-backs at his disposal, the United boss’ options look ominous ahead of Sunday’s clash against Liverpool at Old Trafford.
Antony and Alejandro Garnacho shine
Erik ten Hag took a huge risk by dropping Marcus Rashford to the bench in favour of Antony, who had yet to record a Premier League assist this season.
Garnacho was handed his 30th consecutive start, and he proved why he has become such an essential fixture in Ten Hag’s plans with his calmly-taken brace.
But, more importantly, Antony produced the goods again with a stunning trivela assist to tee up the winning goal.
It wasn’t enough to seal victory, but Ten Hag will be optimistic about the improvements in Antony’s game in recent weeks.
