Premier League: United Flatten Chelsea and Qualify for the Champions League!

Manchester United played host to London side Chelsea FC in the penultimate match of the Premier League season earlier today at Old Trafford. United and manager Erik ten Hag knew they needed just one point from this match in order to finish in the top-4 and qualify for the Champions League next season. Contrarily, Chelsea and interim manager Frank Lampard came into the match with very little to play for. It has been an absolutely dismal season by their illustrious standards, as they find themselves in the bottom of half of the table and floundering in 12th place. Lampard fielded an exceptionally young side for this match, probably in an attempt to get some of the younger players experienced going into next year. Given that United have been nearly unbeatable at the Theatre of Dreams this season, most expected the Red Devils to get the result needed and seal the last available CL spot.

The first half was an odd one, but nevertheless overall positive for United. They got the first goal just 6 minutes in, thanks to a well-placed header from midfielder Casemiro. United won a free kick on the left wing, which was played into the box by fellow midfielder Christian Eriksen. No one was near Casemiro when he got his head to it, and after a quick VAR check for offside the goal was permitted to stand. Chelsea keeper Kepa Arrizabalaga had no chance. It wasn’t a technically complicated goal, just poor marking by the Chelsea defense and a good quality ball over the top by Eriksen. Casemiro has now scored in consecutive matches, while also rediscovering some of his magnificent form in his role as a defensive midfielder from earlier in the season.

Chelsea dominated the next 30-35 minutes after that though. They created a litany of chances, but I have to sit back and laugh at their comically poor finishing during this period of the match. Several players missed gilt-edged chances, including winger Mykhailo Mudryk and striker Kai Havertz. Chelsea were doing extremely well to get the ball forward and at getting it into dangerous areas, but they really should have finished some of their chances. They were doing everything right in terms of opening up the United defense, but they couldn’t hit the back of the net to save their lives! This period of play was a microcosm of Chelsea’s awful season: good play in the build-up and chance creation, but atrocious finishing. There was another concern for United when winger Antony dos Santos went down injured after a fairly innocuous-looking challenge, and he was stretchered off and replaced by striker Marcus Rashford. Well wishes to Antony on a speedy recovery.

The Blues’ misery was further compounded however deep in first half stoppage time. Casemiro brought the ball forward and played a sensational no-look, chipped pass out to his right and into the feet of winger Jadon Sancho. Sancho was in a bit of space and looked like he might shoot, but he wisely played it across to the unmarked striker Anthony Martial who tapped in for 2-0 with Kepa stranded. An excellent passing move that was truly against the run of play! Well done to Casemiro and Martial, but special credit to Sancho for making the right decision. He has consistently had struggles with making the right decision at the right time this season, as he usually dawdles on the ball and the chance goes begging. This time though he got it exactly right! 2-0 United at half time, with Chelsea likely demoralized given their opportunities to score.

The second half was much more dominant from United. Midfielder Bruno Fernandes went close first, striking the angle of the crossbar/post after center back Victor Lindelof did well to win the ball high up the pitch. Chelsea were not strong on the ball, but they did well to keep United from scoring again for about 30 minutes or so. However, United did get the decisive 3rd goal on 73 minutes from the penalty spot. Bruno was dancing on the left side of the penalty box, and he beat Chelsea right back Wesley Fofana with a nutmeg. Fofana then stuck a leg out though and tripped Bruno, and of course Bruno went down as if he’d been shot. Referee Stuart Atwell pointed to the spot, and there wasn’t much complaining from the Chelsea players. Bruno stepped up and sent Kepa the wrong way with a low finish to his right. 3-0, and United were now confidently on their way to the top-4!

They weren’t finished however! Just 5 minutes later, Fofana played a ball across his own box that was wayward, and it allowed Bruno to pounce on the ball. He crossed it back towards Rashford in the center of the area, and his touch took it past the last Chelsea defender. Kepa did well to stick out his left leg and save the initial shot, but the rebound fell straight to Rashford. He took it around Kepa with ease and had a tap-in from about a yard out. 4-0! Utter domination in the second half and a thorough beat down of a (usually) competitive rival. A special shoutout to Rashford on scoring his 30th goal in all competitions this season! He is the first United player with a 30 goal season since Robin Van Persie exactly ten years ago.

Chelsea got a consolation goal on 89 minutes from forward João Félix after a fine run and finish which ruined keeper David De Gea’s clean sheet, but it was nothing more than a consolation. This was United’s day through and through. Realistically they could have have had 5 or 6 goals today. Substitute winger Alejandro Garnacho struck the crossbar late on, and substitute midfielder Scott McTominay had a close-range effort saved by Kepa in stoppage time. Atwell blew his whistle shortly after that and United were through to the Champions League next season!

United also moved into 3rd place for the time being, two points ahead of 4th placed Newcastle. There is still one match to play for all teams on Sunday, but the heavy lifting has now been done. 5th-placed Liverpool can no longer mathematically catch them, and the Scousers can look forward to spending their Thursday nights playing in the Europa League next season. It would be nice if United beat Fulham in their remaining match next Sunday to lock up 3rd place, but 3rd vs. 4th matters little in this context. Top-4 was the goal for ETH and the lads at the beginning of the season, and they’ve locked it up with a match to spare. The club can look forward to the revenue generated from these European matches, along with being more easily able to attract top-level talent in the summer. Given how this season started for United with consecutive losses, to be where we are is nothing short of a magnificent achievement for this manager and group of players.

United’s final match of the season is not until June 3rd when they play in the FA Cup Final against Manchester City at Wembley. Due to the importance of the fixture, it will be interesting to see how ETH manages the last Prem game on Sunday. Fulham have naught to play for similar to United, so will he rest all of his usual starters? Will he keep them out there to continue momentum? Either way, the match against City will be extraordinarily difficult. United and Inter Milan are the only two clubs standing between them and the Treble.

I will do a match report for Fulham and the FA Cup Final, and I think I will do another post about the prospective sale of the club early on in the close season. This season is already much, much better than the last one though. Thank you, Mr. Erik ten Hag and his coaching staff!

Glory Glory Man United! Glazers Out!

Euro Qualifier: England Cruise Past Ukraine

The Three Lions played host to Ukraine earlier today at Wembley Stadium in their second qualifier for Euro 2024 in Germany. Having already gotten off to a fantastic start against Italy, England would be looking to do the same against a potentially tricky Ukrainian team. There is no single group of players who have more team unity and collective spirit than Ukraine right now. They know that most of the Western world, aside from their immediate opponents of course, would be hoping that they do well during qualification so that their people could have something to celebrate. The pre-match festivities were centered on the struggle of Ukraine in their war against Russia, and the English FA was also hosting a charity drive to help the victims of the war. When you pair that “bunker” mentality and spirit with talents like striker Mykhailo Mudryk and winger Oleksandr Zinchenko, this match could easily turn into a long day at the office for England. Managers Andriy Shevchenko and Gareth Southgate would have expected both their teams to put up a strong fight.

Unfortunately, the one word that sums up most of this match was “tepid”. This is the first game I have watched in ages between any two teams where not much really happened. There was so much inaction for the opening 35 minutes or so that the camera operators were more frequently showing the joyous Ukraine supporters dancing around than anything happening on the pitch. England were the better side in terms of possession and pushing forward, but they were only creating half-chances at best. Ukraine was doing even less, as they were often struggling to get out of their own half.

England pushed themselves into the lead however on 37 minutes when the newly-crowned all time leader in England goals, Harry Kane, rose over the head of his marker to poke home a cross from winger/forward Bukayo Saka. England had been threatening for a few minutes prior to the goal, but they finally got the ball over the line via Kane. Not a super remarkable goal, but a good cross from Saka and good positioning and strength from Kane. He now has 55 goals in an England shirt, and that tally will only continue to rise. The only question people have about Kane now is how many he’s going to have by the time he retires.

England capitalized on their dominance again just three minutes later, and it seemed the Ukrainians were mentally rattled a little bit. Saka did most of the work by himself this time. He collected a short pass from midfielder Jordan Henderson on the right wing just outside the box, then shrugged off his marker with relative ease. After taking a touch or two, he unleashed a beautiful curling shot from about 20 yards out that flew into the opposite top corner. Ukraine keeper Anatoliy Trubin could do nothing but pick it out of his own net afterwards. His defenders let him down by allowing Saka to have so much space. It was a truly wonderful strike from a player in absolutely top form right now. Saka is having an amazing season at the club level, and his form has carried over to the national team. 2-0 to England, and they were feeling very comfortable indeed.

Shevchenko would have wanted a response from his men in the second half, but it never really materialized. Aside from some instances where England were forced into key defensive tackles, the Ukrainians never really got going at any point. It’s disappointing from their point of view. Talent-wise they should be challenging teams like England, but they looked very disjointed with their passing today. Not a lot of direction or purpose about them, and they weren’t communicating well at all. There were times when it looked like none of the Ukrainians had met one another before. As the clock ticked closer to full time, England looked much more likely to get a 3rd goal than the Ukrainians were to pulling one back. I don’t think they even registered a shot on Jordan Pickford’s goal. The second half was frankly boring, aside from a few England half-chances towards the end. Shevchenko has a lot of work to do with this group if they want to qualify for next summer’s tournament.

The final whistle blew without much fanfare, and the England lads celebrated an efficient victory. England have 6 out of 6 points from their first two matches, and that was objective number one for Southgate and his players. There weren’t a ton of goals scored in either match, but this one was an improvement over the Italy match on Thursday if only because the Three Lions were much more in control over the entirety of the match. Two very strong matches defensively. I would have liked to see one more scored against Ukraine today to really underline England’s superiority, but having sole possession of the lead in Group C with some easier matches coming up is certainly nothing to complain about. Southgate will be happy with the result, especially given he was without several normal starters who withdrew from the squad either due to injury or other reasons. He will be happy that he has the strength in depth necessary to get wins even without those star players. Good games from Kane, Saka, attacking midfielder James Maddison, and the England defense as a collective.

The international break is now over, which means that all the players return to their clubs for the final sprint to the finish of the season. England next play on June 16, 2023 away to Malta in another Euro 2024 qualifier. The next match I will be recapping is Manchester United away to Newcastle on April 2nd in the Premier League.

Three Lions on the Shirts!