Man United vs Chelsea LIVE: Premier League result and final score as Cristiano Ronaldo salvages point
Manchester United 1-1 Chelsea: Marcos Alonso’s opener was cancelled out by Ronaldo
Cristiano Ronaldo’s fifth goal in three games salvaged a point for Manchester United in a 1-1 draw against Chelsea on Thursday that further damaged his team’s chances of a top-four finish in the Premier League.
Ronaldo ran onto a ball over the Chelsea defense from Nemanja Matic and delivered a clinical finish in the 62nd minute, two minutes after Marcos Alonso gave the visitors the lead.
Reece James later curled a shot against the post for Chelsea, which dominated the first half but found United goalkeeper David de Gea in fine form.
With only three games left to play in the league, United stayed in sixth place — five points behind fourth-place Arsenal and having played two matches more than its rival for Champions League qualification.
Tottenham is between the two teams, in the fifth spot, with three more points than United and two games in hand.
Chelsea consolidated third place and is six points above Arsenal.
Ronaldo came into the game having scored a hat trick against Norwich and another goal against Arsenal in his previous two games.
On 17 goals, Ronaldo is tied with Son Heung-min in second place in the Premier League scoring chart behind Mohamed Salah.
Cristiano Ronaldo snatches point for Manchester United against Chelsea
What could have been a third consecutive Premier League defeat to equal a club record was instead Ralf Rangnick’s first point against a top-four opponent since taking interim charge of Manchester United. Yet on a night when fresh questions emerged over Rangnick’s level of involvement in next season’s cultural reset, United relied upon the same old foundations that predated his arrival: David de Gea’s saves and a goal by Cristiano Ronaldo.
Chelsea should treat this as two points dropped given that they were vastly superior to their hosts until Marcos Alonso’s volley on the hour mark gave them a lead that they almost immediately surrendered. Thomas Tuchel will be disappointed not to have moved a step closer to securing a top-four finish and a place in next season’s Champions League but that will surely come sooner or later.
Even after escaping with a point they hardly deserved, United cannot say the same. Top four remains a mathematical possibility but even that infinitesimal chance could be extinguished in the next round of league fixtures. For an hour, Chelsea demonstrated the clear gulf in quality between these two sides and the work Erik ten Hag will need to do in order to turn his new employers into a contender again.
Cristiano Ronaldo snatches Manchester United point against Chelsea
Manchester United 1-1 Chelsea: Marcos Alonso gave the Blues the lead after controlling the game for long spells at Old Trafford
Thomas Tuchel speaking to Sky Sports
Thomas Tuchel says that Reece James had a great game for Chelsea but the team were left ruing the chances that they missed. He said: “One team deserved to win and that was us. We didn’t take it. It was a very, very good performance but we were not decisive enough. We lacked a bit of determination in the box to win the game.
“It sometimes happens. It’s on us to learn from it. You need to be clinical to get the reward. We have to live with a point but it’s not a fair result.
“We worked so hard to get the lead and suddenly the opponent gets one free shot and scores. Reece James played a very good match and Mason Mount unlucky with his decisions.”
Reaction from Matic
Manchester United’s Nemanja Matic, spoke to Sky Sports after the game saying: “It was an improvement. We played against a very good team. Maybe they had more opportunities than us but 1-1 is a fair result.
“Tonight looked much better than last couple of weeks. We showed that we didn’t give up and showed good character. So it was a good reaction from our team.”
Man Utd 1 - 1 Chelsea
Manchester United have only won once win in six games now across all competitions. This draw means they can only reach 64 points this season if they manage to win their last three games.
Man Utd 1 - 1 Chelsea
Cristiano Ronaldo scored his 101st Premier League goal tonight to earn Man Utd a point. Will he fit into Erik ten Hag’s plans next season?
Man Utd 1 - 1 Chelsea
Manchester United against Chelsea is now the outright most drawn fixture in Premier League history, with 25 of the meetings between the sides ending level.
Full-time: Man Utd 1 - 1 Chelsea
90+3 mins: As it was at Stamford Bridge the game ends in a 1-1 draw at Old Trafford. Marcos Alonso put the visitors in front and Cristiano Ronaldo rescued a point for United less than two minutes after they went behind.
Chelsea’s eight game winning run away from hom comes to an end.
Man Utd 1 - 1 Chelsea
90 mins: Three minutes of added time to play. Alejandro Garnacho comes of for Man Utd replacing Anthony Elanga. What a time to come on for the youngster.
Man Utd 1 - 1 Chelsea
89 mins:A high foot from Rudiger catches Elanga as the Chelsea defender clears the ball. Elanga is hit on the back of the head and stays down to receive some treatment. He’ll be okay to play on.
Man Utd 1 - 1 Chelsea
86 mins: Man Utd break on the counter-attack and Anthony Elanga does great to shake of a couple of defenders on his way into Chelsea’s final third. He lays the ball off to Bruno Fernandes and gets fouled by Antonio Rudiger.
United’s free kick comes swinging into the box but they can’t turn the set piece into an opportunity to shoot.
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