Casemiro rescue a point, Chelsea vs. Manchester United played 1-1 draw
Manchester United earned a point at Chelsea thanks to Casemiro’s stoppage-time header.
Brazil’s midfielder leveled by the smallest of margins, with goal-line technology correctly recognizing his attempt at Stamford Bridge.
Before the ricochet crossed the line, goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga grabbed the ball onto a post.
Jorginho’s late penalty appeared to have won Chelsea all three points, but Casemiro came up to equalize.
United’s undefeated record in all competitions now stands at six games, while Chelsea are yet to lose under new manager Graham Potter.
Former Brighton manager Potter’s undefeated run as Chelsea manager has now reached eight games.
Even though it was a close game, Chelsea remained fourth and United fifth in the Premier League rankings.
United manager Eric Ten Hag had anticipated that his tough stance on releasing Cristiano Ronaldo would galvanize his team.
Despite dominating the first half, the Red Devils were unable to score, but were able to salvage a point at the death.
Raphael Varane was driven to tears after suffering a leg injury that would put his World Cup position in jeopardy. In the second half, the France defender stumbled awkwardly and went off in exasperation.
As the reality of his injuries set in, the 29-year-old hid his face with his shirt before punching the corner flag.
The World Cup is less than a month away, and none of the players in contention for Qatar need reminding.
Varane was distraught and is now a significant uncertainty for France’s team.
Chelsea chose this match to promote Stonewall’s anti-discrimination Rainbow Laces campaign, with a slew of actions planned around it.
In contrast to the home team’s efforts tied to the long-running No To Hate campaign, United’s traveling fans broke into homophobic chants twice in west London.
United dominated the first half without breaking through, but Chelsea posed an occasional danger.
Arrizabalaga could breathe a sigh of relief as United squandered the corner he had surrendered cheaply owing to a blunder under little pressure.
After sprinting into space, Luke Shaw drove just wide from 18 yards, then Antony forced a superb stop from Kepa with a low, curling attempt.
United’s midfield dominance pushed Potter to reconsider early on, with the Blues manager hooking Marc Cucurella barely 35 minutes in.
Mateo Kovacic brought bite to central midfield, giving the hosts an early boost.
As Chelsea searched for a footing, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang had a low-power shot slip wide of a post, then failed to grab onto Raheem Sterling’s square pass in the box.
After the teams had wheeled around without scoring, Varane’s injury dominated the first half of the second half.
As the Blues sought to pile on the pressure, Trevoh Chalobah smacked a far-post header against the crossbar from a corner, and Scott McTominay then felled Armando Broja for the late penalty.
Jorginho scored again from the spot, but Chelsea couldn’t hang on as Casemiro sprang up to give United a share of the spoils.
Manchester United snatched a point with a stoppage-time equalizer as Chelsea were upset at Stamford Bridge.
The game in west London was far from exciting, despite United having the best of the first half, with Marcus Rashford and Antony failing to capitalize on good chances.
After a tight second period, Armando Broja was brought down from a corner with five minutes remaining, and the referee signaled to the spot, with Jorginho maintaining cool in sending David de Gea the wrong way.
However, in the fourth minute of added time, Casemiro’s header past Kepa and just about crossed the line, resulting in a 1-1 draw at Stamford Bridge.
United made a strong start at Stamford Bridge, boosted by their midweek triumph over Tottenham, and put Chelsea under serious strain. As the Blues fought to gain control, Kepa Arrizabalaga turned away an Antony attempt before racing off his line to deny Rashford.
United were so dominating that Graham Potter went to his bench after just 36 minutes to make a tactical move, taking Marc Cucurella off and replacing him with Mateo Kovacic to reinforce the midfield.
Trevoh Chalobah came close to breaking the deadlock from a set-piece, beating Fred in the air at the back post, but his header sailed over the bar. United’s attacking production was becoming increasingly restricted to Fernandes’ long-range attempts.
Jorginho appeared to have won it for the Blues in the closing minutes, when Scott McTominay took Broja down in the area just a few minutes after coming on. The Italian made no mistake right away.
Casemiro, on the other hand, delivered in front of the away end, his brilliant header going off the inside of the post and crossing the line by an inch.
