Marc Cucurella kept Chelsea’s Champions League hopes alive with another important goal as the Blues secured a 1-0 win over Manchester United on Friday night. The Spaniard headed home from close range in the 71st minute after Reece James chipped his cross to the back post.
Ruben Amorim has made it no secret that the Europa League final is his priority for the remainder of the season, but the Portuguese boss will be disappointed with how his side offered very little in the final third and faded out of the game after a bright opening 20 minutes.
Express Sport takes you through how each United player performed on the night…
Andre Onana: 6
Made a meal of Cole Palmer’s strike in the first half and his long distribution still remains a problem. Could do very little about the goal.
Noussair Mazraoui: 5
Struggled to deal with the pace and energy of Noni Madueke and allowed Cucurella to stroll into the box unmarked for the all-important goal. Capable of more at boths ends of the pitch. Booked.
Victor Lindelof: 6
A very ordinary performance by the Swedish international. Dealt with several crosses well but was caught flat-footed for the goal. Needs to step up in Bilbao to make a greater impact.
Harry Maguire: 7
Led by example in the heart of Amorim’s back three. Built out from the back well and was unfortunate not to have opened the scoring with a neat volley. Remains one of the few shining lights in this United squad.
Luke Shaw: 6
Still working towards full fitness but is starting to find his feet on the left of the back three. The England international has the ideal skillset for the role in Amorim’s system, and a full pre-season will do him the world of good.
Patrick Dorgu: 5
Remains an incredibly raw player. The left wing-back has bags of pace, holds his width well and makes the right runs, but with the ball at his feet, struggles to pick the right pass. The ex-Lecce star often finds himself having to make up yards defensively due to his shaky early positioning.
Casemiro: 6
Quietly protected his backline well, reading danger well and breaking up play. His final pass let him down at times as he looked to play the ball in behind the high Chelsea backline. Substituted early with Tottenham in mind.
Mason Mount: 7
Energetic performance from the ex-Chelsea star, who appeared to be spurred on by the boos. Pressed well throughout and broke up play when dropping alongside Casemiro. Booked.
Bruno Fernandes: 6
Not his most influential performance but attempted to create chances in deeper areas. Defended well, especially after his early booking.
Amad Diallo: 4
Quiet performance from the winger at both ends of the pitch. Appeared reluctant to take on Marc Cucurella and struggled to link up play when cutting inside, whilst also failing to help out Mazraoui defensively. Booked for diving.
Ramus Hojlund: 3
Another ineffective performance by the striker. Lacked service at times but very rarely made himself an option, giving Levi Colwill and Tosin Adarabioyo a very easy time. The forward appears drained of confidence and every action lacks any sort of belief.