David McDonnell's Big Match Verdict: Chelsea lose at Old Trafford but give glimpse of exciting future under Villas-Boas
Rarely does a manager leave Manchester United after such a heavy defeat as emboldened and positive as Andre Villas-Boas.
Losing at Old Trafford by a significant margin is usually a chastening experience, a reminder of a manager’s own shortcomings as well as those of his players.
But for Villas-Boas and his Chelsea players, there was no shame in yesterday’s defeat, no time for self-recrimination or finger-pointing over where it all went wrong.
For Chelsea’s expansive, enterprising style, which included 21 attempts on target to United’s 12, offered a tantalising glimpse of the future of the club under their dynamic and progressive young boss.
Had Fernando Torres not produced a humiliating miss and had Chelsea shown a more clinical edge in front of the target, the outcome would have been very different.
As it was, United had five chances on target and converted three of them, while Chelsea managed eight, but only made one of them count. Statistics can distort the true picture, but what was indisputable was Chelsea played far better than the final scoreline suggested.
“It takes some balls for the players to play this kind of game when they come back for the second-half,” said Villas-Boas, whose post-match analysis was punctuated by smiles, not the usual pained expression from managers vanquished by United. “I believe in the way we are playing and that is to the benefit of everyone. We tried to attack as much as we could. It was something compulsory for us.”
In short, yesterday saw the dawning of a new, vibrant Chelsea. Not for Villas-Boas the cautious approach adopted by Jose Mourinho, his mentor at Porto.
Yesterday Chelsea played with a verve and elan that suggested owner Roman Abramovich might finally have found the manager to satisfy his desire for fantasy football.
Such an approach yielded nothing in terms of points, but that had more to do with Chelsea’s defensive shortcomings and their lack of a killer touch in front of goal than the bold, attack-minded nature of Villas-Boas’s team selection.
The 33-year-old also showed he is not afraid to make tough decisions, taking off the ineffectual Frank Lampard at half-time and replacing him with Nicolas Anelka, who made an immediate impact by providing an exquisite assist for Torres a minute after the restart.
Having started with a 4-3-3 formation, Juan Mata and Daniel Sturridge supporting lone striker Torres, Villas-Boas responded to United taking a 3-0 lead at the break by switching to 4-2-3-1.
With Mata operating just behind Torres, the change yielded chance after chance for Chelsea, Torres proving the wisdom of the cliche that form is temporary, class is permanent by scoring with a sublime finish, only to shift the focus from that with a horrendous miss.
Having rounded United keeper David De Gea with a clever dummy to leave the goal at his mercy, Torres completely missed the target. His expression of incredulity and embarrassment said it all.
“You have to be fair,” said Villas-Boas. “Two of the world’s best strikers missed great opportunities today.
“It happened to Fernando but it happened to Rooney too, when he missed a penalty.
“A 3-2 scoreline at that time would maybe have given us a mental edge for the rest of the game. But I was pleased with the way the team reacted to such a negative situation at half-time. You can’t say the team was playing awfully.”
Villas-Boas was right. Sir Alex Ferguson admitted United were “careless” in the first-half and were carved open far too easily.
Yet it remains to be seen whether such a bold approach can win the title. Sometimes, pragmatism is a virtue worth embracing. The Special One’s two Premier League titles at Chelsea are testimony to that.
Manchester Utd 3-1 Chelsea: Torres in miss of century as champions win
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