(Kalou 80') (Park Ji Sung 18')
We could have easily put the blame on the bad day. First, we lost Deco during the warm-up, then Carvalho got some problem with his knee and had to hobble off the pitch after just 15mins. Ballack and Alex were worthy replacements to bring on, but the side never really got going.
Suddenly, it was all back to the side that had problem creating / scoring.
Man Utd started with a game plan and it worked well for them. The presence of Park / Fletcher / Hargreaves nullified the runs made by Bosingwa and Ashley Cole, and a goal came pretty early in the game. Evra picked out Berbatov and the Bulgarian's shot was pushed away by Cech only for Park Ji Sung to tap it into the net. The unlikely scorer for Man Utd had a huge influence on the game as he ran tirelessly up and down the pitch for the team. Personally, I felt it all went downhill when he was being replaced by O'Shea with 15mins to go in the game.
Chelsea were expected to win this game, and they could have if they were more clinical in front of goal. In fact, they would have won the game by 2 or 3 more goals if Anelka and Joe Cole took their chances.
Culprit #1 - Joe Cole
Joe Cole had a glorious chance to put Chelsea ahead early in the game, but his shot just skimmed past the near post. In the later part of the game, Joe Cole was found wanting again in a 1v1 situation against the keeper, when he hit the ball with his weaker left foot straight at Kuszczak.
And the biggest culprit of all, Culprit #2 - Anelka
I think he would have done better if he played with his eyes open more often
Joe Cole did all the hard work and delivered a ball into the penalty area, just for Anelka to lose his concentration at the critical moment, and the ball went through his legs. It hasn't happened for Anelka at Chelsea, and I don't think it ever will.
Kalou has proven his worth by nodding in the equaliser just minutes after getting off the bench. Mikel floated in a ball from a free kick, and Kalou got off his marker and nodded in a free header into the net. If there was anything for Anelka to take away from this game, it would be the lesson on how to score 3 ft away from the goal line.
The game came to an abrupt end when Drogba was being fouled by Ferdinand just outside the penalty box. The referee blew his whistle, and the latter just walked away from the scene. I thought a free kick was given, but apparently the game was over. Quite an anti-climax to the high tempo game.
Chelsea is now 2nd with 11pts, 6pts ahead of Man Utd who have a game in hand.
And guess what, Arsenal is now on top of the table with 12pts. I wonder how long they can last this time round.
**All pictures were from Getty Images**
