Manchester Unied Defeats Chelsea, McTominay Saves Erik Ten Hag Again

Manchester United midfielder Scott McTominay celebrated a goal with Bruno Fernandes in the match against Chelsea. (Twitter @ManUtd)

JAKARTA - Midfielder Scott McTominay brought Manchester United to an important 2-1 win over Chelsea in a big match in the English Premier League at Old Trafford Stadium, Thursday, December 7 in the morning WIB. McTominay also saved the face of manager Erik ten Hag.

I don't know what will happen if MU gets a buyer for McTominay. Yes, Ten Hag intends to release the captain of the Scottish national team because he feels he already has Casemiro who impressed the previous season.

The duet of the former Real Madrid player with Christian Eriksen is the first choice for the anchor midfield position. Moreover, he was able to guarantee as a balancer for the game of the Red Devils.

But this season Casemiro even flops. He is more often injured and plays poorly. Even this veteran Brazilian team midfielder is starting to easily get a red card.

Meanwhile, Eriksen was more often injured so he could no longer be a mainstay. As a result, McTominay, which is to be sold, is even Ten Hag's hope to occupy the pivotal midfielder position.

The trust given was not wasted. Even though McTominay was once removed by Ten Hag. He also received the smallest salary even though he had contributed to the team.

More than that, McTominay is MU's coaching product. He was also one of the few players from the academy who could penetrate the first team.

His love for the club, which makes the 26-year-old player still receive even though he gets a small salary before finally being increased several times in his new contract.

McTominay is not the first time to save Ten Hag. Last October when they hosted Brentford, MU was already 1-0 behind. Even MU is predicted to lose because the score did not change towards the end of the match.

However, when entering injury time, McTominay immediately scored a brace that turned things around. MU won 2-1 at the last moment.

Now, McTominay repeats its success when Manchester United host Chelsea. And, for the first time, the Red Devils were able to win over big six members.

Previously, MU always lost against other teams from big six such as Arsenal, Tottenham Hotspur, and Manchester City.

Victory over Chelsea at least secured Ten Hag's position. Although there were no rumors of dismissal, Ten Hag was confirmed to still handle the three-time Champions League champions.

In addition, the additional three points from the match led MU to improve its position. Now, MU is ranked sixth with 27.

Same as Tottenham Hotspur, but they lost on goal difference. Tottenham also still have one game. Both teams are also nine points behind Arsenal who are at the top of the table.

Meanwhile, Chelsea itself is the only big six member who is still stuck in the middle board. This West London club is in 10th position with 19.

In that match, MU, who tried to get up after losing 1-0 to Newcastle United, immediately took the initiative to attack.

They showed their dominance and were able to release 28 shots into the Chelsea goal which was guarded by Robert Sanchez.

Even MU actually had to take the lead when the game had only been running for nine minutes. They were awarded a penalty following a foul on Antony in the restricted area.

It's just that captain Bruno Fernandes failed to execute a penalty. His shot could be saved by goalkeeper Sanchez.

But 10 minutes later, McTominay made no mistake by breaking into the Blues' goal.

The goal started with a ball throwing up following defender Harry Maguire's shot in the block. McTominay showed a quick reaction by grabbing the ball with a left foot kick.

McTominay really starred and taught Marcus Rashford how to score. He got two chances that could have been converted into a goal. But those two chances could have been thwarted by Sanchez.

Unfortunately, MU's advantage did not last long. Towards the end of the first half, Chelsea forward Cole Palmer equalized to 1-1.

Palmer, who is a United fan and this is the first time he has played at Old Trafford, showing an action past defender Victor Lindelof before beating goalkeeper Andre Onana.

Entering the second half, MU continued to appear dominant. They controlled the game and had several chances to score goals.

MU's efforts finally paid off. And, McTominay, who broke into Chelsea's goal again in the 69th minute.

His header which met Alejandro Garnacho's cross successfully changed the score to 2-1. This is the fifth gl of McTominay this season.

After winning, MU did not lower the tempo of the game. It's just that no goals were created until the end of the match. MU also returned to the track of winning and crawling to the top.