FIVE ASIDES Premier League: United 1, Chelsea 1
After all those defeats, a draw is a small mercy. But let’s face it, United hardly deserved it. Chelsea would have been 3-0 up at half-time if Havertz and Werner had put on their finishing boots. And this was United’s tenth league draw of the season – the most of any team in the top eight. Seven of those ten have come under Ralf Rangnick, who has also drawn three of his five cup fixtures. Overall he has drawn as many as games he has won (ten apiece). The results don’t lie: he hasn’t been bold enough. Why he is sticking around, when he has accepted a job managing Austria, is hard to fathom. Since we called for him to be replaced by Michael Carrick on April 3, United have played five games and scraped four points, three of them against Norwich. Carrick wouldn’t have been able to stop Liverpool in full flow, but he might well have managed a win at Everton and a draw at Arsenal. And United would still be fourth. They picked the right interim manager this season – only to replace him, after three successful games, with the wrong one.
Cristiano Ronaldo grabbed the headlines yet again with a fine finish, but the chance was created by a delicious chip from Nemanja Matic. In this dismal month, Matic has stood out, and stood up. With the rest of the midfield going missing – Fred injured, Paul Pogba injured, Bruno Fernandes out of form, Scott McTominay first injured then out of form – Matic has been as combative as ever and more creative. Last night he topped United’s charts for shot-creating actions (three) and progressive passes (seven). He’s leaving with his head held high and his eye on a through ball.
Given all the injuries, Rangnick had a weak hand, but he still managed to play it badly. He waited till half-time to do anything about the rampaging Reece James, who was man of the match by a mile – partly because United gave him acres of space. Juan Mata, who should have started, was under-employed yet again, given only a quarter of an hour off the bench. He used it well, showing some fight and completing every pass he attempted. Rangnick did bring on Alejandro Garnacho, giving the crowd the warm feeling of witnessing a debut by a 17-year-old, but a debut doesn’t mean much if it only arrives in stoppage time. Garnacho didn’t receive the ball once. His only touches came from Antonio Rudiger, who gave him several patronising pats on the back.
Against Brentford on Monday, Rangnick has to shake things up. Give Fernandes a rest. Hand his place to Mata, and make him captain too for his final home game. (Don’t listen to Roy Keane’s line that it’s wrong to play people who are leaving, which he trotted out even when Matic had just disproved it.) Bring back Fred, the one player to improve under Rangnick. Give Hannibal Mejbri a start ahead of Anthony Elanga or Marcus Rashford, who are both struggling. Put Edinson Cavani on the bench and bring him on for the last half-hour. Play Jesse Lingard if he’s available. Put Fred or Matic on Christian Eriksen, now back to his eloquent best.
And here’s one for the management: let Rangnick go to Austria full-time. Having him as a consultant, on top of John Murtough and Darren Fletcher, was always a half-arsed idea. It smacked of some smart negotiation by Rangnick, who understandably wanted to make sure he wasn’t left out of a job, but that’s no longer an issue. For all his successes as a director of football, he has failed as a United manager, so it’s time to say Auf wiedersehen.