MANCHESTER UNITED 1 CHELSEA 1
Manchester United - Van Persie 90' Chelsea - Drogba 53'
For Chelsea, this will definitely feel like two points dropped.
They have only failed to win two of nine games so far this season, both of them in Manchester, both to equalisers scored in the final 10 minutes.
They are still four points clear at the top of the English Premier League table, six clear of their nearest realistic challenger, Manchester City, and seemingly romping to the title.
Yet it could – perhaps should – have been even better than that.
At Crystal Palace last week, Chelsea were 2-0 up and cruising when a slew of defensive substitutions brought late pressure and a goal for Fraizer Campbell.
At the time it did not seem significant, but the pattern repeated again on Sunday and it had been the same story at the Etihad Satdium against City – and that was against 10 men.
That is the Jose Mourinho way: he has always sought to close games down when he has a lead. It is just that this season his side has developed a vulnerability – a slight one, admittedly, and one that almost certainly will not matter in the Premier League race, but something that could cost them in Europe.
Bringing on John Obi Mikel for Oscar on 67 minutes was logical, adding a more defensive player without radically altering the shape of the team, while also introducing further heft.
Bringing on Kurt Zuma for Willian in injury time denied Chelsea one of their runners and also necessitated a shift in formation.
Immediately, Angel Di Maria got in behind Branislav Ivanovic, who chopped him down to collect a second yellow card.
It was from the free kick Ivanovic conceded that Robin van Persie forced the equaliser.
Chelsea had a clear edge at set plays for the whole game and it was a classic near-post header from Didier Drogba, reminiscent of his equaliser against Bayern Munich in the 2012 Uefa Champions League final, that had given them the lead. But give a team chances to put the ball in the box and the opportunities will eventually get cashed in.
That it should be Chelsea’s defence that has proved – relatively – the weakness is something of a surprise. With Diego Costa and Loic Remy injured, Mourinho was forced to start with 36-year-old Didier Drogba as his central striker.
Drogba had been poor against Schalke in the Champions League and was quiet even playing 77 minutes in the 6-0 win over Maribor last week, but here he was more of a threat.
It was not just that he scored rushing Rafael out of the way as he would have dismissed defenders a decade ago, but he also provided an outlet, giving Chelsea the chance to go long if they needed to.
He had Chelsea’s best chance of the first half, hitting his shot straight at David De Gea from just inside the box after being picked out by an Oscar cut-back and, with a neat through-pass, he had created the chance for Eden Hazard that led to the decisive corner.
Perhaps Drogba would be less effective in a game Chelsea dominated, his lack of movement and pace rendering him a far lesser force against a packed defence, but when his role was essentially to hold the ball up and wait for runners, he excelled.
Chelsea still need one or other of their first-choice forwards back, but Drogba proved he can offer an outlet and that he can be a short-term replacement for Costa.
The worry is at the other end, with Chelsea just struggling for the control Mourinho demands.
It is a minor issue, though, as at the end of October the title race remains alive but, unless there is a major improvement from their rivals, it will not be too much longer before the season becomes a victory parade.
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