Dropping the Ball: Manchester United 2 Chelsea 2

Chelsea's no. 7, Ramires, scores the equalizer six minutes after the hour mark

Image retrieved from The Daily Mail UK

STARTING LINEUPS

Manchester United	Chelsea
De Gea  Rafael  Evans  Ferdinand  Evra  Carrick  Cleverley  Nani     (SUB Valencia 46')   Kagawa     (SUB Welbeck 76')  Rooney (GOAL! 10')  Hernandez (GOAL! 4')      (SUB van Persie 61')   Unused subs:  Amos  Anderson  Vidic  Young	Cech    Azpilicueta (Y 39')   Luiz (Y 54')  Cahill  Cole  Ramires (GOAL! 66')  Lampard    (SUB Mikel 51')   Moses    (SUB Hazard 51' (GOAL! 58') (Y 74'))   Mata  Oscar  Ba     (SUB Torres 77')  Unused subs:  Turnbull  Ivanovic  Terry  Bertrand

Manchester United's bid for the FA Cup trophy took a stumble after Sir Alex Ferguson's team squandered a two-goal lead when they dropped the ball and gave Chelsea the upper-hand with the Blues picking up a vital 2-2 draw.

The first half saw a rapid-fire start from both sides, with Ba getting the first chance at a goal. He shot it wide. The Reds countered with Carrick, who made a serene long pass to Hernandez, who headed the ball home, with Cech caught off-guard. Six minutes later, Rooney's free-kick from the edge of the box curled past everybody towards the far corner.

Chicharito's header in the 4th minute gave United the early lead

Image retrieved from The Daily Mail UK

United kept the foot on the gas for the next fifteen minutes with Nani, Chicharito and Cleverley all having chances. But Chelsea steadily crawled in to  hold on the ball and as United lightened on the pedal, the Blues pounced on their opportunities, to no avail. Errors from Rafael and Carrick lead to counter-attacks from Chelsea's Ba, Mata and Lampard. All tried to get a goal back, but all attempts went wide.

The Reds picked up just before half-time, with Nani leading the plays. United's third goal would've to wait as their attempts went nowhere.

Rooney's brilliant free-kick placed United two goals up after just eleven minutes

Image retrieved from The Daily Mail UK

A turn-face happened on the second-half, as Chelsea got their stranglehold on the possession and kept the pressure on United. Mata proved to be mercurial late on as he made fabulous plays to help his teammates get shots on goal. United completely lost their momentum in the first half, reminiscent of their game against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge earlier in the season at the League.

Early in the second-half, Chelsea had the possession but not the goals. Interim manager Rafa Benitez made a seemingly controversial change when he took out Lampard and replaced him with Mikel to compound his other substitution, Hazard on for Moses. But it turned out to be the correct decision as Hazard made a blistering run at the break and slotted the ball home. Fifteen minutes later, Ramires pounced to level the scores between the two teams.

David Luiz celebrate with Eden Hazard for the latter's goal at the 58th minute

Image retrieved from The Daily Mail UK

With Sir Alex Ferguson's men rattled, Chelsea knew they had to look for the killshot. Torres was brought on to help bolster the Blues' attack. The Spaniard did get a shot on target, but it was comfortably saved by De Gea. A last gasp came from Juan Mata at the 89th minute, who pounced from a mess-up inside the United box. The shot went begging.

In the end, both teams had to settle for a draw and wait for the replay match, which will be squeezed in a very tight schedule for both teams. Sir Alex Ferguson, meanwhile, will find himself very frustrated as he watched his team lose their grip on a game that was supposed to have been won. With United travelling to Stamford Bridge for the replay, a defeat may be in the cards, and that would lead to a decade of not winning the FA Cup that will surely bring much ire to the United manager.