A Decade-Long Drought: Chelsea 1 Manchester United 0

Demba Ba's half-volley shot proved to be the eventual winner

Image taken from The Daily Mail UK

Chelsea	Manchester United
Cech  Azpilicueta (Y 77')  Ivanovic  Luiz  Cole      (SUB Bertrand 22' (Y 58'))   Mikel   Ramires  Hazard  Mata (Y 89')  Oscar (Y 90')      (SUB Moses 90+1')  Ba (GOAL! 49')      (SUB Torres 90+3')  Unused subs:   Lampard  Terry  Turnbull  Benayoun	De Gea  Jones  Smalling  Ferdinand  Evra  Valencia  Carrick   Cleverley (Y 54')      (SUB van Persie 61')   Nani      (SUB Giggs 65')  Welbeck      (SUB Young 80')  Hernandez  Unused subs:   Lindegaard  Vermijl  Powell  Kagawa

Sir Alex Ferguson's Manchester United crashed out of the FA Cup in the narrowest of margins, but the scoreline failed to depict the lack of steel the Reds exhibited as they lost to Chelsea in their FA Cup replay, extending the Mancunian giants FA Cup trophy drought to a decade.

The first half-started lethargically, in a fashion unexpected of two top-four teams. Sloppy passes from both passes saw the ball exchange possession swiftly and intermittently. Both sides didn't have much efforts on goal until later in the half, when Hernandez collected the ball from the edge of the box, only for him to decide to switch to his preferred right foot. The time it took would prove costly. 

The Blues, on their part, sparked with a charge from Belgian playmaker Eden Hazard. He crossed the ball towards Ba who tried to sneak it past De Gea, but the Spaniard kicked it away. Cech would respond with a foot save of his own, saving Chicharito's attempt with a bicycle kick on the follow-through.

Chicharito's second-half header from close range was denied by Petr Cech

Image taken from The Daily Mail UK

Second-half saw Rafa Benitez' men switch on grandiosely as early as the 49th minute, when Mata's long pass from the middle of the pitch saw the ball fall in front of Demba Ba, who bashed it in towards the back of the net.

Alex Ferguson tried to revitalise his chances of staying in the FA Cup by bringing in van Persie, Ryan Giggs and Ashley Young, but the Reds just couldn't create a decent chance. Their best attempt came just at the hour mark, when Welbeck's cross from the right was headed in by Chicharito in the same fashion as he did when the two sides last met. Cech made a fine save.

At that point, United succumbed to fatigue and lack of confidence as midfield maestros Mata, Oscar and Hazard trudged over United's shape on the pitch.

In the end, United, the Comeback Kings of lore, just couldn't get that crucial equalizer to stay in the competition. Sir Alex Ferguson will now have to be content with the promise of a 20th League title as the Red Devils go on to their 10th year without an FA Cup trophy.

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.

Bedlam at the Bridge: Chelsea 2 Manchester United 3

Ivanovic's sending off is just one of two red cards dished out in this match between Chelsea and Manchester United

Image retrieved from Daily Mail UK

Goals of the Game

Chelsea: Mata (44'), Ramires (53')

Manchester United: Luiz (4' OG), Van Persie (12'), Hernandez (75')

All the previews pointed to this game to be a classic one, but what started out as a great clash of titans turned into a cauldron of controversy, with referee Mark Clattenburg dishing out two red cards that left Chelsea with nine men and almost zero hope of winning what could've been anyone's.

The first half was all it was hyped to be. Chelsea were proving to be lacking something in the morale department, as their mid-week Champions League loss to Shaktar Donetsk appeared to be haunting them. It was Robin van Persie's chip towards goal that had the ball come in contact with David Luiz, further sending the ball into the back of the net. The prolific dutch goalscorer would soon extend United's lead to two, as he launches forth a screamer at the 12th minute. United appeared to be well in the driver's seat until Rooney made a rash tackle on Hazard. Chelsea's magic man Mata would soon deliver a cool-cruising free kick straight on goal, with de Gea having no chance. It was game on as the teams head towards half-time.

The second-half started where the first half ended. Chelsea are now in the full offense, with United looking like the Chelsea of last season, almost doing a 10-0-0 formation. United's great first-half showing was nowhere to be seen, and wonderful exchanges inside the box from Oscar, Mata and Hazard lead to the Blues equalizing through a Ramires header.

Ramires' equalizing header goes beyond De Gea's reach

Image retrieved from Daily Mail UK

Then the bedlam begins.

It all begins when United regain control of the ball. Ashley Young has a clear run towards Cech's net when Ivanovic nudges Young from behind. the United winger falls, and referee Mark Clattenburg had to give a straight red. There was simply no way around it. A few minutes later, it was Torres who gets felled, this time by Evans. The sound of a whistle, every body thought it was a free kick, but Clattenburg thought differently. He gives the Spaniard striker a second yellow, this time for diving. Torres is sent off and the Blues are down to nine men.

Sir Alex simply had to capitalize. He brings on Chicharito, who nets the win on rebound of a Robin Van Persie turnabout goal from the edge of the box. The night ends with United winning 3-2 at Stamford Bridge from the first time since April 2002, amidst furious boos from the Chelsea faithful.

Chicharito Hernandez celebrates his goal that gave United the win

Image retrieved from Daily Mail UK

It's hard to analyze a game that was, in some ways, ruined by some whimsical and rather contentious technicality. However, the first hour or so showed a lot of things to be pointed out.

United's man of the match, if the first seventy minutes of 'legitimate' game is to be taken into consideration, is Robin van Persie. All goals for United in this match had his name on it. He caused the Luiz OG, he drove home a second, and it was his shot that lead to a rebound Chicharito goal, who was arguably offside.

United proved strong in the first half, with Rooney playing a deeper role. If only we stayed consistent on the form, then we could've ended the game sooner.

David de Gea is once again showing his unconvincing style of saving shots. He needs to collect with more certainty and closure to calm the United faithful.

In the end, a win is a win. Regardless of the result, it had to be a great night for United, who now sit just one point away from the top.