How Mourinho, United stymied Chelsea to blow title race open again

Title race back on?

Chelsea, considered a lock to capture another Premier League crown since assuming top spot in the table on Nov. 5, was manhandled by Manchester United on Sunday in a fascinating encounter at a raucous Old Trafford.

Many an eyebrow was raised when the lineup announcements revealed that Zlatan Ibrahimovic had been left on the bench, but without his talismanic Swede, Jose Mourinho reverted to type, masterminding a stunning 2-0 win by making the Blues look uncharacteristically untidy.

Goals from the buzzing Marcus Rashford and the nearly flawless Ander Herrera secured the three points, but Sunday's surprising result, which has allowed Tottenham close the gap at the top to just four points, was a blend of multiple factors.

Related: Can Spurs actually win the Premier League?

Here's how Manchester United halted Chelsea's title procession.

Herrera silences Hazard

It was glaringly obvious from the opening whistle that the crux of Mourinho's game plan was to use energetic midfielder Herrera to man-mark Eden Hazard, as the little Spaniard followed his equally diminutive peer all across the pitch in the opening stanza.

Herrera, sent off in first half of the last encounter between these two sides - a 1-0 win for the Blues in the FA Cup quarter-finals - always straddles the line between acceptable aggression and an early shower, but on this day he was able to remain on the right side of that thin margin.

The 27-year-old blanketed his illustrious opponent; his three tackles and four interceptions belie his excellence on the day.

That he chipped in with a wonderful assist and a fortuitous goal was a bonus - his main task was to eliminate Hazard, and the Belgian, arguably the front-runner for the PFA Player of the Year award thanks to a resurgent season that has seen him record 14 goals and 5 assists, was a non-factor.

"It was an almost perfect performance," Herrera said after the match, according to ESPN FC. "They didn't create any chances."

"Didn't create any chances" is putting it kindly. Chelsea didn't even have a shot on target.

Herrera's ability to stifle Hazard, the undisputed catalyst of Conte's attack, was the main reason for that. And ultimately, it was the main reason why those at White Hart Lane might be allowing themselves to dream about a Premier League title a little harder today.

Rashford, Lingard exploit the channels

How would United muster any semblance of an attack without the man who has, at many points this season, put the entire team on his back?

Just fine, thanks.

Ibrahimovic being left on the bench for the match seemed at first to be an admission that Mourinho was ready to focus exclusively on the Europa League as a means of gaining entry into the Champions League next season.

Instead, his decision to allow teenage sensation Rashford to lead the line - with the quietly effective Jesse Lingard acting as his main support valve - proved a stroke of genius from a man who thinks exactly that of himself.

The 19-year-old's frenetic pace offered United a constant outlet - not in the traditional, Ibrahimovic-esque way that involves lumping the ball forward and hoping for the striker to hold it up. No, Rashford's presence meant United carried the threat of creating something out of nothing at all times, and that's precisely what happened for the opening goal.

Herrera's pass was sumptuous, catching David Luiz on his heels, but Rashford's raw speed ultimately made the difference in turning that sequence into a 1-0 United lead. Zlatan, brilliant as he is, simply isn't getting to that ball into the channel.

Related - Watch: Herrera, Rashford combine to slice Chelsea apart

"Marcus Rashford played fantastically well," Mourinho, in a massive understatement, said after the unforeseen triumph.

"He had a very good game at Stamford Bridge in the FA Cup, exactly the same chance to score, because he is faster than their defenders. Today he scored and it gave the team more confidence, more stability."

Rashford has been hankering for more opportunities to play through the middle this season, and Sunday's showing suggests that giving him that chance, at the expense of Ibrahimovic, might actually be the best course of action for the Red Devils heading into next season.

Flaccid Chelsea falls flat

Mourinho and his cohorts deserve much of the praise after silencing a side that has looked for much of the campaign to be an unflappable steamroller that was waltzing toward the throne.

That said, it wasn't all down to the Red Devils. Chelsea was, uncharacteristically, atrocious.

Insipid across the board, the west London side looked jaded; sloppy passing was a staple of the defeat, and the incisive play that has defined the league leader was sorely lacking over what was easily Antonio Conte's worst 90 minutes since he shifted to his vaunted 3-4-3 system.

"I think they deserved to win," Conte said. "We have to work together and find quickly the right desire and ambition to win the title."

Chelsea, thanks to an exceptionally forgiving remaining schedule, should still win the Premier League title. But Sunday's loss will now have Conte and Co. sweating a little bit, knowing that another slip up could see a formerly insurmountable advantage dwindle to a solitary point.

(Photos courtesy: Action Images)