COLE PALMER was a childhood
Manchester United fan and received bucketloads of abuse from the away fans. So how he would have loved this unbelievable ending to sink his old idols at Stamford Bridge. Cole Palmer scored twice in 82 seconds after the 100-minute mark to spark chaos Credit: Getty Mauricio Pochettino and the
Chelsea bench raced out of the dugout to celebrate the dramatic winner Credit: Reuters Palmer, a £40million summer signing from
Manchester City, had made it 2-0 from the spot early on when it looked like Chelsea were going to run away with it. United had turned the game on his head when Palmer levelled for 3-3 with his second penalty in the 100th minute after Diogo Dalot fouled Noni Madueke. And that was not enough. Certainly not for this brilliant midfielder who simply has to go with
England to Euro 2024. Smelling blood, he grabbed the winner in the 101st minute with a shot which deflected into the net off Scott McTominay. For United boss Erik ten Hag, this was an utter disaster. Chelsea led through goals from Conor Gallagher and Palmer before United took command with two from Alejandro Garnacho and one from Bruno Fernandes. But Ten Hag must know if United play like this against
Liverpool at Old Trafford on Sunday they will be utterly humiliated. Having seen his team outplayed by Brentford on Saturday, the Dutchman would have been largely encouraged for an hour — only to see them throw it all away again at the end. Palmer’s late rewriting of the script must also have been a huge relief for Chelsea manager Mauricio Pochettino after what had looked like a proper bottle
Job. Fans spot moment Conor Gallagher ‘blanks Chelsea mascot’ in tunnel before Burnley clash But in the end the home fans’ jeers for former midfielder Mason Mount — who came on as a late sub — were drowned out by the home fans’ sheer delight. In the wake of suffering horrific online abuse after failing to high-five a mascot, Conor Gallagher put in a proper shift. While United also have players like Casemiro who could barely run in midfield, at least they have Kobbie Mainoo who delivered another promising performance and he recovered well after making a mistake for Chelsea’s first goal. Mainoo gave away possession, Malo Gusto charged down the right and his cross was deflected off Raphael Varane and into the path of Gallagher who struck a sweet, first-time shot from just inside the area past a flat-footed Andre Onana. When Palmer took a corner in front of United’s away fans, he found himself getting absolutely slaughtered with ‘City reject’ ringing in his ears. So Palmer will have thoroughly enjoyed his next moment from a dead ball situation as he sent Onana the wrong way with yet another expertly-taken penalty, his seventh of the season. United could not have any arguments over the award of the penalty, either. Brazilian winger Antony clattered into Marc Cucurella inside the area and it was an easy decision for referee Jarred Gillett. Palmer went home with the match ball Credit: Getty Chelsea were so comfortable, in fact, that United looked in very real danger of imploding spectacularly before half-time. As a result, it was no surprise that Pochettino could not hide his utter disgust when United were gifted their way back into the game. And it was all so unnecessary. Caicedo was under no pressure when he delivered a sloppy, lazy pass towards Benoit Badiashile which fell invitingly for Garnacho. He tore into the area and stuck his shot past a stranded Djordje Petrovic. Pochettino was unable to control his emotions yet five minutes later, the Argentine coach stood upright, with arms folded, as his team were punished for being ludicrously open at the back. United broke forward swiftly through Antony and Garnacho but there was still enough time for Chelsea’s players to notice that Bruno Fernandes was wandering towards the far post unmarked and he was able to meet Diogo Dalot’s cross. Rasmus Hojlund did well in leaving the ball for Fernandes who had an easy header but it may have been a bit more difficult had Mykhailo Mudryk bothered to track back and help his defence. Diogo Dalot brought Noni Madueke down in injury time Credit: TNT Sports Jarred Gillett pointed to the spot despite the United
protests Credit: Getty Alejandro Garnacho nodded in to turn the game on its head Credit: Reuters The second half got a bit tasty with some crunching tackles and ten Hag and Pochettino squared up to each other when Harry Maguire avoided a booking for a tackle on Nicolas Jackson. On the day Rio Ferdinand said he was ruining his career, Marcus Rashford got a run-out in the 65th minute, the same time as Jonny Evans – who had only come on at half-time – was replaced by Willy Kambwala. And within a minute, United took the lead. Badiashile delivered a poor error, Rashford delivered a perfect pass to Antony and his cross over to Garnacho was even better. Garnacho knew he was about to be clobbered by keeper Petrovic but he got to the ball first and ended up the hero. Looking pretty pleased with himself, he sat on an advertising hoarding and soaked up the adulation from United’s fans a few yards away. But it all went so horribly wrong. Dalot was punished for a clumsy foul on Madueke and after a VAR check which took too long, Palmer brought his team level. But when Enzo Fernandez had a corner at the end, Palmer screamed for the short pass and he then blasted a shot which came off McTominay and past Onana. Cue bedlam. Chelsea only went from 12th to tenth but the celebrations felt as though they had just won something – and not just a first
Premier League match against United since 2017. As for their opponents, they could still collect a trophy this season as they are in the last four of the FA Cup. But looking at this, even Coventry will fancy their chances. The Red Devils players looked utterly shellshocked Credit: Reuters Mason Mount was handed a hostile reception by his former fans Credit: Getty Palmer got his second and Chelsea’s third in the 100th minute Credit: Reuters Conor Gallagher gave Chelsea the perfect start Credit: Getty Antony clipped Marc Cucurella to give the penalty away Credit: Getty Cole Palmer kept his cool from the spot Credit: Getty Garnacho raced away to pull one back Credit: PA Bruno Fernandes equalised with a header from a tight angle Credit: Getty The Argentine took in the adulation of his team-mates and supporters Credit: Rex Model and
Actress Cara Delevingne was in the stands sporting a Chelsea shirt Credit: Getty Sir Jim Ratcliffe was sat between Sir Dave Brailsford and Peter Schmeichel Credit: PA Publisher