BlueLion.

Yeah it was fine mate thanks

In the past people have been getting wet over average performances, saying he'll come back. However, yesterday he was genuinely excellent. The issue is that his confidence will now be at an all-time low.

Re: Lukaku - this is the only thing I can moan about today in terms of our performance/AVB's decisions. The occasion was far too big for just his second Chelsea appearance, bringing on Malouda would have been a better choice. Lukaku just needs games, I am excited to see what he will do from a starting position on Wednesday!

Meh, we've all been saying it since before he went down with that hernia in October 2010. Mata has to play in the CAM role with Malouda or Anelka on the left wing. If it isn't working out, then you have the option to bring on Lampard and put Mata into a wing position. I also must say that Meireles is continuing to impress me.

Yes, our away support were again fantastic. Obviously its biased coming from a Chelsea fan, but I would say our away support is definitely amongst the best.

Vote for your man of the match.

Can't see Hilario or Turnbull playing as they both have minor injuries. Cech © Ferreira - Luiz - Alex - Bertrand Oriol McEachran - Meireles Sturridge - Malouda Lukaku Subs: Blackman, Terry, Lampard, Mata, Torres, Anelka, Ramires

I felt like crying after he missed that. I feel sadder that he missed than us losing. I've been getting on his back but the miss aside, he was our best player today, along with Meireles and Ramires.

YES!

Thanks for reading and commenting

Man United 3-1 Chelsea Plucky Blues undone in game of fine margins Chelsea's title aspirations suffered a serious setback at Old Trafford as Luis Nani inspired Manchester United to a contentious victory over Andre Villas-Boas' side. In a breath-taking and dramatic encounter, United had amassed a 3-0 interval lead after Chris Smalling, Nani and Wayne Rooney had all scored in incredibly fortuitous circumstances, while Ramires missed a guilt-edged opportunity at the other end in a pulse-raising first half. And the game only continued to give after the half-time break as Fernando Torres scored inside thirty seconds of the restart to spark a Chelsea fight-back - ending a ten-game goal drought in the process as the West Londoners looked to rally from a demoralising first-half that had actually seen the Blues dictate much of the play. However the game looked to turn again in the favour of Manchester United as referee Phil Dowd added to a tally of questionable decisions when he deemed Jose Bosingwa to have upended Nani inside the penalty area, only for red-hot media darling Wayne Rooney to slip on the turf and blaze well wide of the target in John Terry-esque fashion. Meanwhile there was still time for the seemingly rejuvenated Torres to somehow miss an open goal with eight minutes remaining as he rounded goalkeeper David de Gea, only to skew his left-footed effort woefully wide when a composed finish could have set up a grandstand finale - fuelling the media bonfire in the process. It means the Blues fall five points behind the defending champions after a game they did not deserve to lose - Chelsea bossed the game in terms of chances and whilst United were commendably clinical, Villas-Boas and his men will rue their ill fortune after a number of glaring misses and some abysmally poor refereeing. Smalling's opener was allowed despite the former Fulham man being well ahead of the last defender from Ashley Young's whipped delivery, whilst Nani was also marginally offside as he came from deep before driving forward to unleash a wonderful effort into the roof of Petr Cech's net. A flurry of nothing free-kicks constantly fell the way of the hosts before a shocking decision saw a penalty awarded in the second half when Bosingwa was judged to have brought Nani down in the area despite clearly getting his foot to the ball - thankfully, through Rooney's miss, justice was served. And the most-embarrassing offence of the lot saw Dowd punish a perfectly-executed sliding tackle by Ramires with a yellow card, begging the question as to whether he actually possesses refereeing badges, or if he is simply somebody Sir Alex Ferguson hand-picked from the Old Trafford crowd before kick-off. 3-1 is a misleading scoreline, and the result belies Chelsea's best performance of the season. Dowd's showing, however, coupled with some wayward Chelsea finishing served as the perfect catalyst to a negative result, but Villas-Boas must take heart from a dominating display that saw his side consistently trouble an experienced Manchester United side. Many presentable chances were wasted by the visitors whilst United were ferociously clinical; scoring three goals from three attempts on target. An element of luck befell the champions - two offside decisions and a fortunate ricochet for Rooney's strike as the half-time whistle approached does indeed demonstrate why Ferguson's men lifted the league crown back in May. Whilst their championship aspirations have suffered a serious set-back, the Blues still maintain third position and are only three points behind United's cross-town rivals City, who surrendered a two-goal lead to draw against Fulham - a team whom Chelsea play hosts to in Wednesday's Carling Cup third round encounter. There is still a long way to go in the long slog for the Premier League title, but any harbouring hopes for the title may already have been dismissed as the United machine relentlessly saunters on - though it should, in truth, have been a different result. A draw would have been a deserved return for the Blues. Despite their occasional defensive frailties, Villas-Boas' charges matched the champions on all fronts and but for some poor finishing from Messrs Ramires and Torres respectively, the British press could have been discussing the come-back to end all come-backs. Instead their attentions will be diverted away from both Wayne Rooney's penalty miss and Phil Dowd's masterclass in how-not-to-referee, but towards Torres' embarrassing blunder after rounding de Gea and blasting wide an open goal gaping invitingly before him. Presentable chances aplenty had fallen the way of the visitors even before Smalling's seventh minute opener - Ramires' close-range effort from Torres' clever cut-back being directed straight at the sprawling Manchester United stopper. Had the Brazilian directed the ball even an inch elsewhere, or alternatively leaving the ball to the marauding Daniel Sturridge at the back post, it would have been an emphatic return from Chelsea's first meaningful attack. Frank Lampard was the next to fire just wide when he gathered a delightful Raul Meireles dinked pass - the usually reliable England star failed to hook the ball cleanly enough and the chance went begging as Chelsea looked to urge an instant reply. Before that Lampard opportunity, Torres had robbed possession from Jonny Evans before driving the ball narrowly wide of the far post, before Branislav Ivanovic did well to work Juan Mata's cross towards the target - unfortunately he could only direct the ball at United's under-fire custodian. The lion's share of chances was falling the way of the West London outfit, and in Torres they had a man suddenly revitalised in a stadium that he holds very fond memories of. Jinking here, there and everywhere with an impressive combination of speed and strength, his shocking miss aside, this was something close to a £50 million performance from the former Liverpool man. Surely his well-taken goal in the 46th minute is testament to a much-improved personal display, but this will surely be seen as a case of one step forward, step steps back for the Spanish World Cup winner. The pro-northern media will ensure he never forgets that miss, although, in fairness, it may actually inspire the Spaniard even more than his clinical finish immediately after the restart. United rarely find themselves second-best at Old Trafford, largely thanks to the sucker-punch that is their clinical counter-attack. Regardless of the offside call - or lack of, rather - Nani should not have been allowed to advance so far without being pressed before launching a raking effort beyond the helpless Cech. Chelsea were stunned considering their dominance, and the game was won when Rooney struck on the verge of the interval after the ball had bobbled around inside the penalty area. Cech had no chance as Phil Jones' shot bounced off Terry right into Rooney's feet. If only such fortune would fall Torres' way... Nicolas Anelka came on for the ineffectual Lampard at half-time and it was the Frenchman that released Torres, who coolly converted just 28 seconds into the second period with the deftest of finishes. It was a goal that does not suggest a lack of confidence on the Chelsea number 9's account - but his horror miss will certainly have undone all the good work that was part of an excellent performance. Torres had also passed up a chance when he hooked over from twelve yards after the effervescent Juan Mata had teamed up with Anelka down the Chelsea left. The switch in formation after Lampard had been replaced was adding to the Blues' fluidity, with Ramires and Raul Meireles impressing in their respective roles. United would go on to hit the woodwork on three occasions and Rooney would also pass up a great chance to add to their lead when he slipped for the previously-mentioned penalty that had dubiously been awarded to the home side - but the crucial moment remains that Torres chance. Had it have gone in, one of the great come-backs in modern football history may have become a reality. The Blues were desperately unlucky, but you must concede that United were the better side. 3-1 is a harsh scoreline and there are at least a handful of positives to take. The performance was commendable and the spirit of the players to come out after half-time and put in a real shift was pleasing to see. As a fan, you do not mind losing when your team give everything. You do mind when you find yourself handicapped by refereeing. Villas-Boas wore a wry smile, suggesting he half-expected this from Ferguson's champions. But perhaps the best thing to come from this game is the freshness of the Portuguese manager. Taking off Frank Lampard at half-time was an incredibly bold move - one that his predecessors (José Mourinho included) certainly would not have dared to do. Entering the lion's den with such attacking ambition may have been ultimately foolhardy, but Villas-Boas opted to fight fire and fire - it is just a shame that a combination of piss-poor refereeing and even worse finishing sought to extinguish the Chelsea flame. Glorious chances fell the way of Torres on two occasions, Ramires should have buried his effort and Lampard really ought to have done better in the first half, too. It's funny how in times like these you look to the much-maligned Didier Drogba and think how much more potent this Chelsea side could be with him playing a central role. The foundations are there for Chelsea - it's just a shame the fortune isn't. United seem to have stocked up on luck under Sir Alex, and that was enough to decide an incredibly tight, tense and terrific affair. A game of fine margins, football really can be heart-breaking when you lose. United have won the battle and they may well win the war, but they were given a real scare by Chelsea and a lot of positives can be taken from this. Manchester United (4-4-2):De Gea; Smalling (Valencia 61), Jones, Evans, Evra ©; Nani, Fletcher, Anderson (Carrick 61), Young; Rooney, Hernandez (Berbatov 78) Chelsea (4-3-3): Cech; Bosingwa, Ivanovic, Terry ©, Cole; Ramires, Meireles (Mikel 78), Lampard (Anelka 46); Sturridge (Lukaku 67), Torres, Mata. The TalkChelsea.net 'Man of the Match' award goes to Man United's number 17 - NANI

One step forward and two steps back for this man's confidence now.

LOL HATERS GONE QUIET SUDDENLY. Get behind your team.

Can't believe what I'm reading here. This has been our best performance so far this season. We've been good and United have been average, although they have been clinical in fairness. Two offside decisions and a lucky ricochet - that is why United are champions. We don't deserve to be 3-0 down, we've had more chances and have had a fair amount of possession. This game has been incredibly tight but suddenly United are on the positive side of a scoreline out of nowhere. United have had all the luck (hey, what's new?).

And both have had half the game-time that Torres had had. Anelka has probably had even less than that - truth is both players have double the productivity, whether it is scoring or creating chances. @Super-Frank - Torres will either start and be marked out of the game again, or he will come on and ramble around aimlessly for the last 20 minutes. Because whilst I support the player, I find it hilarious how people find another sub-par showing against Leverkusen where he missed a sitter or two constitutes a spark in form. There is no difference between this Torres and the one who scored once in 18 games last season. I'm waiting for Torres to prove me wrong now, and to silence the press as well. I'm just being realistic when I say I don't think there is going to be some instantaneous change in fortune.

Why I would rather keep Malouda than Kalou is simple - when he comes on, things happen. He is a massive goal-threat, even last season when we wasn't playing well he got 14 goals for us.

That would be awesome mate. Have you got the log-in details? I'll send them just incase

It won't happen but what would I do if I was going to Old Trafford?

Jaimin, that's very weird. I've had a look in the Admin CP under usergroup permissions, everything is as it should be. Screenshot?

Of course there is pressure, but there is pressure on every player to succeed. If he didn't cost £50 million he wouldn't even be on the bench. If Kalou, Anelka or even Drogba were on a similar run without scoring, people would be baying for blood. But because we are so desperate to see him succeed we're clinging on to any microcosm of hope that he will suddenly turn it around. At least Shevchenko scored a goal every three matches! The startling reality is he'll have another shocker tomorrow and be hauled off after 65 minutes with Anelka coming on.

Torres is becoming a liability as far as I'm concerned. We played our best football with Anelka up front, against Sunderland. Just saying.

That's why political/ideological topics should be banned, people just get worked up over them.

Meireles looks like he has been airbrushed onto that photo

Every time Torres has anything better than a 5/10 performance suddenly we think his confidence is blossoming and he will surely start scoring goals left, right and centre. I've not seen anything to suggest a turn in his fortunes is just around the corner, and I'm yet to be convinced his performances are any better than they were anyway!

Cheers guys. My best report for a few weeks and only 4 rep for it... think I might retire.