A classy Manchester United outclassed Chelsea at Old Trafford with Antonio Conte’s men beaten 2-0 by a rampart United team which paraded a sharp attack spearheaded by Marcus Rashford. Conte and his team looked subdued with both Eden Harzard and Diego Costa lacking in the traditional quality.

Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho said on Sky Sports after the match: “Maybe we didn’t ‘rest’ players ahead of Thursday, we just chose the team we thought was the best team.

“We went to Stamford Bridge in the cup with same tactics, the game was totally controlled with 11 players, only the decision that made us play with 10 men for the second half and 10 minutes in the first half, gave Chelsea a chance to be dominant.

“We knew that playing this way would be very difficult for them.

“Marcus Rashford played fantastically well. He had a very good game at Stamford Bridge in the 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.”

Victory over Chelsea means their 7-point lead over second place Tottenham has been cut to 4 points thus piling up more pressure on the boys at the Bridge.