United's Under 23s produced their best football of the season so far with a spirited second half display to wrest what had earlier looked an unlikely point from this contest against a very good Chelsea team.
Chelsea were the only team to take points from the Reds' second string on their own patch last season and this game followed a similar pattern to the one at Old Trafford in the spring. The visitors had easily the best of the first half and United were once again reliant on the dependable central defensive pairing of Tuanzebe and Poole to keep them at bay for long periods.
They finally broke through just before half-time and. Johnstone dealt with a cross into the box and appeared to be impeded by Dasilva as he attempted to deal with the loose ball. It fell to Scott who had the easy task of tapping home. United's players looked to the ref for a decision but presumably he viewed the collision as accidental and the goal was allowed to stand. In any case, there was no question Chelsea deserved their lead.
After half-time, United began to exert some control over the game and, although it was late when the equaliser came, the Reds' enterprising play fully warranted it. Poole found himself out on the right and delivered an excellent ball into the box towards Weir, who was beaten to the ball by Colley but the Chelsea defender succeeded only in pushing the ball into the roof of his own net.
The result leaves United with only four points from three games, but there were certainly far more positives to take from this game than was the case in last week's dismal capitulation at Southampton. A trip to city awaits on the Friday after the international break.
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