Chelsea vs Man Utd: Kepa out to reinforce first choice credentials for Chelsea
When it comes to this fixture, there have been some classics. From John Terry’s slip that saw Manchester United claim the Champions League in Moscow in 2008, to Chelsea beating United 3-0 in 2006 to claim their second successive Premier League title. Despite both sides not quite being the top two in the country at the minute, its still fair to say this is a heavyweight clash to say the least.
This clash on Saturday evening will offer both teams the chance to make a statement, even this early in the season. Chelsea are on a winning run of four games and currently sit fourth. They will want to keep within close quarters with the top of the table to make their outside claim for the title. United are right behind Chelsea in fifth by a single point and although many wouldn’t consider them in the running for first, they are in with more than a shout for a Champions League place.
Their form is mixed, but what they do have coming into this game is three wins from four against the ‘Big Six’ so far this campaign. Most recently on Wednesday night, United earned a convincing 2-0 win over Spurs, with Bruno Fernandes arguably playing some of his best football in a Red Devils shirt.
For Fernandes, like his side's form of late, his career in England has been mixed. He can produce standout moments, but has often lacked the consistency to do so on a regular basis, receiving a fair bit of criticism, especially after the boards decision to sign him onto a new deal earlier this year.
However, Erik ten Haag will be hoping he can see similar performances from his midfielder this season, such as what he produced in the week, on a regular basis. In the game against Spurs, Fernandes managed nine key passes, a record in a Premier League match this season. He holds the record for the most chances created in a league match since the start of 2021/22, with 10 against Aston Villa.
This season has seen Fernandes make three goal contributions in the league, scoring two, and he is currently creating 2.5 key passes per game; only Kevin De Bruyne (3.3) and Mohamed Salah (2.7) can better that return. This underlines the impact he is having, which has often gone overlooked, potentially owing to United’s frontline not always delivering. He will be up against a team this weekend who he faced in only his second United appearance back in 2020, and in which he produced a star performance by claiming an assist and creating a number of chances in the game.
Saturday’s game will also be a chance for Kepa Arrizabalaga to further push a claim that he is Chelsea’s outright number one goalkeeper. After coming into the side owing to Edouard Mendy's injury, the Spaniard has done wonders to try and cement his place as a starter, keeping three clean sheets in his four Premier League appearances, and only conceding once. Of goalkeepers that have played 200+ minutes, only Bernd Leno (4.6) and Jordan Pickford (4.1) have a greater number of saves per game than Kepa (4). His save success rate of 94.1% is also the best of those goalkeepers with 200+ minutes played, emphasising that he is back to his best.
It will be an interesting match for both Kepa and Fernandes, as well as for their clubs Chelsea and Manchester United, respectively, with plenty of individual battles due to take place in a game that can allow either side, or even individual players, to set a real benchmark for the season with a big performance.
The last four results in this fixture have been draws, emphasising the closeness of the two sides in recent years and with only a point separating them at this moment, it’s anyone’s guess how this game might go.
