It is often said that the worst time to suffer a defeat is immediately before an international break, which is exactly what happened to Manchester United on Sunday afternoon.
The Red Devils lost their first Premier League game of the season away to Huddersfield Town on October 21, but had the chance to bounce back just three days later when they travelled to Swansea City in the EFL Cup.
Tottenham Hotspur then visited Old Trafford on October 28, and a 1-0 win over Spurs ensured that the Huddersfield match was a distant memory. Jose Mourinho and indeed his players simply did not have time to dwell on the disappointing result.
Mourinho has nothing but time to think about Sunday’s 1-0 defeat at Chelsea, however, due to the latest international break. The majority of United’s first-team squad will be away over the next 10 days or so, and Mourinho will be left to ponder just what went wrong at Stamford Bridge.
There is no question that the United manager would have wanted the chance to bounce back quickly, but due to the circumstances, the break has come at a good time for a team that has been below par in recent matches.
Midfield injuries have really hurt the Red Devils over the last few weeks, with the absences of Paul Pogba, Michael Carrick and Marouane Fellaini being felt. The latter did return for the clash at Chelsea, but was far from fully fit, and had the look of a player that had been rushed back to action.
A damning verdict from #MUFC fan Hasan 😯
All things considered, United have been excellent defensively this season. They have not conceded a single Premier League goal at Old Trafford, and have the best defensive record in the top flight having shipped just five goals in 11 matches.
There is no getting away from the fact that there have been problems further forward in recent weeks, however, with just two goals scored in their last four Premier League games. They hit four on four separate occasions in the early stages of the season, but since returning to action following the October break, there has been an issue in the final third of the field.
It has not helped that Romelu Lukaku has gone seven games without finding the back of the net, while Henrikh Mkhitaryan’s form has also gone downhill. Marcus Rashford has been impressive this season, but the 20-year-old struggled at Stamford Bridge on Sunday.
The same can be said for Ander Herrera and Nemanja Matic, who have now started as the central midfield pair in United’s last four Premier League matches. Injuries to Pogba, Carrick and Fellaini have not allowed Mourinho the opportunity to shuffle his pack, and it has not gone unnoticed.
"I thought they got killed in midfield. Mourinho, since the Liverpool game, has talked about not being able to freshen it up. I thought Herrera, Matic and Mkhitaryan got absolutely ambushed," Gary Neville said in the aftermath of the Chelsea result, which has left second-placed United eight points off the top of the Premier League.
There is light at the end of the tunnel when it comes to injuries, however, with Fellaini returning against Chelsea, and Pogba nearing a comeback from the hamstring problem that has kept him on the sidelines since the start of September.
It goes without saying that United would have not wanted to enter the international break after a defeat, but it might be exactly what the team needs. Lukaku will go with Belgium looking to regain his confidence, while a change of scenery for the likes of Mkhitaryan could see an upturn in form.
Pogba can now concentrate on being fit for the clash with Newcastle United on November 18, while Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Marcos Rojo are also nearing comebacks, which would completely change the picture for United.
Mourinho admitted as much, with the Portuguese revealing that the likes of Smalling and Herrera will be given the week off. The pair were among United’s better players at Stamford Bridge, but both looked jaded in the second period.
“The international break means the majority of the players fly now from London to their countries. They all disappear and then we have a couple who aren’t selected for their national team, like Smalling and Herrera and they really deserve, after so many matches, to have a week off which I’m going to give them,” said Mourinho.
After the latest round of international matches, there will not be another stoppage in the Premier League season until March 2018. The festive period is demanding, and United need as many of their first-team players as possible to negotiate what will be a testing few weeks.
The 20-time English champions will fancy their chances of beating Newcastle, Brighton & Hove Albion and Watford in their next three, but will then travel to Arsenal before hosting Manchester City at the start of December.
Adding Pogba and Ibrahimovic back into the mix will be like two major new signings in the latter stages of 2018, while it is easy to forget just how well Rojo performed in the second half of last season. It also appears that Mourinho needs a rest, with the Portuguese picking some unnecessary battles with the United fans over the last couple of weeks.
The defeat at Chelsea would have hurt Mourinho and indeed United, but the latest break has come at a good time for a team that cannot afford too many more mistakes in their pursuit of the Premier League title.
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