This was finally the Manchester United performance Michael Carrick needed…until the inevitable implosion.

Manchester United meltdown mode will rumble on this week, with everyone giving their opinions on how the club is stuck in a continuous bad cycle, bemused that Carrick is still in charge.

At this stage, it doesn’t seem to matter whether United’s performance levels increase (they absolutely did in a first half when they should have led by two or three goals); the result just seems inevitable.

Even when the performances have been better, United are a team doomed to failure, devoid of any confidence whatsoever. The negativity and in-fighting have contributed to the situation basically becoming unsalvageable.

If the Red Devils played as they did in that Stamford Bridge first half earlier in the season before the disasters of Como and Tottenham Hotspur, maybe the team would have something to build on. But it now feels too late, and the players downing tools may have backfired.

It will be lost on a lot of people that Chelsea have major defensive problems that United exposed; it just so happens that Man Utd collapse with a mere light shove.

So what did the Red Devils do that was much improved and why did it eventually not matter anyways?

Exposing Chelsea’s back five and centre
In the first half, Manchester United really should have been two or three goals up.

The plan of dragging a centre-back out of the back five whilst using Chelsea’s forward line as they pressed forward before finding Bryan Mbeumo in the centre was working.

Moises Caicedo and Romeo Lavia would push up to mark Bruno Fernandes and Carlos Baleba, allowing for Matheus Cunha or Mbeumo to receive the ball from defence.

It meant United bypassed Chelsea’s midfield and forward line press, and with one of Chelsea’s three centre-backs pushing out, it also left the Blues short at the back.

With Cunha or Amad Diallo wide, Man Utd could use the runner to lure out a full-back before making runs in behind and in between the back five.

It’s something we’ve seen teams do frequently against Chelsea this season with some success.

As Chelsea’s wing-backs are new in their roles (Marco Palestra and Pedro Neto), they don’t have the defensive discipline to cover a channel by themselves, with the forward often not helping either.

The Red Devils – thanks to Amad Diallo’s enthusiasm, aggression and tenacity out of possession – exposed this multiple times ripping through Chelsea’s middle and getting runners in between the back five. It just so happens that they couldn’t take their chances and paid for it later.

Alonso’s changes and United’s woeful centre-backs
So there was some good stuff, but it’s very difficult to stop the negative spiral when it gets in motion.

It doesn’t help that they have an emotional centre-back who seems hellbent on lashing out.

Both cards for Lisandro Martinez were needless, as he had not one but two nibbles at Morgan Rogers before conceding the penalty, which ultimately brought an end to the game.

The pairing of Harry Maguire with the Argentinian worked last season as their distribution from defence was excellent, but neither defender seems sturdy or reliable in the face of chaos.

United needed to control the match in the second half and keep a level head, but that’s really hard to do with the pressure they’ve put themselves under.

Just like Bournemouth or Como, it’s remarkable how little a team needs to pass the ball before getting to the box. For the goal, Maguire is occupied by a left-hand side run, but Martinez doesn’t bother to put in a challenge until later.

When the momentum swung, the game was as good as gone because of the mental fragility of this team, but it helps that Xabi Alonso tightened things up at half-time to ensure a centre-back followed Mbeumo and an attacker got closer to a United midfielder.

Chelsea’s midfield had tightened, and United’s early momentum was swiftly thwarted as they were left to rue the chances they created in the first half.

Conclusion
It felt a lot like the Everton, Fulham or Atletico Madrid performance for Carrick where United should have got something more out of the match.

The former midfielder will be tearing his hair out at the fact that even when he has the players on his side to produce something, anything, it doesn’t seem to work.

The players may have been fed up with the hierarchy and furious at the summer investment, but now, they have exacerbated a problematic season in which Carrick’s tactics already weren’t working.

As for Chelsea, there are still question marks over Alonso as his back five problem continues to be exposed. The Spaniard can just count himself lucky that he didn’t need to change or do much to beat a desperately fragile team.