League needs Manchester United revival to counter cold Chelsea steel

Whisper it quietly among the ABU (Anyone But United) brigade, but the Premier League desperately needs Manchester United back at their best in order to push Chelsea all the way next season, just as they did at Stamford Bridge on Saturday.

Ignore Jose Mourinho’s smug post-match assertion that his players had United exactly where they wanted them — in their pockets and out of the points.

The real story was illustrated by the animated touchline antics of Mourinho and his men, as well as the anxiety exuding from another quiet Stamford Bridge — until the end, when the final whistle was greeted with noisy celebrations from Chelsea’s players and supporters alike.

The Blues ground out another win in their relentless and somewhat attritional march towards the title, which can be confirmed in the next fortnight if they win at Arsenal and Leicester.

But Mourinho’s men will not go down in history as great champions, nor will this be remembered as a vintage Premier League season to savour, given the paucity of opposition.

Sure, Arsenal have made a late surge as they always do once their annual early exit from the Champions League has been confirmed, rolling over the league’s lesser lights to secure another top four finish and keep up the cycle of success and failure.

But Wenger’s men are no closer to a title challenge now, despite spending over €100m last summer. Manchester City have even more spending power, but they have fallen away badly since New Year’s Day when they were level on points with Chelsea.

Whether Manuel Pellegrini’s expected exit will re-ignite the winning mentality of an expensive but under-performing group of players remains to be seen, but for now their credentials as challengers are poor.

And with Liverpool and Tottenham still short of the top four, that leaves United as the best bet to make next season more competitive — and crucially more exciting.

Because Mourinho’s blueprint for the Blues’ success is not about free-flowing football enthralling spectators. Instead the pragmatic Portuguese has shown once again that his recipe for winning is to avoid losing, at all costs.

So far, Chelsea have lost only twice in the league, at Newcastle and Spurs, which is the best record of any Premier League champions since Mourinho’s men ten years ago, when they lost only once on their way to the title in his first season at Stamford Bridge.

That campaign began with a 1-0 home win over United, the same score as this weekend, yet that did not tell the full story of the game.

The signs were there that Louis Van Gaal has got the Reds playing the way he wants, with power, purpose and passion. That they did not leave with at least a point was down to their profligacy in front of goal, most notably from Wayne Rooney in the early stages and Radamel Falcao later.

Chelsea also defended like demons, as Mourinho acknowledged when he spoke of the ‘immense’ contributions of Gary Cahill and John Terry, but we all know how vulnerable those two can be when not shielded effectively.

Against United, Mourinho put central defender Kurt Zouma into midfield as an extra buffer, as he did against Tottenham in the Capital One Cup final. Ultra-defensive, maybe, but effective. Yet an injury-hit United would still have scored if they had possessed a more deadly spearhead than Falcao, increasingly looking like a fish out of water.

Robin Van Persie would surely have put away at least one of the chances that presented themselves on Saturday, and Michael Carrick might have opened up a stubborn defence more.

Absentees aside, though, United were the dominant side from start to finish in terms of possession and chances, and it was only the genius of Eden Hazard once again that saw Chelsea home.

Van Gaal can – and did - console himself with the knowledge that his side is finally taking shape: “We are in a process and I see my team growing and improving every week.”

The worry for Mourinho is that his Jekyll-and Hyde side have had to rely on the brilliance of Hazard and resilience of their defenders in 2015, in stark contrast to their pre-Christmas form. Diego Costa, Cesc Fabregas and Oscar have all dipped alarmingly in the second half of the season, and with the Brazilian striker appearing increasingly prone to injuries, Mourinho must consider investing in another forward of real quality.

Didier Drogba’s best days are long gone, and it is almost embarrassing to see his most valuable contributions now are to kill the game by timewasting, throwing himself to the ground far too easily, the way he did in his early Premier League years. Loic Remy has done a job when required, but if Costa were to be out for lengthy periods, would the Frenchman be able to spearhead a title charge?

The challenge for Chelsea will be even greater if Jurgen Klopp or another manager can get City firing again, or Arsenal break the cycle of underachievement. But the biggest competition next season could come from United — and that has to be good news for fans of the Premier League.