"United were just well short in that area."
Gary Neville has identified the type of player Manchester United are missing, and the type of player they were sorely lacking against Chelsea on Sunday. Jose Mourinho's team lost 1-0 to the Premier League champions in a frantic game, settled by a stunning second-half header from Alvaro Morata.
United are now eight points behind Manchester City at the top of the table, having been level on points with Pep Guardiola's side at the start of October.
While their performance against Chelsea was an improvement on their display at Anfield against Liverpool last month, Mourinho's team can have no complaints about their defeat. They created few chances of note, and resorted to hoofing the ball towards Marouane Fellaini in the final minutes of the match, while
Jesse Lingard couldn't even be bothered to run faster than the referee.
On the other hand, several of Antonio Conte's team, such as Morata, Cesar Azpilicueta, N'Golo Kante, Tiemoue Bakayoko and Cesc Fabregas, played very well on the day.
In a hectic game, featuring two very committed sides (other than Lingard), Fabregas was the calmest player on the field. The Spanish midfielder was excellent in possession, pulling the strings from deep and providing a level of craft beyond anything United's midfield offered.
https://twitter.com/OptaChels/status/927226984161198080
Fabregas was brought to Chelsea from Barcelona by Jose Mourinho in 2014, and was excellent in his first season back in the Premier League, helping the London club to the league title and providing the ammunition for Diego Costa. He recorded 18 assists that season, and is such a good passer, he could probably pass Jack Wilshere's medical.
Fabregas is also the type of player United are desperately lacking, according to Neville.
Following Sunday's game at Stamford Bridge, the former United defender said his old team lost the match to Chelsea because they didn't have a creative player like Fabregas in midfield.
I thought they got killed in midfield," Neville said following Sunday's game.
"Jose Mourinho, since the Liverpool game, has talked about not being able to freshen it up. I thought Herrera, Matic and Mkhitaryan got absolutely ambushed. Kante was doing his job brilliantly, Bakayoko was running off him, Hazard and Fabregas were dropping in and controlling the match. United were just well short in that area.
"If you dominate midfield in the big games, you're in business and Chelsea did. I think Pogba is a big miss because of his confidence and arrogance. He takes the ball into tight areas, holds the ball, beats a man. Michael Carrick, too - he delivers those passes up to strikers, to the side of defenders, and I think those two players would have made a big difference."
Could United go back for another Chelsea player again next summer? Don't rule it out, especially as Fabregas' contract with the Blues is winding down.
