Manchester United Suffer Heavy Loss To Chelsea After Pedro Fires In Fastest Goal Of The Premier League Season

Chelsea enjoyed an emphatic 4-0 win over Manchester United as Jose Mourinho returned to Stamford Bridge for the first time since getting fired as Blues boss last year.

Pedro got the home team off to a flying start as he took advantage of a defensive mistake by Chris Smalling to score within 30 seconds of kick-off. The Spanish winger took the ball around Manchester United goalkeeper David de Gea to give Chelsea the immediate advantage. Pedro’s quickfire strike was the fastest goal in the Premier League season, according to BBC Sport.

30 seconds. That's how long it took Chelsea to score v. Manchester United. #PLonNBC https://t.co/OCRl92K2IA

— NBC Sports Soccer (@NBCSportsSoccer) October 23, 2016

Gary Cahill doubled the lead after 21 minutes. The defender pounced on a loose ball from a Chelsea corner to volley into the Manchester United goal, with the ball taking a deflection off two players on the way to the England international.

Chelsea were lucky to reach half-time with 11 men, as David Luis could have been sent off. The Brazilian defender, who rejoined the Blues in the summer for a reported £34 million ($41.6 million), was fortunate to stay on the field after a high, dangerous challenge on Manchester United’s Marouane Fellaini.

VINE: David Luiz's horrible challenge on Fellaini. https://t.co/7x3m6It1ti

— Man Utd FF (@ManUtdFF) October 23, 2016

Defensive lapses on the part of Manchester United also allowed Eden Hazard and N’Golo Kante to score and complete Manchester United’s heaviest defeat since 2011. The Red Devils lost 6-1 to Manchester City in a Manchester derby at Old Trafford exactly five years before the Stamford Bridge loss.

After 61 minutes, Hazard slipped behind Juan Mata — a player Mourinho sold from Chelsea to Manchester United over two years ago — and picked up a through pass from Nemanja Matic. The Belgian winger took the ball around the sluggish Smalling and rolled in to increase Chelsea’s lead over United.

Kante made it 4-0 for Chelsea eight minutes later. The former Leicester City midfielder charged into the box with the ball after a flowing team move, slicing past Smalling who was having a nightmare game for United, to slot past de Gea.

The game marked only the second time a Mourinho team had conceded four or more goals in the Premier League. The last time was when he took Chelsea to White Hart Lane in January 2015 and they lost 5-3 to Tottenham Hotspur.

Manchester United’s loss means they’ve collected only two points in their last three games following draws against Stoke and Liverpool. Mourinho told BBC Sport that the tide needs to turn.

“We were coming to have an offensive approach. We wanted to create chances; we showed that after the 1-0. The second and the third were counter-attack goals. It is one of those days when you give the advantage to opponents by doing nothing.”

“We are six points from the top, three from the top four, we now need to win matches. We need to win our matches now, which are not easy. We need to win to close that gap.”

Meanwhile, Manchester United’s Eric Bailly might have suffered a serious knee injury in the heavy defeat. The Ivory Coast defender was substituted in the 52nd minute after what Mourinho called “a bad injury” to his “ligament area,” according to BBC Sport. Bailly joined United from Villareal this summer and had played every minute of the team’s league campaign before then.

The win carried Chelsea into fourth place, above Spurs only on goal difference — both teams have 19 points. There’s now only one point separating the top five teams after nine games, with Manchester City leading Arsenal and Liverpool on goal difference. Manchester United are in seventh place, with 14 points.

Chelsea manager Antonio Conte was delighted with his team’s performance against United, especially after losing to title rivals Liverpool and Arsenal in consecutive games last month.

“We made a fantastic start. We scored the early goal but we continued to play good football, intensity and possession, create many chances. Today we didn’t concede, which was important. It was a type of win that increases the confidence. We wanted to show our ambition and give the satisfaction to our fans and show last season was very bad.”

Next up for Chelsea is a visit to West Ham in the League Cup on Wednesday, before a league trip to Southampton next weekend. Manchester United will attempt to change their fortunes when they host Manchester City in the League Cup, also on Wednesday, before playing Burnley at home in the league next weekend.

[Featured Image by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images]