Manchester United vs Chelsea: Ole Gunnar Solskjaer responds to Patrice Evra ‘life jacket’ criticism

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Ole Gunnar Solskjaer denied that Manchester United were fearful in their goalless draw with Chelsea, despite his former team-mate Patrice Evra claiming that they had played with a “life jacket”.

United failed to win a fifth consecutive Premier League match at Old Trafford for the first time after a game that was low on incident and clear-cut chances, with Frank Lampard’s visitors content to keep a clean sheet.

Evra, appearing as a pundit on Sky Sports, was critical of what he perceived to be a lack of ambition from United but while Solskjaer admitted his side eased into the game, he was happy with their display.

"Well, I think we started a little bit slow the first 20-25 minutes but there was going to be a winner it was going to be us,” said the United manager.  

“We created the biggest chances. There's two good teams out there and we decided to get out of the box to get a foothold in the game.

“We didn't create too many chances but Marcus had a great chance in the first half saved by the keeper and I thought towards the end if there was going to be a winner it was us.

“We've got to remember we're playing against a good team here, so I'm pleased for the players.”

Solskjaer left Donny van de Beek and Paul Pogba on the bench, preferring Scott McTominay and Fred in midfield after their displays in the impressive Champions League win over Paris Saint-Germain in midweek.

“Scott and Fred have done really well this week, they’ve given us a foothold in the games,” Solskjaer added. “They are a great combination together.  

“We felt after PSG that we needed to have the energy in there with them. Last time after PSG we struggled big time. We lost to Arsenal, we went 12 games and probably didn't deserve to win any, and we struggled.  

“But today we got a point on the board against a good team, had the biggest chances and we could’ve won it.”