How do Man United cope with defensive crisis at Chelsea?
From Talk of the Devils: The Athletic FC's Manchester United show by The Athletic
April 16, 2026 · 52 min
About this episode
The episode discusses Manchester United's defensive challenges ahead of their match against Chelsea amid player suspensions and form issues.
Manchester United head to Stamford Bridge for a Saturday night Champions League six-pointer with Chelsea but there's a good chance it won't match up to the all-guns blazing shootout that was Real Madrid at Bayern in this season's quarter final. It has now been confirmed, at the eleventh hour, that Harry Maguire will miss the Chelsea game having had his red card ban extended for an FA charge of abusive language. It's also unlikely that Lisandro Martinez will feature after he was sent off against Leeds, so Leny Yoro and Ayden Heaven are expected to be Michael Carrick's centre half partnership. Add in uncertain form from United's attackers, and there are question marks there. Meanwhile, Chelsea are adrift after a series of poor performances and results. Fans are showing open hostility to both the owners and the manager and they have attacking problems of their own having failed to score in four of their last five games. Surely, United can take a great stride toward Europe's top table with a win... Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Topics covered
- defensive crisis
- Manchester United
- Chelsea
- Champions League
- football analysis
- player injuries
Keywords
- Manchester United
- Chelsea
- Harry Maguire
- Lisandro Martinez
- Champions League
- football
- defensive crisis
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Manchester United, Chelsea, Michael Carrick, Real Madrid, Bayern
Places: Stamford Bridge, Europe
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