It was a pleasing performance once again on the road for Thomas Tuchel and his players, who dominated large spells of the contest in the north-west and created plenty of openings against the Red Devils on their own turf.

Yet our superiority on the evening failed to translate into an advantage on the scoreboard as Marcos Alonso’s superb volley was swiftly cancelled out by Cristiano Ronaldo scoring his first league goal against us.

Perhaps a 1-1 final score was not surprising given this fixture is now the most drawn game in Premier League history, with our latest stalemate the 25th between the sides.

A tale of two teams

In contrast to United’s low block and compact shape, the Blues were expansive and utilised the full width of the extended Old Trafford pitch. Wing-backs Reece James and Marcos Alonso pushed high and wide to stretch the game, force the hosts into covering more ground and offer a regular attacking option.

It was no surprise that our goal on the hour mark came with both wide players involved, James supplying one of his 10 crosses into the box for Kai Havertz to flick onwards and Alonso perfectly placed to smack in one of those sweet volleys he has perfected over the years.

Prior to that deadlock-breaking strike, our attackers had cut frustrated figures in the final third with a lack of precision, composure and ruthlessness.

Havertz spurned a couple of decent opportunities, while James hit the outside of the post later in the game on a night where we had 21 shots to United’s six, but less than a third of those were on target.

Reece's impact

James missed the weekend win over West Ham but was back in the starting 11 and deployed once again at wing-back, unleashed to cause maximum damage to United’s faltering and confidence-lacking defence, which had shipped nine goals in the previous three games.

The England international was a constant menace and topped most of our attacking metrics, including for touches, crosses, touches in the opposition box, take-ons and tackles. He also played a big part in the fact that 40 per cent of our attacking moves and 29 per cent of our shots on goal were directed from the right.

His energy, intensity and enthusiasm throughout the 90 minutes, as well as that level of class and quality, made sure he was the outstanding performer on the field. Unfortunately, that performance didn’t quite have the final layer of gloss applied as his left-footed curler clipped the outside of the far post late on with David De Gea beaten.

Nevertheless, James’s return after missing so many weeks of the season is a welcome boost for Tuchel’s side, with the Blues boss commenting afterwards that our title challenge may have endured a little longer had the 22-year-old not been absent for two months in mid-winter.

In control

In central midfield, our complimentary duo of N’Golo Kante and Jorginho ran the game. The Italian was at his metronomic best in dictating the tempo and tide of possession, registering eight per cent possession just by himself as well as 76 completed passes, both game-high figures.

Importantly, he was a defensive shield too in guarding against the Man United counter-attack, with the visitors enjoying so much territorial advantage, attempting four tackles and making three successful interceptions.

With Jorginho plugging holes, Kante was handed licence to roam forward and it was our number seven’s perfectly-weighted pass through (having been set free by his midfield partner) that teed up a great chance for Havertz in the first half, with the striker firing straight at De Gea.

Rationalising the regret

Unfortunately, there was regret at the what-might-have-been’s as the Blues travelled back to the capital late after the match. Unusually for the league’s second-top scorers on the road, our profligacy proved costly and the winning away run was subsequently brought to an end.

As the xG map from the game indicates, our chances in and around the 18-yard box were many and varied, with the expected goals weighted almost five times in our favour. Yet a combination of De Gea, the woodwork and fluffed lines meant we scored just the one.

Nevertheless, the point gained ensures United now cannot finish above us in the league, strengthening our position in third place with five matches to play. We are also closer to the summit at this stage of the season than at any time since we last won the title in 2017.