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Juan Mata upbeat over Manchester United display despite Chelsea equaliser

The leading candidate to become the next manager of United is former Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho but if that happens, Giggs will leave the club and will find his first experience of management elsewhere.

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Van Gaal “You’ve spoken with Ed Woodward [the Manchester United executive vice-chairman]?” A midweek clash against Watford saw them only take a point and they’ve drawn three straight home games. Louis van Gaal has gone through a bit of a resurrection in recent weeks and so has much maligned captain Wayne Rooney.

In an open first half, Chelsea thought they should have had a penalty when John Terry had a shot blocked by the arm of Daley Blind, but referee Michael Oliver waved away the Chelsea protests.

So, neither Manchester United or Chelsea will be satisfied with a draw and both will need to significantly up their game and start putting wins together if either are to make the move up the Premier League table that both desire.

Upon his appointment in December, Chelsea’s interim manager Guus Hiddink was confident his team remained capable of reaching the top four.

But after United goalkeeper De Gea had saved from Branislav Ivanovic and Cesc Fabregas, Costa equalised in stoppage time when he gathered Fabregas’s pass, rounded De Gea and slotted home.

“Maybe you remember also the first years of Fergie?”

If Van Gaal loses his job by the end of the season and Mourinho or anyone else for that matter, swans in to replace him at Old Trafford, it will not be results like today’s which have decided his fate.

United are five points off the top four, and still in contention for the Europa League and the FA Cup, but there’s no question that they have fallen well below the standards expected.

“It is frustrating not a big disappointment because we played a very good match until the last quarter of the game”.

Chelsea finally burst into life with two chances in as many minutes as Oscar fired over the bar before Willian fired a testing low cross into the box which the Brazilian midfielder was inches away from putting in the back of the net. I think we’re showing now that we can play a high level of football and can play attractive, offensive football.

Van Gaal’s United rank third in the Premier League for possession, averaging 57.3 percent per game, but 10th for goals having scored just 31 in the league this season – a number boosted by a 3-0 beating of Stoke City in midweek.

“I feel we didn’t reward ourselves with a victory but we were the better team”.

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“At this moment I don’t know where football will take me, because in football you never know”.

Target man Diego Costa rounds David de Gea on his way to scoring Chelsea’s equaliser