Manchester United star Ander Herrera hails Chelsea performance as 'almost perfect'

Manchester United man-of-the-match Ander Herrera hailed the Red Devils’ performance as almost perfect after they beat Chelsea 2-0 at Old Trafford.

The Spain midfielder notched a goal and an assist as Jose Mourinho’s men downed the Premier League leaders with comfort at home.

And Herrera, speaking to Sky Sports, heaped praise upon his team-mates as they executed a plan to near perfection.

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The 27-year-old said: “I think it was almost perfect.

“You cannot say any game is perfect, there always are some things to improve, but it was almost. Defensively it was perfect, they are top of the table and they didn’t create chances.

“We controlled the game, moved the ball really well and can be very happy.”

Herrera set up Marcus Rashford for United’s first goal inside eight minutes, but there was an element of controversy as the combative midfielder seemed to handle the ball before he played the England striker through on goal.

But the Spain international made a stout defence of the claim, saying he didn’t believe it was a foul.

“I didn’t know about it, I didn’t want to touch the ball with my hands,” he added. “It was not my intention. You have your arms in a natural position, it is not a handball.

“I have been looking for a goal for a long time, but something always happened, the crossbar, good saves from keepers. We can be very happy today.”

Goalscorer Rashford praised both the team and manager Jose Mourinho after the victory.

The 19-year-old said the Reds utilised similar tactics as deployed at Stamford Bridge earlier this season, when they were undone by a first-half Herrera red card.

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Rashford said: “We went away to them earlier in the season and we had a game plan but were unfortunate to go down to ten men. It had worked to an extent then. Today it took a lot of discipline.

“We are a team, missing one player does not cancel out what we do in the week. Everyone did their work together.

“He [Herrera] put the ball exactly where I wanted it, it is something needed in this team, we have lacked understanding and goals.”