An intriguing Premier League battle takes centre stage at Stamford Bridge on Thursday night, as Chelsea play host to Manchester United.
Both Mauricio Pochettino and Erik ten Hag are under immense pressure to turn their club's fortunes around as they endeavour to meet their respective European targets with just nine games left to play.
Just a solitary point was claimed by both clubs against relegation-threatened teams last weekend, with Chelsea pegged back twice to draw 2-2 at home to 10-man Burnley, a few hours before Man United conceded in the 99th minute to draw 1-1 at Brentford.
While the Red Devils sit sixth in the top-flight standings and eight points behind fifth-placed Tottenham Hotspur, the Blues are languishing in 11th position, four points behind the top seven.
There have been plenty of enthralling contests between Chelsea and Man United over the years, and here, Sports Mole takes an in-depth look at the head-to-head record and previous meetings between the two sides.
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Head-to-head record
Previous meetings: 194
Chelsea wins: 55
Draws: 56
Manchester United wins: 83
Almost 119 years have passed since Chelsea and Man United locked horns for the very first time on Christmas Day 1905 when both sides – competing in Division Two – played out a goalless stalemate.
That inaugural battle marked the first of 194 meetings between the two clubs, with Man United coming out on top a total of 83 times compared to Chelsea's 55, while there have also been 56 draws.
In the Premier League era (since 1992-93), the Red Devils have faced the Blues 63 times, winning 19, drawing 26 and losing 18, while they have also fared slightly better in cup competitions during this period, winning 13 and losing nine of their 25 encounters across the FA Cup, EFL Cup, Community Shield and Champions League.
This fixture currently holds a joint record with the Merseyside derby for having the most draws in Premier League history with 26, including 19 score draws and seven stalemates.
There was little to separate both Chelsea and Man United in the early years of the Premier League, with 10 draws played out over the first 22 meetings – the Red Devils winning seven and the Blues winning five during this period. Chelsea then enjoyed a short spell of dominance under Claudio Ranieri and Jose Mourinho between 2003 and 2007, winning four and drawing three games out of eight.
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Five wins for United and four for Chelsea across the next 10 Premier League encounters would follow – the former also celebrated Champions League glory over the latter in the 2008 final in Moscow during this period – before the West Londoners put together an impressive 12-game unbeaten run in all competitions between 2012 and 2017, including four wins and four draws in the top flight.
November 2017 was the last time that Chelsea got the better of Man United in the Premier League, winning 1-0 courtesy of a decisive Alvaro Morata header, and they have since gone 12 games without a top-flight triumph over the Red Devils, losing five and drawing the other seven.
Five successive draws - two goalless stalemates followed by three 1-1 draws - were played out before Man United picked up maximum points in their two most recent Premier League meetings with Chelsea, following up a thumping 4-1 home win in May 2023 with a 2-1 victory at Old Trafford in December last year – Bruno Fernandes missed an early penalty before Scott McTominay netted either side of a Cole Palmer equaliser.
Mark Hughes, who represented both clubs, has scored more goals (11) than any other player in this fixture, while Wayne Rooney, Denis Law and Sir Bobby Charlton are next on the list having registered nine goals apiece for the Red Devils.
Last 20 meetings
Dec 6, 2023: Man Utd 2-1 Chelsea (Premier League)
May 25, 2023: Man Utd 4-1 Chelsea (Premier League)
Oct 22, 2022: Chelsea 1-1 Man Utd (Premier League)
Apr 28, 2022: Man Utd 1-1 Chelsea (Premier League)
Nov 28, 2021: Chelsea 1-1 Man Utd (Premier League)
Feb 28, 2021: Chelsea 0-0 Man Utd (Premier League)
Oct 24, 2020: Man Utd 0-0 Chelsea (Premier League)
Jul 19, 2020: Man Utd 1-3 Chelsea (FA Cup Semi-Finals)
Feb 17, 2020: Chelsea 0-2 Man Utd (Premier League)
Oct 30, 2019: Chelsea 1-2 Man Utd (EFL Cup Fourth Round)
Aug 11, 2019: Man Utd 4-0 Chelsea (Premier League)
Apr 28, 2019: Man Utd 1-1 Chelsea (Premier League)
Feb 18, 2019: Chelsea 0-2 Man Utd (FA Cup Fifth Round)
Oct 20, 2018: Chelsea 2-2 Man Utd (Premier League)
May 19, 2018: Chelsea 1-0 Man Utd (FA Cup Final)
Feb 25, 2018: Man Utd 2-1 Chelsea (Premier League)
Nov 5, 2017: Chelsea 1-0 Man Utd (Premier League)
Apr 16, 2017: Man Utd 2-0 Chelsea (Premier League)
Mar 13, 2017: Chelsea 1-0 Man Utd (FA Cup Quarter-Finals)
Oct 23, 2016: Chelsea 4-0 Man Utd (Premier League)
Last 10 Premier League meetings
Dec 6, 2023: Man Utd 2-1 Chelsea (Premier League)
May 25, 2023: Man Utd 4-1 Chelsea (Premier League)
Oct 22, 2022: Chelsea 1-1 Man Utd (Premier League)
Apr 28, 2022: Man Utd 1-1 Chelsea (Premier League)
Nov 28, 2021: Chelsea 1-1 Man Utd (Premier League)
Feb 28, 2021: Chelsea 0-0 Man Utd (Premier League)
Oct 24, 2020: Man Utd 0-0 Chelsea (Premier League)
Feb 17, 2020: Chelsea 0-2 Man Utd (Premier League)
Aug 11, 2019: Man Utd 4-0 Chelsea (Premier League)
Apr 28, 2019: Man Utd 1-1 Chelsea (Premier League)
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Oliver Thomas
