Robin Van Persie scored a 93rd minute goal to break the hearts of Chelsea fans and earn United a 1-1 draw against the League leaders at Old Trafford.
After being denied twice by saves from Thiabut Courtois, the Dutch striker finally got the better of the Belgian, converting a rebound from close range into the net after Courtois made a diving save to deny Marouane Fellaini.
Chelsea looked set to move to a six point lead at the top of the Premier League and eight points clear of Manchester City after Dider Drogba’s 52nd minute header.
The 36 year old connected with Cesc Fabregas’ inswinging corner with a towering leap and a directed his effort goalwards, leaving De Gea with no chance to react.
For a better part of the match Jose Mourinho’s side seemed to have a firm grip of the game, but after Branislav Ivanovic’s 93rd minute booking saw him sent off for two yeallow cards, Van Persie’s strike meant they dropped two points for the second time this term.
Defence hasn’t been the order of the day for United so far during van Gaal’s reign, so it was little surprise to see them attack from the outset. However, with Chelsea lacking their leading marksmen Diego Costa, perhaps it was surprising to see the Blues immediately look to take the game to their hosts.
As such, a breathless start ensued, with the first chance falling to the feet of Angel Di Maria just four minutes in.
Breaking from a Chelsea set-piece, the Argentine led the attack, thrusting down the right before the ball was worked across the field. Some 20 yards from goal in a central position, Juan Mata clipped a wonderfully disguised pass past the Chelsea back line; alas, Di Maria skied his attempted volley.
Jose Mourinho served notice of his side’s attacking ambitions by selecting his attacking midfield trio of Eden Hazard, Oscar and Willian in support of Drogba. Hazard, scorer of two goals in the Champions League in midweek, wasted little time in asking questions of United right-back Rafael, who was booked for tugging back the Belgian with just 12 minutes on the clock. Similarly, referee Phil Dowd booked Drogba for a trip on former teammate Mata eight minutes later.
Chelsea forced five corners in the opening 20 minutes, but it was noticeable how quickly United looked to break after De Gea caught the last, and the Spaniard’s use of the ball almost lent itself to the home side taking a 23rd minute lead.