PL Collection: Four classic United-Chelsea games

Our huge archive gives you the chance to enjoy extended highlights from classic matches against the 19 clubs that will make up next season's Premier League – and the latest team to feature in our series is Chelsea. 

 

The Stamford Bridge club have been among our most regular rivals during the modern era, with the Blues lifting five titles after Roman Abramovich became owner of the club in 2003.

 

Between 2005 and 2011, the two clubs passed the Premier League trophy back and forth, and duelled in many riveting contests. But even before that, Chelsea always developed exciting, entertaining teams, and were one of the few sides that regularly won at Old Trafford when we were at our most imperious in the 1990s.

 

We've chosen four epic contests to help you get started on our Premier League Collection, with the first Chelsea cracker featuring magical strikes from Paul Scholes and Ryan Giggs...

 

Few opponents struck fear into Reds' hearts like Chelsea in the 1990s. United lost only three league games at Old Trafford from 1993 to 1996, and Chelsea were responsible for two of them (Nottingham Forest the other). But they couldn't always contain United's talent, and a memorable day in west London in October 1995 saw Alex Ferguson's side run riot. Scholes scored twice – the second to cap a glorious team move full of slick one-touch passing – before a dizzying solo effort from Giggs put the result beyond doubt. Chelsea's goal was scored by former Red Mark Hughes, incidentally.

 

Even before Chelsea reached their Premier League peak under Jose Mourinho in the mid-noughties, the Blues were an exciting side. In January 2003, they turned up in M16 and played some stunning stuff, deservedly going ahead through Eidur Gudjohnsen. But United fought back when Scholes headed home a trademark David Beckham swinger and, in the dying moments, Diego Forlan crashed home Juan Sebastian Veron's glorious searching pass, to secure us a vital three points on the way to a hard-earned eighth Premier League title.

 

One of United's finest displays against Chelsea came just after New Year in January 2009. The Blues had faced us in the Champions League final the previous year, underlining that this contest had a reasonable shout at boasting the continent's two finest club sides. But, with Giggs running the show from an unexpected central midfield role, United ran amok, taking Chelsea to the cleaners with the kind of dominant performance that rarely graces this fixture. Goals from Nemanja Vidic, Wayne Rooney and Dimitar Berbatov did the damage, and helped us keep the pressure on temporary league leaders Liverpool.

 

One of the most dramatic meetings between these two clubs in recent years, this October 2012 humdinger had it all. Two red cards (for Chelsea, thankfully), a blistering United start, followed by a stirring comeback from the hosts, before a typical poacher's finish from substitute Javier Hernandez, who nabbed the winner. Remarkably, this was our first league win at Stamford Bridge since April 2002 – a statistic that underlines just how tough Chelsea have been as Premier League opponents. An own goal by David Luiz and Robin van Persie strike had provided the two-goal lead, only for future Red Juan Mata and Ramires to get on the scoresheet for the hosts. Branislav Ivanovic and Fernando Torres the two Blues dismissed.