Manchester United and Chelsea have been unable to break each other down in a goalless first half at Old Trafford.

The first chance of the contest fell the way of Angel di Maria, but he failed to keep his volley down after being picked out by Juan Mata, with the ball flying over the bar.

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Robin van Persie was the next United player to try his luck on goal in what was a frantic start to the game, latching on to Adnan Januzaj's incisive pass before getting away a shot which was well kept out by Thibaut Courtois.

Chelsea looked to hit their opponents on the break with Willian leading the charge, but, after racing past Marcos Rojo, the Brazilian midfielder failed to get the better of Chris Smalling, who made a vital interception.

David de Gea was forced into action shortly after to push away Didier Drogba's low effort, ensuring that the scoreline remained goalless at the interval, despite both sides creating decent openings.