His positioning, too, was suspect and Graeme Le Saux had half a pitch to play with in the build-up to the corner for Chelsea’s first goal.To be fair to Brown, who began the season regarded as one of England’s finest young defenders, he could have been drawn inside to cover Blanc. The latter’s lack of pace means he has to drop so far off opposing strikers they can turn at their leisure. At times, Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink and Eidur Gudjohnsen were so far from any markers it was difficult to know whom to blame.But if Keane could not bring order to defence, his absence in United’s midfield left a chasm. Beckham was drawn like a lovesick youth to the shoulder of Celestine Babayaro, and was more of a liability for straying offside than a force for creativity.It was difficult to remember more than two crosses from his flank. The contrast between this display and the dynamism of his appearances for England was so stark it was surprising Ferguson’s patience lasted 75 minutes before deciding to substitute him.Veron, meanwhile, was confirming a growing suspicion that glorious gifts can sometimes harm if they cannot be assimilated. United spent £28m for him to be the conductor in a team of virtuosi but, if he had picked up a baton yesterday, he would have dropped it. It was his mistake, a hopelessly optimistic pass, that gave Hasselbaink the chance to put Chelsea 2-0 ahead.The visiting supporters were in their element.

“Are you Tottenham in disguise?” they asked, supplementing their scorn with, “You should have gone on strike”.There was only one crumb of comfort for United Fabien Barthez, the clown of Highbury, was exemplary.. Replacing a legendary goalkeeper can be a manager’s greatest burden. Just ask Walter Smith, who has seen his club spend more than £5.1m on three shot-stoppers in the last five years but is yet to be convinced he has found a suitable successor to Neville Southall. Liverpool have never truly filled the boots of Bruce Grobbelaar, while Manchester United, even allowing for the purchase of the world’s most garlanded keeper, Fabien Barthez, still cannot match the memory of their great Dane, Peter Schmeichel. At least the two red clubs have won more often than not without their talismen. Not so the Blues, although the feeling is growing that Steve Simonsen could be the long-awaited answer to the club’s keeping frailties.Stepping out of Southall’s imposing shadow remains a daunting task, but recent signs are encouraging. Two clean sheets suggest that the wonder kid is finally ready to make a proper start to his Premiership career.

Simonsen is the first to admit that his much-publicised and oft-questioned move to Everton had a negative effect on his game. The £3.3m transfer from Peter Johnson’s then Nationwide First Division club, Tranmere Rovers, to his “other” Merseyside outlet made Simonsen the most expensive teenage keeper of all time. It also raised expectations to unhealthy levels, including the misplaced suggestion that the 19-year-old would become the youngest-ever England keeper.As it happens, it took three seasons for the Sunderland lad to get his opportunity at club, let alone international, level. “I’ve waited a long time to get my break,” Simonsen says in his North-east accent, “so, yeah, I’m overjoyed. There were times when I thought the call would never come, but people at the club told me to bide my time and keep working hard. Now it’s happened and I’m determined to grab this chance with both hands.”Simonsen’s ability has never been in doubt, but the mental side of his game did suffer because of the pressures of his high-profile transfer. “There always seemed to be another side to the story and that was hard to cope with at times,” he explains.

“It affected me because every other person was asking me to justify the ins and outs when I knew nothing about the deal. I don’t know exactly how much money changed hands, but I must admit I was surprised about the transfer. One minute I was doing OK at Tranmere and the next I was moving to Everton It all happened very quickly Too quickly, perhaps. I’ve always had the confidence in my own ability, but the fact is that you don’t see many young keepers playing at the highest level.”Simonsen never expected to walk straight into the first team, but there were times when he was left wondering whether his future lay elsewhere. “I remember once when Paul Gerrard got injured and Thomas Myhre was recalled from a loan spell at Tranmere to play ahead of me,” he says.