UNITED EDGE OUT CHELSEA IN SUDDEN DEATH PENALTIES
In the first all-English European Cup final in 53 competitions, it was Edwin Van der Sar who was Manchester United's hero against their biggest Premier League rivals, Chelsea. In a pulsating game at the Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow, which ended 1-1 after 120 minutes, penalties were the only way the two teams could be separated.
Fifty years after the Munich air disaster, which killed a number of Sir Matt Busby's young United team, Sir Alex Ferguson's players edged out Chelsea to claim their third European Cup.
United took the lead though their 23-year-old wunderkind Ronaldo, only for Frank Lampard to level the game on the stroke of half time. Ferguson's team had the best of the early exchanges and it was no surprise when the Portuguese winger opening the scoring after 26 minutes.
After a high-tempoed start - only marred by Paul Scholes' rash challenge on Chelsea's Claude Makelele, which ended in both players being booked - Wes Brown crossed from the right flank to Ronaldo, who had shaken free from his marker Michael Essien.
The Ghanaian makeshift right-back was a mere spectator as the United star towered above him and arrowed the ball into the right-hand corner of Petr Cech's goal. It was his 42nd goal of a spectacular season, and - significantly - his first ever against Chelsea.
Ferguson's team could, and should, have made it 2-0 eight minutes later through Carlos Tevez and then Michael Carrick. On the break Wayne Rooney picked out Ronaldo with a sumptuous 60 yard cross-field ball. The winger, with two men on him, knocked the ball in first time, and from six-yards the Argentine's header found the gloves of Cech, who threw himself at the forward.
Carrick hit the rebound straight, and the Czech stopper did well to parry the ball away. Two minutes before the interval, in a half which United dominated, Cech came to the rescue again, rushing out well to cause Tevez to skid his shot agonisingly wide.
In Chelsea's only significant chance of the first 45 minutes, Lampard laced home from inside the box, following up Essien's long shot, which had deflected off Rio Ferdinand's back.
The Blues had the better of a tight second half, and Didier Drogba came closest to breaking the deadlock with 12 minutes remaining. The Ivorian's shot from 35 yards rocketed through the United defence and crashed off Van der Sar's left upright.
Lampard crashed the crossbar in extra time, and the game when to penalties, but not before Drogba had struck Nemanja Vidic and been ejected.
Cech, who had previously never saved a penalty in Chelsea colours, saved Ronaldo's kick, and Blues captain John Terry could have won the game with his spot-kick, when the scores were 4-4. Terry send Van der Sar the wrong way but his strike grazed the right-hand post and bounced wide, leaving the 27-year-old, slumped on the floor, wanting the ground to swallow him up.
The shootout went to sudden death and it was United, who came from behind in 1999 to win the Champions League against Bayern Munich, who ran out winners when Nicolas Anelka had his penalty saved by the tall Dutch stopper.
In the first all-English European Cup final in 53 competitions, it was Edwin Van der Sar who was Manchester United's hero against their biggest Premier League rivals, Chelsea. In a pulsating game at the Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow, which ended 1-1 after 120 minutes, penalties were the only way the two teams could be separated.
Fifty years after the Munich air disaster, which killed a number of Sir Matt Busby's young United team, Sir Alex Ferguson's players edged out Chelsea to claim their third European Cup.
United took the lead though their 23-year-old wunderkind Ronaldo, only for Frank Lampard to level the game on the stroke of half time. Ferguson's team had the best of the early exchanges and it was no surprise when the Portuguese winger opening the scoring after 26 minutes.
After a high-tempoed start - only marred by Paul Scholes' rash challenge on Chelsea's Claude Makelele, which ended in both players being booked - Wes Brown crossed from the right flank to Ronaldo, who had shaken free from his marker Michael Essien.
The Ghanaian makeshift right-back was a mere spectator as the United star towered above him and arrowed the ball into the right-hand corner of Petr Cech's goal. It was his 42nd goal of a spectacular season, and - significantly - his first ever against Chelsea.
Ferguson's team could, and should, have made it 2-0 eight minutes later through Carlos Tevez and then Michael Carrick. On the break Wayne Rooney picked out Ronaldo with a sumptuous 60 yard cross-field ball. The winger, with two men on him, knocked the ball in first time, and from six-yards the Argentine's header found the gloves of Cech, who threw himself at the forward.
Carrick hit the rebound straight, and the Czech stopper did well to parry the ball away. Two minutes before the interval, in a half which United dominated, Cech came to the rescue again, rushing out well to cause Tevez to skid his shot agonisingly wide.
In Chelsea's only significant chance of the first 45 minutes, Lampard laced home from inside the box, following up Essien's long shot, which had deflected off Rio Ferdinand's back.
The Blues had the better of a tight second half, and Didier Drogba came closest to breaking the deadlock with 12 minutes remaining. The Ivorian's shot from 35 yards rocketed through the United defence and crashed off Van der Sar's left upright.
Lampard crashed the crossbar in extra time, and the game when to penalties, but not before Drogba had struck Nemanja Vidic and been ejected.
Cech, who had previously never saved a penalty in Chelsea colours, saved Ronaldo's kick, and Blues captain John Terry could have won the game with his spot-kick, when the scores were 4-4. Terry send Van der Sar the wrong way but his strike grazed the right-hand post and bounced wide, leaving the 27-year-old, slumped on the floor, wanting the ground to swallow him up.
The shootout went to sudden death and it was United, who came from behind in 1999 to win the Champions League against Bayern Munich, who ran out winners when Nicolas Anelka had his penalty saved by the tall Dutch stopper.
Labels: Champions League, Chelsea, Manchester United
