Sunday, May 8, 2011

In The Tunnel

Vidic shaking Hands before Kick off

36 Secs Just 36 secs .... wow

Chicharito Wuhuu What Pleasure What joy 36 secs after the start Of The Match ..

Chicharito And Rooney After Goal United Lead

Vidic Heading The Ball Into Net United 2-0 chelsea

Vidic After Goal With Chicharito..

Vidic After Goal

United 2-1 Chelsea Match Report

Report: United 2 Chelsea 1

United stand tantalisingly close to a record 19th title after a magnificent 2-1 victory over closest rivals Chelsea at a jubilant Old Trafford.

Early goals from Javier Hernandez, inside the first minute, and Nemanja Vidic set Sir Alex Ferguson's side on their way to a famous win and, despite Frank Lampard's second-half effort, the leaders thoroughly deserved the success that leaves the club only a point away from more glory.

The Reds took only 36 seconds to lift the roof off Old Trafford with incisive passes by Ryan Giggs and Ji-sung Park seeing Hernandez through on goal as a stretching David Luiz failed to intercept the Korean's through ball. Chicharito nervelessly slipped his finish wide of Petr Cech to hand United the perfect start.

In a whirlwind opening spell, Wayne Rooney let fly from another Park pass to bring the best out of the diving Cech and Hernandez was unable to reach a teasing Park centre that evaded the shaky Luiz.

Another fine move at blistering speed saw Rooney collect a return ball from Antonio Valencia, only to pull his finish just wide. Chelsea finally mustered a couple of chances of their own with Edwin van der Sar worked by Florent Malouda after fisting away from a Salomon Kalou cross and Kalou then hit a tame effort straight at the Dutch keeper.

But United doubled their lead in the 23rd minute when Park's wicked drive from an angle forced a corner from Cech's save. From the flag-kick, Giggs teased Kalou and centred invitingly for an outnumbered Vidic to plunder a downward header to cue incredible celebrations.

Chelsea's response was instant with Van der Sar palming away a Kalou header and Branislav Ivanovic only finding the side-netting from the rebound. Van der Sar became more prominent as Luiz moved forward with menace to test the veteran, who then dived to his left to frustrate Didier Drogba from a free-kick.

Another cheaply-awarded set-piece allowed Drogba a second attempt, that he fizzed wide, but there was controversy when Ivanovic escaped a second booking for a blatant foul on Rooney.

Undeterred, United finished the half the stronger with John Obi Mikel prodding behind following a Valencia one-two with Rooney and the Ecuadorian winger smashed over the top following neat play by Giggs and Fabio.

Malouda had the first real effort of the second period but Van der Sar watched it sail wide before another big decision went against United. Lampard clearly handled Valencia's cross inside the area but Howard Webb waved play on as everybody anticipated the official pointing to the spot.

Carlo Ancelotti introduced Fernando Torres to his attack just past the hour mark as the Blues searched for a route back into the game - and the title race.

Valencia had another penalty shout rejected after tussling with John Terry inside the box following another rapid break but, this time, it was probably the correct decision from referee Webb.

Van der Sar had to be alert to field a long-range drive by substitute Alex and Drogba was penalised for handball when delivering a shot wide of the far post as some pressure started to build on the home goal.

United did concede when Ivanovic climbed to head a Ramires cross goalwards and Lampard stabbed home from close range with just over 20 minutes left to set up a nervous finale.

Rooney almost swiftly restored the two-goal lead but was off balance when trying to steer in a Hernandez cut-back and Alex cleared superbly off the line to avoid a sense of deja vu for the visitors after the Champions League tie at Old Trafford.
United had to put their bodies on the line in a bid to preserve the now slender advantage with Fabio, Rio Ferdinand and substitute Jonny Evans all requiring treatment in the aftermath of one attack.

It was tight and tense but Rooney could have scored three times in the space of a minute, only to fail to find the finishing touch that would have relaxed the home fans. Then Hernandez headed over from close range from Valencia's driven centre with four minutes left as the Reds refused to do things the easy way.

Hearts were in mouths when Torres lined up a shot inside the box with time running out but the £50million man could only drag it off target, much to palpable relief as United stand on the brink of yet another title.

Howard Webb is good news for Fergie, especially at Old Trafford #manutd

Howard Webb may not be the United fan that former Liverpool winger Ryan Babel once suggested, but Sir Alex Ferguson should have reasons to be cheerful after the referee's appointment.

Webb has awarded penalties to United in three of the last four matches he has taken charge of at Old Trafford, games Ferguson's side went on to win.

In the last five seasons, Webb has taken charge of 12 matches at Old Trafford and been tough on their opponents.

He's the man: But Manchester United tend to get good decisions when Howard Webb's in charge

He has awarded United 173 free-kicks to their opponents' 147 and shown Ferguson's players 24 yellow cards while booking opponents 34 times.

Webb is not alone.

Decisions made by all referees over the same period in the league have seen three times more spot-kicks given to United than their opponents and more than three times as many red cards for visitors

Nani: We'll crush Chelsea with our skill, so don't try any rough stuff #manutd

Chelsea have been warned they will be beaten 'by skill' if they try any rough stuff to make today's title showdown a physical affair.

Manchester United were incensed when Chelsea's David Luiz escaped a red card for a hack at Wayne Rooney earlier in the season at Stamford Bridge.

And Nani has also been the victim of some bad challenges, most notably when Jamie Carragher caught him at Anfield.

Rough stuff: Jamie Carragher's notorious challenge on Nani

It has led the belief that United might not 'like it up 'em' and that Chelsea's strength could be decisive.

But Nani believes that any intimidation will work in United's favour.

'I don't like bad tackles but they don't scare me,' he said. 'Anyone who thinks that doesn't know me at all or my attitude to football.

'I am strong and I like the defenders to come to me because I can beat them. I have the skill.'

The Portuguese winger thinks the incident at Anfield, when he suffered a gashed leg, has led to a clampdown.

Not scared: Nani says he is ready for the rough stuff

He said: 'Defenders don't kick like they did a couple of months ago. They realise that if they kick a player, they will get a yellow or red card. But this is English football, you do get kicked but we enjoy playing here. It's the tackles that help make the game beautiful in England.'

Despite Chelsea's five-match winning run, Sir Alex Ferguson says United have the momentum after reaching the final of the Champions League.

'The European Cup is the trophy Chelsea wanted most and we knocked them out of that,' said the United boss. 'We've played them three times, beaten them twice and everyone knows what happened at Stamford Bridge [Chelsea won 2-1 but United felt they suffered from poor refereeing decisions].

'I think we've been the better team. We have to prove that again on Sunday. We're used to the title races going to the wire. The fans' fingernails are withered away anyway, but we should be all right with our experience.'

Get me Wesley! Ferguson tells United's owners: £30m deal for Sneijder is up to you #manutd

Sir Alex Ferguson will land his top summer target, Inter Milan's £30million Dutch midfielder Wesley Sneijder, if Manchester United's owners, the Glazer family, agree to bankroll the deal.

'It's up to the owners now,' said an Old Trafford insider. 'Sir Alex wants the player — it's just a matter of agreeing to the wage demands.'

Even though victory over Chelsea will virtually guarantee a record 19th title for United, Ferguson is already planning for next season.

And Sneijder, 26, is the manager's first choice as the long-term replacement for Paul Scholes, who is expected to announce his retirement this summer.

Price on his head: Wesley Sneijder (left) is Sir Alex Ferguson's top transfer target

The big stumbling block to any deal is the Holland World Cup star's £170,000-a-week San Siro wages.

Because of Britain's high tax rates, United would need to dig deep — far exceeding what they pay top earner Wayne Rooney — to match Sneijder's current net earnings.

That places the ball firmly in the court of the Florida-based Glazers, who came up with the cash after Rooney's shock transfer plea last October. He quickly withdrew the request after the Glazers' intervention saw his wages hiked to £200,000 a week.

Dead ball expertise: Sneijder scores a free-kick during Inter's 2-1 win against Lazio

Signing Sneijder would be Ferguson's biggest move in the market since the £30.75m deal that took Bulgarian striker Dimitar Berbatov to Old Trafford from Tottenham on transfer deadline day in 2008.

Inter will demand £40m after Sneijder, who last year won the European Cup, Serie A title and Coppa Italia with the club as well as reaching the World Cup Final with Holland, signed a five-year deal only six months ago.

But it is understood the player and his celebrity wife Yolanthe want to move to England and that Sneijder is attracted to United, meaning the Italian club are likely to agree to the sale.

World Cup pedigree: Sneijder scored four goals in South Africa - including this header in the quarter-finals against Brazil - as Holland were beaten in the final by Spain

The UK's 50 per cent tax rate for high earners will not be the only problem, however. The tax authorities have launched a major crackdown on footballers' image rights deals, which clubs once utilised to pay players' extra fees that avoided higher-rate tax.

Manchester City have also expressed an interest in Sneijder and would have fewer problems meeting his wages, although United are believed to be his club of choice.

The Old Trafford hierarchy are investigating how they could top up Sneijder's wages with corporate sponsorship deals linked to the club, with the player and his wife both keen to maximise their exposure.

Model couple: Sneijder with wife Yolanthe

Yolanthe, who married Sneijder shortly after last year's World Cup final, is an actress as well as a TV presenter in Holland and is looking to launch a career in Britain and the United States, making the Premier League a natural destination for the couple.

If the Glazers agree to match Sneijder's wages it will go some way to answering complaints of Manchester United fans who have wanted to see big-money deals following the £80m sale of Cristiano Ronaldo to Real Madrid two years ago.

It was the simultaneous arrival of Ronaldo, Kaka and Karim Benzema that led to former Ajax favourite Sneijder being shipped out of the Bernabeu to Inter.