Manchester United 1-1 Chelsea (Manchester United win 6-5 on penalties)
UEFA Champions League Final
21 May 2008 – Luzhniki Stadium – Moscow
Time: 20:45 (CET), 19:45 (UK), 23:45 (PK), 14:45 (EST).
Update: Get your Manchester United ‘Champions’ merchandise here.
Nothing that I can put into words can express the range of emotions that the players and the fans watching around the world went through during this game. Nothing anyone can say will ever capture the drama of the penalty shootout – Cech saving from Ronaldo, EVDS being beaten every time till Terry pumped it wide, coolness personified from Ryan Giggs to slot his penalty and then Edwin van der Sar’s save to win the Champions League.
It was madness – for United to take the lead, slip up, stagger from the return punch and then slip up again at the final hurdle – it took massive, massive balls to stay in there and while Terry will cop the responsibility from most sections, the game was there to be won for both sides in normal time.
Well played Chelsea – it was an absorbing and fitting finale to the season. When Mourinho left and Grant lost his first game to United, it seemed like their season was over but they came back strong and pushed United to the final hurdle. No other team in the Premier League currently has the quality or the spirit to do this, well done.
Fantastic stuff from Manchester United – defeat here wouldn’t have taken anything away from a great season but victory and the league and european cup double serves to highlight the spirit and tenacity of this United side. Few teams recover from the horror start they had to the season – to go on and win the double is fantastic.
I’m off to celebrate 
Glory Glory Manchester United!!!
Manchester United v Chelsea Preview
The 2007/2008 season will end like it started – with Chelsea and Manchester United scrapping for bragging rights as the best team in England. United have won the Premier League but for both clubs the Champions League holds a greater significance.
The various stats, trivia, historical links and significant milestones have been done to death – if you want a comprehensive list please download the press kit from UEFA (PDF).
Both teams will hold a press conference on Tuesday evening before their respective training sessions, something that will give us a good picture of prospective starting lineups. As Grant said, this won’t be a platform for tactical surprises so expect something similar to what you’ve seen at Old Trafford and Stamford Bridge this season – both teams tight at the back and pushing forward in numbers when they get the chance.
United have, in recent matches against Chelsea, Arsenal and sometimes even Liverpool, have had a weak center that’s been unable to hold it’s own and as a result the team is often pinned back, although that does allow United to play on the counter and create opportunities as we’ve seen against Liverpool and Arsenal. In fact at Emirates United were quite positive (as they were at Old Trafford against Chelsea, even before the red card) and I hope we’ll see that again in Moscow with a strong midfield standing up to Chelsea and pushing them back instead of being pinned outside the penalty area.
If you’re aching for pretty triangles, you’re in the wrong place. The end product of the two sides’ playing styles is a battle of physical attrition split by the odd mistake or moment of brilliance, and unless one team plays shockingly poor you’ll see a fairly even game decided by the odd goal. The stakes – this time worth more than just the financial rewards – are too high for this game to be an aesthetic showpiece where opponents are allowed the time and space to conjure magic for their TV audience.
Manchester United Watch
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Rooney will kill himself to be fit for this game, so expect him to play.
A Champions League final, especially the club’s first in 9 years, is no place for emotion or goodbyes. Still, Giggs and Scholes have little value as impact players and one of them will probably start seeing that Fergie will probably play a 4-5-1/4-3-3 with Rooney on the left and 3 central midfielders (Carrick is the only certain starter IMO) to match Chelsea’s physical strength down the middle.
Potential starting lineup: EVDS, Brown, Rio, Vidic, Evra, Carrick, Hargreaves, Scholes, Ronaldo, Rooney, Tevez
I’d rather see Anderson there instead of Scholes (based purely on his energy levels and the fact that both Carrick and Hargreaves can be creative outlets if given that role), but Scholes gives United a better option in terms of goal-scoring / goal-creating opportunities than Anderson, and I’m pretty sure this game will have both managers looking to score as opposed to sitting back and waiting for mistakes.
Chelsea Watch
John Terry and Didier Drogba, like Wayne Rooney, would walk through walls to play in the Champions League final and you can expect both of them to be fit barring a serious problem. Both players are central to Chelsea’s chances of success against United here and their presence will be a psychological and physical bonus for their teammates. Carvalho should be back as well.
Other than that, the Coles, Ballack, Lampard, Essien and Cech would also start, leaving only the right-back (if Essien takes up a midfield berth) and the second striker / winger position up for grabs, and I’d put that to either Kalou or Malouda.
Make of the Chelsea side what you will, but I don’t think Bosingwa is the answer Chelsea are looking for at right-back. He might do an Evra / Vidic and surprise everyone, but what are the odds?
Regardless of what happened in the league, Chelsea go into the Champions League final as slight favourites, if only because of their superiority in central midfield, and I’d expect Grant to capitalise on that.
Predictions
If there was ever a time for United’s star kids (Ronaldo and Rooney, I’m looking at you) to stand up and answer their critics, this is it.
No predictions though – Chelsea or Manchester United, just keep in mind that it’s been a good season for both clubs.
Champions have shown it again….To the Blues we say tough luck better luck next tym only when you are in with another team not The Reds!
Nuff respect to Man U!
Proud to be a Reds Fan today and forever!!!!!!!!!!!!
Well as a chelsea fan i knew it would be hard to face defeat, i never thought it would hit so hard, i never felt so sorry for a player as i did for JT,
I dont begrudge United their victory though,
one of those games that didnt deserve a loser
/drunk dizzy and breathless
cheeky lil bastard red ranter where did u get that pic from amazing stuff bro
Anyways what a nite on the edge and i sweared more than the words i spoke tonight
Highlights for me
Ronaldo goal he stood up against the doubters the penalty miss can go to hell
drogba sent off
terry misses
chealski scum goes down crying
and a scouse free zone board by the idiots of chealski fans hahaha
i was almost gonna faint when scholes ferdinand were having treatment
second half was’nt that good and we should have killed it in the first carrick why why why did’nt u kill it my dream of demolishing them whould have be over tonight
anyways what a shitty pitch was that slipping all over the place and in the end i cant seem to be able to sit in one place as i’m all jumping and grooving and yeah bloody hell we are the champions
and can some1 tell me how many yellows and fouls were there anyways all the matters is glory glory gloryyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy we are the champions
4 yellows each….
YEAHHH!!!
GLORY GLORY MAN UNITED!!!
GOOD JOB MAN UNITED!!!
I am delighted with the United win, but proud of the Chelsea fight. The game could have gone to either side. I have deep sympathy for John Terry and Chelsea. There is so little between the sides. United fans,. please, let us be magnanimous in victory, salute both sides and commiserate with Chelsea supporters in their hour of desolation. No gloating please.
Before the game, I felt that it would be tight almost too close to call, but in the end before the game I put my head above the parapet and said that I thought United would win. Why? Because of one man – Sir Alex Ferguson. A true great as a manager and as a man. I salute you and your team. I also salute Chelsea, and wish them well next season as individuals and as a team.
The match was a great advertisement for English and European Football. Well done, United. This is the start of an era. The team is young and will get better. Glory, Glory Man Utd!
fue un buen partido
pero le digo unas cosas a terry animo y para la otra hechale mas ganas
no llores porque yo tambien yo soy futbolista siempre tiene que ganar un equipo vamos alivianate
y tu cristiano un pinche penal no lo sabes colocar pero para la otra mejora loco porque ,porque estas en uncampo chingon no como nosotros tno tenemos apoyo de futbol y esa campo que tienen ust. es para ser marivillas con el amigo de uno pero le digo alos dos equipo que le echen mas ganas a sus trabajo y quieron ver mejor fuego adios . les abla un chavo que quire crecer y algun dia estara jugando con ustedes chido me dicen resucito ronaldo junior
Going NUTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTS!
Got lectures / tutes but screw that.
DID WE JUST WIN IT?! DID WE?! DID WE?!
THERE’S ONLY ONE UNITED W00T W00T W00T
CHAMPIONS OF E.U.R.O.P.E. !!!
-controls himself-
..Now what’re the odds that all those Chelsea sheep are gonna be in Red soon?
UP MAN UNITED
what a game! fantastic.
i guess true, ronaldo again
tevez follows by carrick shots and second half giggs shots.
lampard goals..help by reflexing, a souvenir for him
lampard and drogba hit the post.
drogba get red,fair.bye-bye
can’t believe the moment of penalty shoot-out goes.the best.
i’m not m.u fan, but i feel like i’m true m.u fan.
got nail-bitting, hope ronaldo spoils could turn around..
u think u’re the best, terry?
cool and covincing kick by old-timer giggs,
then EVDS ends it all for m.u glory…
symphaty for lampard, huge relief for ronaldo
congratulation m.u…beware of spurs soon..:)
this was a well game with one world for two side
good spor. well play!
I always was a Manchester United fan.This season was really great for this team, so it was good to me.I really wanted ManU to win the Champions League, and they did!Their game was fantastic!Chelsea played well, too.This was a historic match!VIVA MANCHESTER UNITED!GLORY GLORY MAN UNITED!
terry, chelsea go go go!!!!
proud to be BLUE!!!!
I THINK MANU SHOULD WIN DEY ARE DA BEST IN THE WHOLE UNIVERES THEY ARE BRILL . CLAS TEAM IN THE WORLD MANU RULE
is ahmed from pakistan?
A fantastic final! Who say english dominationis bad for the game! A few points to be noticed
1)It was an even game.1st half belonged to United. 2nd half to Chelsea. After tha, an even game.Chelsea showed their grit.I’m sure even if it wld have been 3-0, chesea would still have done what they did in th 2nd half. But United showed their superiority going forward, and had more clear cut chances than Chelsea.
2)Ronaldo answered his critics beautifully. He finally shrugged of the stigma of not preforming in big matches. True, he missed the penalty but he was the best player in th match through out by far. Also, evra showed that he’s the best fullback in the world.
3)Hard luck JT! It is unfortunate that after defnding so well he had to miss the penalty, even more tragic that he will be rememberednot or is preformance but for the missed penalty
Did Terry really spit on Tevez? I didn’t see that,if he did, I’m surethe appropriate action will be taken
No he didnt spit, he was wiping his mouth or nose on his sleeve and looked like he was going to spit at tevez,
also has to be said that if it werent for terry 2 players would have been red carded, because when drogba made his final contribution for chelsea by slapping vidic, vidic was about to return the favour ten-fold with a right hook that would have flattened drogba, jt saw this and held him back, al that said it was jt who confronted tevez to start the whole incident,
i really blieve grant has earned a place on the managers seat, although i felt so sorry for him as he walked down the steps, looked like a man who just lost everything including his job!
We’ll be back, we’ll never get any closer to winning the champions league without actually winning it again
just c.ronaldo and man.utd
without teh slip it was chelsea’s game…i feel so bad for terry, but there’s always next year i guess.
to the idiot who corrected the time – it says CET (Central European Time), not Moscow Time (which obviously was 22:45).
Yes, I’m from Pakistan. The PK time was put up because I had a lot of people ask me about it ahead of the game. Ditto for the US time.
Great game, good sentiments Frankie and I hope it stays that way.
That incident started because tevez kicked the ball out of play, just like kalou did minutes earlier, the difference is, kalou allowed Brown to throw the ball back to VDS, where as Tevez told the united players to close them in and mark up instead of letting chelsea throw take back possesion, which then prompted Terry to go and say something.
Thats when it all kicked off.
manutd win… well,congrats. it is in some disbelief that i admit i wanted manutd to win- cause i’m a die-hard liverpool fan… In this final, 2 of my greatest principles clashed- manutd should not have more than half wins than lfc in cl, and no london team should ever win it.
well, by greater principle… i wanted united 2 win(just this time) the bigears legend is that no london team can win it… aston villa has, liverpool has, nottingham forest has, n of course mantd has.
the day a london team wins big ears then it’s legend will be over n i will lose interest in it(ever so slightly) . now, if there a chelsea- arsenal final next year…well, it would be a nightmare or me.
drogba… well, if u cheat by diving n get applauded for it by the media in the semis ,then i have no words o consolation for u.. xcept that you will probably join morinho at inter or milan.
at the end, i’ll say chelsea’s luck o champions just ended. remember that riise own goal in last minute – well, i that’s not luck then i’m blind. or the second goal in the final- i’m pretty much sure it could have rebounded 326 more times but still would end up in the net,,, but then- 2 times hitting the post, john terry killing a bird lying behind the goals.. well.
but usually in recent times winning the cl is the end of eras … milan03, barcelona06, porto 04, liverpool05…
I love United and Van Der Sar as much as the next guy but heroics? He saved a penalty. I wouldn’t really compare his performance to Casilias in 02 or Reina in 06. He had a good match and saved a penalty which turned out to be the decisive one. He’s a great goalie and all but c’mon.
^ a’ight wtf you smoking mate?
Me no comprehende
Glory glory man united…
This game was legend. And even though we lost, the thought that this was by far the most entertaining UEFA CL Final to be played makes me feel good that us Blues were part of it.
Screw IStanbul. This was an absolute 120 minutes of both teams throwing themselves at each other to the point of utter exhaustion, and then only one of the craziest and (for me, unlucky) turnarounds in penalties.
These were the only two teams in Europe that could have entertained this much in the final. Congrats to all.
- MY HEART IS CHELSEA -
The first half belonged to United. But then, we hit the post three fuckin’ times in the second. What luck! And then, the penalty. What LUCK!? And, I heard somewhere that John Terry said he wouldn’t play soccer any more. Is that fucking true?
Well, never mind. The Blues gave us proof. Now, at least we know who’s the Greatest. Chelsea!!!
– MY HEART IS CHELSEA -
I hate to spoil anyone’s party but – Chelsea should have had a penalty for a foul on Malouda around min. 75. That means they most likely would have won it. Is this worth no mention at all ?
I hope CHELSEA win, but .
you mean the dive?
FF: Infact you’ll should be pissed at Malouda because he dived instead of trying to put that at the back of the net. What a moron. Glorious opportunity wasted. Also, when did Chelsea hit the bar the third time? I remember Lampard and Drogba. So then why does nobody mention in detail, Carrick’s shot, Tevezs late scuff, Giggs’ monumental mistake which Terry saved off the line?
In Avram Grant’s first game in charge of Chelsea, they had a man sent off and lost to United. Ultimately, that defeat may have cost them the league.
In the CL final Chelsea had a man sent off and lost the CL cup to United. Will that prove to be Grant’s last game in charge?
For Grant, the season started and ended with Manchester United. For Grant, the season was a Tale of Two Clubs, two games, two defeats; and ultimately the loss of two huge titles. Grant, so close to sporting immortality; and yet so far.
Chelsea won titles under Mourinho, true. But it is also true that Mourinho never made it to the CL final in three attempts. Grant did it in one go. Let’s see how well Grant’s successor (if there is one) does in the CL next season. The Chelsea supporters slagging off Grant may find that it might be some years before Chelsea make another CL final, much less win it.
Winning the EPL will become more difficult for Chelsea. United have a young team, which buoyed by this season’s success and some reinforcements up front, are likely to be even more formidable opponents next year. Arsenal will not stand still under Wenger, and will be vying for the title next year. Liverpool will finally mount a credible challenge… for second place – they won’t win it. In Europe, Madrid and Barcelona are likely to regroup. If Mourinho takes over at Inter, they will become a very difficult team to beat. Drogba will be a major loss for Chelsea, not easily replaced.
Even with Abramovich’s millions, life may be about to become a helluva lot tougher for Chelsea. In time, people may come to see that Grant’s season in charge was rather better than they thought at the time.
man u is a good team, though they never meet what they expected…..up man u!
Frankie you are absolutely correct about Chelsea and Grant. The only reason i attribute it to Chelsea doing well under Grant is that Avram is implistic in his approach. Put out the most obvious and best team. And Chelsea has quality. Hence they win. no mumbo jumbo of formations and tactics as Morinho did.
Did you watch the incident in detail ? I did, and it’s not easy to tell, but it looks like there was contact and Malouda stumbled.
FF, the incident has received no comment from either media or fans because it was a non event. I thought he should have been booked for diving.
He showed in this match, as he has all season, exactly what he’s about…..a waste of money.
And while I’m on the subject, let’s hope we’ve seen the last of that whinging, diving, beligerent, annoying, cheating, childish loudmouth that is Drogba.
Terry wouldn’t have taken his penalty if Drogba was still on and the cup could well be at Stamford Bridge as a result. Drogba got what he deserved.
I disagree. The fans and the media have gotten used to how things are, that is a penalty isn’t given unless it’s abundantly evident. Which is not how it should be by the laws. If the incident had happened outside the box most likely it would have been called a foul. Thus, by the laws, in the box it should have been a penalty.
It’s true there a numerous clearer penalties that aren’t given but that doesn’t make it right.
If Michel was so sure it was a dive why didn’t he book him ? He was at about 10 feet from the incident.
I agree Drogba was foolish. He wasn’t the only one.
BTW, you can’t be sure. Maybe Terry still would have wanted to take that penalty.
GLORY GLORY MAN UNITED!!
KINGS OF EUROP3!!
Terry should play for United. He doesn’t fit with Chelsea anymore. Come on Terry, bring your glory to your loved one.