Manchester United have guaranteed a place into the Champions League semi finals after sinking Chelsea 2-1 on Old Trafford. Goals from Hernandez and Park put the Devils further into the best eight for the second time in a row. Alex Ferguson’s side started the Tuesday game with a 1-0 advantage gained on Stamford Bridge last week. Hernandez opened the score for the home side in the 43rd minute through a shot on top of the roof from close range. Chelsea leveled in the second half through Drogba only to be stunned by Park who put Manchester back into the lead seconds afterwards.
Foto Source: moeftie.info
The game started with Giggs’s great chance. A perfect combination between Rooney and Hernandez finished with a low pass for the Welsh who struck it just wide. Blues’ reply came just one minute later. Following a one-two play between Malouda and Cole on the left finished with Torres’s low pass for Anelka who fired it wide from the edge of the box. Lampard got his first and the biggest chance in the 15th minute. Malouda fed the midfielder with a lovely pass which followed a tremendous action on the left, but Lampard’s poor finish allowed the 40-eyar-old Van der Sar hold the ball.
Chelsea were the first to pick a yellow card through Malouda, who got booked iun the 19th minute for a trip on O’Shea. United were disallowed with a goal in the 27th minute following an offside position from the Mexican youngster. A big error from Vidic highlighted Anelka fighting the Dutch keeper for a ball on the edge of the box. Van der Sar cleared the air through a great tackle to award the visitors a free throw. Ramires was the second to receive a yellow card for the Blues in the 32nd minute, being booked for a clumsy intervention.
Five minutes later Malouda got booked for a foul on Hernandez in dangerous area, while Terry got his first yellow in the 41st minute. The first half finished with United’s goal. Giggs’s cross met Hernandes two yards out putting it home into the roof of the net. Thus, the half time went 2-0 on aggregate as Chelsea were condemned to score at least two goals in the second part.
United won a corner in the 54th minute. Giggs picked unmarked Vidic whose header went wide to the dismay of tens of thousands fans. Drogba, who replaced Torres at the half time, tried his luck through a left footer to which the Dutch keeper was equal. Evra got his first yellow in the 57th minute following an ugly tackle on Drogba. The Ivorian forwarder took the free-kick but the strike was held by the same Van der Sar. Essien got his first book in the 61st minute for a foul on Hernandez.
Six minutes later Drogba’s shot was deflected in corner by the Dutch, while Cech denied Nani’s shot right afterwards. Chelsea got stripped of Ramires in the 71st minute after the Brazilian received a second yellow card. Despite that, the Blues managed to level the score five minutes later. Essien played Drogba inside of the box, the Ivorian beating Van der Sar through a superb shot into the far post from seven yards. Thus, Chelsea were just one goal from a place into the semis, but the unexpected was yet to come. Just seconds later Untied made it 2-1 thanks to Park’s superb shot from the left into the far post.
The 90th minute highlighted Rooney looking for a range goal from 40 yards which the Czech keeper claimed. Manchester United will next play Shalke 04. The same night FC Barcelona beat Shakhtar Donetsk 1-0 at the Donbass to reach the semis thanks to a 6-1 aggregate. Pep Guardiola’s side face Real Madrid in the last four.
Manchester United – Van der Sar; Evra, Vidic, Ferdinand, O’Shea; Park, Carrick, Giggs, Nani; Rooney, Hernandez. Reserves: W. Brown, P. Scholes, D. Berbatov, D. Gibson, C. Smalling, A. Valencia, T. Kuszczak.
Chelsea – Cech; Ivanovic, Alex, Terry, Cole; Essien, Ramires, Lampard; Anelka, Malouda; Torres. Reserves: Y. Benayoun, D. Drogba, Paulo Ferreira, Y. Zhirkov, J. Mikel, S. Kalou, R. Turnbull.
