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Terry Slips, Manchester United Win Champions League Final
Manchester United won its third European Cup Wednesday, beating Chelsea in a rain-soaked penalty shootout after John Terry slipped while taking his penalty kick.
30-Second Summary
Tied at four in the penalty kick shootout, John Terry stepped to the spot with a chance to win the Champions League for Chelsea.
With rain pouring down on Moscow’s Luzhniki Stadium pitch, Terry sent goalie Edward van der Sar diving the wrong way, but his plant leg slipped and his shot hit the post. Four shots later, van der Sar stopped Chelsea’s Nicholas Anelka, giving United the 6-5 shootout victory.
Terry, a defender, was a curious choice to take to kick. According to the Chelsea coaching staff, Terry was taking the spot of striker Didier Drogba, who was red carded late in extra time.
As a sobbing Terry was consoled by his coach and teammates, Manchester United players celebrated their second major title in two weeks. On May 10, they won the Premier League title, finishing just two points ahead of Chelsea.
For Manchester United, the night capped a memorable season, one that was dedicated to the 1958 “Busby Babes” team that lost eight players in a plane crash.
Several of the surviving team members were on hand for the game, including Sir Bobby Charlton, who saw Ryan Giggs break his record for career appearances for United. Giggs scored United’s decisive sixth penalty kick goal.
Charlton, like most observers, credited manager Sir Alex Ferguson for United’s triumph: “He has made Manchester United what we always thought it was—number one.”
With rain pouring down on Moscow’s Luzhniki Stadium pitch, Terry sent goalie Edward van der Sar diving the wrong way, but his plant leg slipped and his shot hit the post. Four shots later, van der Sar stopped Chelsea’s Nicholas Anelka, giving United the 6-5 shootout victory.
Terry, a defender, was a curious choice to take to kick. According to the Chelsea coaching staff, Terry was taking the spot of striker Didier Drogba, who was red carded late in extra time.
As a sobbing Terry was consoled by his coach and teammates, Manchester United players celebrated their second major title in two weeks. On May 10, they won the Premier League title, finishing just two points ahead of Chelsea.
For Manchester United, the night capped a memorable season, one that was dedicated to the 1958 “Busby Babes” team that lost eight players in a plane crash.
Several of the surviving team members were on hand for the game, including Sir Bobby Charlton, who saw Ryan Giggs break his record for career appearances for United. Giggs scored United’s decisive sixth penalty kick goal.
Charlton, like most observers, credited manager Sir Alex Ferguson for United’s triumph: “He has made Manchester United what we always thought it was—number one.”
Headline Link: United wins the Champions League final
United dominated the first half and took the lead in the 27th minute on Cristiano Ronaldo’s 42nd goal of the season. Chelsea struck back in first half injury time when a lucky bounce gave Frank Lampard a clear strike at goal. Chelsea had the better of the second half and extra time, hitting the post twice, but failed to take the lead. In the penalty shootout, Ronaldo was the only shooter of the first nine to be stopped, setting the stage for Terry’s miss.
Source: The Independent
Reactions: Chelsea defends Terry, Ronaldo won’t commit
Chelsea players and coaches were quick to defend their captain. “Not many centre-halves would have stood up and taken the fifth penalty, a penalty of that importance,” said Frank Lampard, “That’s testament to the man. No one at Chelsea will criticize him at all.” Manager Avram Grant added, “John Terry is the main reason we are here. John Terry was great. He was great all season, in the semi-final, in this game.”
Source: The Independent
Chelsea’s assistant manager Henk ten Cate said that Terry would not have taken the kick if striker Didier Drogba were available. Drogba had been sent off late in extra time for slapping United’s Nemanja Vidic. “John was not in the first five to take a kick but things changed during the game,” ten Cate said.
Source: The Guardian
Cristiano Ronaldo, who has been linked with a move to Spanish giants Real Madrid, wouldn’t commit his future to United. “I don’t promise nothing,” he said, “I don’t promise nothing to my mum, I don’t promise nothing to the supporters. I want to stay, but the future … no-one knows.”
Source: Times Online
Background: Manchester United vs. Chelsea
Manchester United and Chelsea have been the top two teams in England over the last several years and have competed for several major trophies. Last year, Manchester won the Premier League but lost to Chelsea in the FA Cup final. The first competitive game to be played at the new Wembley Stadium, it finished 1-0 on a goal by Didier Drogba in extra time.
Source: The BBC
The new season began on August 5, when United and Chelsea met in the Community Shield game. In what was considered a glorified exhibition game, the two teams played with surprising competitiveness. In a sign of things to come, United won on penalty kicks after a 1-1 draw.
Source: International Herald Tribune
United tore through England’s Premier League, but had to withstand a late charge from Chelsea. On the season’s final day, United beat Wigan 2-0, finishing two points ahead of Chelsea, who settled for a disappointing home draw. That day, Terry was already looking forward to the Champions League “We’ve lost out on the league but we’ve still got the biggest trophy of all to go for,” he said. “Hopefully we’ll bring that one back.”
Source: findingDulcinea
Historical Context: The Busby Babes and the Treble
The Busby Babes were a young and talented team that many thought would dominate soccer for years to come. On February 6, 1958, they advanced to the semifinals of the European Cup with a 3-3 draw at Red Star Belgrade. On the trip home, their plane stopped in Munich for refueling; on takeoff, the plane crashed, killing 23 of 40 passengers, including eight players. The decimated team finished the season and Busby—who received last rites and spent two months in the hospital—returned the next season to rebuild the team. Ten years later, he, along with fellow Munich Air Disaster survivors Bobby Charlton and Bill Foulkes, won United’s first European Cup.
Source: The Busby Babes
In 1999, United became the first team to win the English Treble: the Premier League, the FA Cup and the European Cup. In the Champions League final, United trailed 1-0 to Bayern Munich heading into a three-minute injury time. United scored twice, the second and winning goal by Ole Gunnar Solskaer coming with just seconds left to play.
Source: ManUtdTreble.com
Opinion & Analysis: Compassion for Terry, credit for Ferguson
The Telegraph’s Alan Smith feels for John Terry, a player “with this club truly in his blood.” He writes, “Deep wounds like this take years to heal. Sometimes, you know, they never fully disappear.”
Source: The Telegraph
The BBC’s Phil McNulty credits Ferguson for building the powerful United team after failing in the 2005-06 Champions League. With his team falling apart and Chelsea establishing itself as the best in England, Ferguson shipped out many veteran players and brought in younger players who have turned United into Europe’s best team.
Source: The BBC
The Guardian’s Barry Glendenning live-blogged the game minute by minute.
Source: The Guardian
The Times Online hands out report cards to Manchester United and Chelsea players.
Source: Times Online
Related Topics: Big-game goats
In the 1994 World Cup, Roberto Baggio carried Italy to the final, scoring five of his team’s six goals in the three knockout games. The final went to penalty kicks; needing to score to extend the shootout, Baggio sent the ball sailing over the net. In his autobiography, he writes, “Only those who have the courage to take a penalty miss them. I failed that time. Period. And it affected me for years. It is the worst moment of my career. I still dream about it.”
Source: The Guardian
Didier Drogba’s sending-off brings back memories of Zinedine Zidane’s head-butt in the 2006 World Cup final. Late in extra time, Zidane, a legendary French midfielder playing in his final competitive match, head-butted Italy’s Marco Matterazzi and drew a red card. He watched from the locker room as France lost 5-3 in the penalty shootout.
Source: Washington Post
Reference: Official Web sites, and the Soccer Web Guide
The UEFA Champions League is a yearly competition featuring the top clubs teams in Europe. Learn more about the format and history of the competition, and find results and stats from this year.
Source: UEFA.com
The official Web site of Manchester United includes history, stats, player profiles and championship merchandise.
Source: ManUtd.com
The official Web site of Chelsea features much of the same, without the championship merchandise, of course.
Source: ChelseaFC.com
FindingDulcinea’s Soccer Web Guide features links to the best sources for news and analysis of the Premier League and soccer worldwide.
Source: findingDulcinea
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