www.red11.org DAILY NEWS
Date: Thu Apr 08 08:45:19 GMT+00:00 1999
Mail: barry@www.red11.org
This Issue:
1. EURO DREAM ALIVE AND WELL - FERGIE
2. Late Giggs goal leaves tie on a knife-edge
3. UNITED CAN STILL MAKE IT
4. Giggs throws United lifeline - Guardian
5. Times: Big Match Verdicts
6. GIGGS THE SAVIOUR AS JUVE RUN UNITED RAGGED
7. United Juve comments by Terry
8. Juve game by Steve Edge
9. Independent Report Giggs' late strike rescues United
10. Times: Zidane scheming bears fruit
11. Ferguson still optimistic after late equaliser
12. BSkyB makes promises on Man Utd
13. COLOMBIA'S MONDRAGON TO REPLACE SCHMEICHEL??
++++++=========+++++++========+++++++++========++++++++
Daily RED Trivia Thurs 8th April 1999:
8/4/1907: Tommy Blackstock died after collapsing during a Reserve game. A popular
Full-back, Blackstock made his senior debut at Woolwich Arsenal in October 1903.
He made 38 appearances, and helped United gain promotion in 1906 before his tragic death.
8/4/1970:
United hammer West Bromwich Albion 7-0 at Old Trafford in a Division 1
game watched by 26,582. Bobby Charlton 2, John Fitzpatrick 2, Alan Gowling 2
and George Best scored the goals. Team was: Stepney, Stiles, Dunne, Crerand,
Ure, Sadler, Morgan, Fitzpatrick, Charlton, Gowling, Best.
***************
Barry Daily Comment:
Juve played very well indeed yesterday, we came back for an explosive finish!
I saw us score TWO but it was not to be, that's life but as Alex has said I believe
our dreams of making the final still to be alive.
Even 1-1 and penalties in 2 weeks may be enough?
- SCHMEICHEL "NEVER WRITE US OFF"
Peter Schmeichel was the least surprised Manchester United player when Ryan
Giggs scored in stoppage time to throw them a Champions' League lifeline.
Giggs' last-gasp equaliser earned United a 1-1 draw at Old Trafford and
revived their hopes of reaching the final after Juventus skipper Antonio
Conte had scored a precious away goal.
United just about deserved the goal for their pressure in the final 30
minutes and while it may have come very late, Schmeichel had never doubted
it would come.
The Danish goalkeeper has witnessed enough late shows at Old Trafford this
season to know that United are never beaten until the final whistle.
"This season we have always kept going until the end and we're used to
playing right up until the referee blows," he said.
"You're never surprised if we score because with the pressure we had, it
looked like a goal was coming. We left it late, but we deserved that goal."
Juventus midfielder Edgar Davids, who had an outstanding game and threaded
the ball through Paul Scholes' legs for Conte to score on 25 minutes, had
shared Schmeichel's hunch.
"We never feel you have done enough against English teams," said the Dutch
international.
MORE NEWS
Tuesday, April 06, 1999 15:27
United's Under-19s slipped to their second successive friendly match defeat
inside four days when they went down 3-1 to IFK Gothenburg at The Cliff on
Saturday. The Swedish side were 2-0 up by the 49th minute, but a reply from
Paul Wheatcroft three minutes after Gothenburg's second put United back in
with a chance. The visitors sealed the win with a third goal in the 62nd
minute to emulate their fellow Scandinavians, IFK Start, from Norway,
who beat Dave Williams' lads by a similar score at Littleton Road last week.
Previous News:
Brian Kidd Press conference, pic, real audio
http://www.iol.ie/~redcafe/kidd.htm
Peter Schmeichel's last Season at United!
http://www.red11.org/mufc/news/schmeichel.htm
Next games:
ALL Result/Fixture Index:3
http://www.red11.org/mufc/fix9899z.htm
Next Games:
11 FAC Semi Arsenal at Villa Park 12.30 UK Live Sky Sports Uk
17 Sheff Wed (H) 15.00 PL
21 European Cup Semi Juventus (A) 19.45 CL
25 Leeds (A) 11.30 {am} UK PL Live Sky Sports UK
UNITED Stats v All teams:
http://www.red11.org/mufc/stats/
*** RESULTS AND ATTENDANCES ON 06/04/99 ***
Arsenal 1-0 Blackburn Rovers 37,762
Leicester City 2-2 Aston Villa 20,652
*** LEAGUE TABLE AS AT 06/04/99 ***
Pos Team P W D L F A GD Pts
---------------------------------------------------------
1 Manchester United 31 18 10 3 69 32 37 64
2 Arsenal 32 17 12 3 43 13 30 63
3 Chelsea 30 16 11 3 45 23 22 59
4 Leeds United 31 16 9 6 52 28 24 57
5 West Ham United 32 13 8 11 34 40 -6 47
6 Aston Villa 32 12 10 10 41 39 2 46
7 Derby County 31 11 11 9 35 36 -1 44
8 Liverpool 30 12 7 11 57 41 16 43
9 Middlesbrough 31 10 13 8 42 41 1 43
10 Newcastle United 32 11 9 12 43 45 -2 42
11 Wimbledon 32 10 11 11 36 48 -12 41
12 Tottenham Hotspur 31 9 13 9 35 37 -2 40
13 Sheffield Wednesday 32 11 5 16 38 36 2 38
14 Leicester City 30 9 11 10 32 39 -7 38
15 Coventry City 32 10 7 15 34 43 -9 37
16 Charlton Athletic 31 7 10 14 34 41 -7 31
17 Blackburn Rovers 32 7 10 15 32 43 -11 31
18 Everton 32 7 10 15 26 40 -14 31
19 Southampton 32 8 6 18 28 57 -29 30
20 Nottingham Forest 32 4 9 19 30 64 -34 21
*** TEAM RESULTS - MANCHESTER UNITED - AS AT 21/03/99 ***
Date Opposition Score Pos. Attend.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
15/08/98 Leicester City Home D 2-2 11 55,052
22/08/98 West Ham United Away D 0-0 11 26,039
09/09/98 Charlton Athletic Home W 4-1 9 55,147
12/09/98 Coventry City Home W 2-0 5 55,193
20/09/98 Arsenal Away L 0-3 10 38,142
24/09/98 Liverpool Home W 2-0 3 55,181
03/10/98 Southampton Away W 3-0 2 15,251
17/10/98 Wimbledon Home W 5-1 2 55,265
24/10/98 Derby County Away D 1-1 2 30,867
31/10/98 Everton Away W 4-1 2 40,079
08/11/98 Newcastle United Home D 0-0 3 55,174
14/11/98 Blackburn Rovers Home W 3-2 2 55,198
21/11/98 Sheffield Wednesday Away L 1-3 2 39,475
29/11/98 Leeds United Home W 3-2 2 55,172
05/12/98 Aston Villa Away D 1-1 2 39,241
12/12/98 Tottenham Hotspur Away D 2-2 1 36,079
16/12/98 Chelsea Home D 1-1 2 55,159
19/12/98 Middlesbrough Home L 2-3 3 55,152
26/12/98 Nottingham Forest Home W 3-0 3 55,216
29/12/98 Chelsea Away D 0-0 3 34,741
10/01/99 West Ham United Home W 4-1 3 55,180
16/01/99 Leicester City Away W 6-2 2 22,091
31/01/99 Charlton Athletic Away W 1-0 1 20,043
03/02/99 Derby County Home W 1-0 1 55,174
06/02/99 Nottingham Forest Away W 8-1 1 30,025
17/02/99 Arsenal Home D 1-1 1 55,171
20/02/99 Coventry City Away W 1-0 1 22,596
27/02/99 Southampton Home W 2-1 1 55,316
13/03/99 Newcastle United Away W 2-1 1 36,500
21/03/99 Everton Home W 3-1 1 55,182
03/04/99 Wimbledon Away D 1-1 1 26,121
*** TEAM RESULTS SUMMARY - MANCHESTER UNITED - AS AT 21/03/99 ***
P Won Drawn Lost For Against Points
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Home 16 11 (69%) 4 (25%) 1 (6%) 38 (2.4) 16 (1.0) 37 (2.3)
Away 14 7 (50%) 5 (36%) 2 (14%) 30 (2.1) 15 (1.1) 26 (1.9)
Total 30 18 (60%) 9 (30%) 3 (10%) 68 (2.3) 31 (1.0) 63 (2.1)
Averages per game in (brackets)
*** TEAM STATISTICS - MANCHESTER UNITED - AS AT 21/03/99 ***
AVERAGE HOME ATTENDANCE: 55,183
HIGHEST HOME ATTENDANCE: 27/02/99 - Southampton (55,316)
LOWEST HOME ATTENDANCE: 15/08/98 - Leicester City (55,052)
BEST WIN: 06/02/99 - Nottingham Forest (8-1)
HEAVIEST DEFEAT: 20/09/98 - Arsenal (0-3)
BEST HOME WIN: 17/10/98 - Wimbledon (5-1)
HEAVIEST HOME DEFEAT: 19/12/98 - Middlesbrough (2-3)
BEST AWAY WIN: 06/02/99 - Nottingham Forest (8-1)
HEAVIEST AWAY DEFEAT: 20/09/98 - Arsenal (0-3)
*****
Champions League:
Group D P W D L F A Pts
Bayern Munich 6 3 2 1 9 6 11
Man United 6 2 4 0 20 11 10
Barcelona 6 2 2 2 11 9 8
Brondby 6 1 0 5 4 18 3
Dec 9 Brøndby 0-2 Barcelona
Dec 9 Man Utd 1-1 Bayern Munich
******
CHAMPIONS' LEAGUE QUARTER-FINALS
Manchester Utd 2 v 0 Inter Milan
Real Madrid 1 v 1 Dynamo Kiev
Juventus 2 v 1 Olympiakos
Bayern Munich 2 v 0 Kaiserslautern
**DYNAMO KIEV 2 v 0 REAL MADRID (Agg:3-1)
FC KAISERSLAUTERN 0 v 4 **BAYERN MUNICH (Agg:0-6)
INTERNAZIONALE FC 1 v 1 **MANCHESTER UNITED (Agg:1-3)
OLYMPIAKOS 1 v 1 **JUVENTUS (Agg:2-3)
Semi Final 2nd legs to be played 21st April
Manchester United v Juventus [1-1]
Bayern Munchen v Dynamo Kiev [3-3]
++++++=========+++++++========+++++++++========++++++++
More pics from OT + match report click on pic
Subject: EURO DREAM ALIVE AND WELL - FERGIE
By Frank Malley, PA Chief Sports Writer
Alex Ferguson claimed his European Cup dream was still alive and well
despite Manchester United's 1-1 semi-final, first-leg draw with Juventus at
Old Trafford.
Ryan Giggs earned Ferguson a lifeline with an injury time equaliser after
Antonio Conte had given the Italians a vital away goal in the first half.
"I know Juventus will feel they are favourites but something tells me we
are going to win," said a defiant Ferguson.
"They worked as hard as they could work and ran their legs off, but I
believe we won't be as exposed in Turin.
"Juventus can't play for nil-nils, they can't do it. It's not in their
nature, not in their culture. That's the best they've played for 45 minute
that I've seen.
"Deschamps is a World Cup winner, so is Zidane, but they played for pride.
Everyone of them worked their stripes off. It's a great result for them,
but they may regret us scoring so late."
Ferguson claimed United should have had a penalty when Mark Iuliano blocked
a Giggs shot with his hand.
But the Manchester United boss accepted that an 86th minute 'goal' scored
by Teddy Sheringham was offside though he insisted the "linesman flagged
tomorrow it was so late".
Ferguson praised Spanish referee Manuel Diaz Vega: "The referee was
outstanding," he said. "He let the game flow. There was a lot of tackles
and fouls but no mistakes and no cheating."
Ferguson saluted the overall standard of a pulsating match which always
looked like edging the way of the Italians.
"It was a fantastic game of football," said Ferguson. "Top level stuff. Our
wide players played too far forward in the first half, and we always seemed
to be two against three in midfield. It was an uphill fight for us to get
the ball back.
"Our midfield players were better in the second half, though, and we could
have won the game.
"They defended very well, but we had three or four chances in the second
half. They had two counterattacks, but other than that, didn't really have
any chance at goal."
Juventus coach Carlo Ancelotti was confident that his side could finish the
job in Turin. "We have a small advantage and hope to take advantage of
that," he said.
"We created a lot of difficulties for Manchester United and could have done
better than score just one goal, but in the final phase of the game, we
were under pressure."
Ancelotti said they had subdued David Beckham and Giggs for large periods
and predicted that if they could do the same in Turin, they would reach
their fourth consecutive final.
"We were able to cut off the service to Yorke and Cole," he added. "So
apart from long balls from Schmeichel, United's front men got very little
service.
"We know in Turin it will be hard but it will also be hard for them. I
think it was important that we didn't leave any space for them on the wing."
More pics from OT + match report click on pic
Subject: Late Giggs goal leaves tie on a knife-edge
By Mike Collett
MANCHESTER, England, April 7 - A last-gasp equaliser from Ryan Giggs gave
Manchester United a 1-1 draw with Juventus at Old Trafford on Wednesday and
kept their European Cup semifinal on a knife-edge.
Juventus, weathering a late United storm which saw a Teddy Sheringham
header disallowed for offside with four minutes to play, appeared to have
done enough to win a pulsating first-leg clash.
The Italians had seized the lead through Antonio Conte's 25th minute goal
which he scored after finding time and space in the heart of United's
defence.
But with United seemingly heading for defeat for the first time in 21 cup
and league matches since December, they launched one last desperate attack
which ended with Giggs crashing the ball into the roof of the net from
close range after the Juve defence failed to clear a back-header from Paul
Scholes.
In the end the result was a fair reflection of a match which Juventus,
looking for a fourth successive appearance in the European Cup final,
dominated for the first half but which increasingly tilted United's way as
the second half developed.
With greater accuracy in front of goal, Juventus would have established an
emphatic lead by halftime.
With Edgar Davids dominating the midfield alongside Zinedine Zidane, who
looked to be fully fit despite a heavily-strapped right thigh, Juventus
dictated the pace of the game and always looked more composed and dangerous
coming forward whereas United appeared hurried and flustered.
After only two minutes Zidane tried to chip Peter Schmeichel from 20 metres
and 15 minutes later Filippo Inzaghi tested the giant Dane's reflexes with
a powerful shot on the turn that Schmeichel saved well.
Then after Conte had put Juve ahead -- scoring against Schmeichel for the
second time in 11 days after beating him with a header when Italy played
Denmark in Copenhagen on March 27 -- defender Gianluca Pessotto, marauding
unmarked in open space wide on the left, shot high and wide with only
Schmeichel to beat after 37 minutes.
Zidane then set Inzaghi up with a clear scoring chance in stoppage time at
the end of the half, but after again escaping from United's tormented
defenders, he put his shot the wrong side of Schmeichel's left-hand post
from close range.
United's best chances in what was a disappointing first half came when
David Beckham went close with a 23rd minute free-kick and Andy Cole headed
over the bar seven minutes later.
United replaced Henning Berg with Ronny Johnsen in the centre of their
defence after the break and began to make more impression.
They threatened to score four times in the opening 15 minutes of the second
half through Cole, twice, Scholes and Giggs, who forced Peruzzi into his
one real save of the night from his 58th minute glancing header.
Until United lifted their tempo even more in the last 15 minutes, Juventus
never really looked like conceding a goal, and if Zidane had not sent a
hurried shot across goal late in the game, the Italians would have taken an
almost unbeatable lead home for the return leg in two weeks' time.
As it is, they will be without defender Zoran Mirkovic, suspended after
picking up a second yellow card, and know that they face a huge battle to
overcome the English team.
More pics from OT + match report click on pic
Subject: UNITED CAN STILL MAKE IT
RYAN GIGGS put a smile back on his manager Alex Ferguson's face
and hope in his heart after smashing home a last-gasp equaliser
against Juventus at Old Trafford last night. The Manchester United
striker's injury time goal salvaged a draw which for most of the night
had seemed beyond his side's reach as the Italians from Turin
dominated the game:
"We've still got a great chance," grinned Ferguson on the final
whistle. "But it really looked like we weren't going to get back into
this game." True enough, but Giggs' late strike finally cancelled out
Paolo Conte's textbook first half goal to set up an enthralling tie in
Turin in two weeks' time. And while Fergie's optimism might at first
sound a touch naive given Juve's complete dominance of all but the
last 10 minutes of the game, on reflection the United manager has
every right to look forward to the return match with confidence.
If nothing else, then United surely can't play this badly again. The
team that has rightly earned so much praise for its attacking
invention and flair this season looked a pale shadow of its usual self
for almost the entire game. Yorke, Cole, Beckham and Giggs all
turned in performances they will not be proud of, and with Roy
Keane and Paul Scholes struggling to compete with an on-song
Juventus midfield duo of Zinedine Zidane and the outstanding Edgar
Davids, it's to United's credit that they managed to stay in touch
with their opponents at all. To draw - albeit at home - with such an
experienced side as Juve after playing this poorly will give Ferguson
confidence that they really can go on to complete the job in Italy.
United's best option, of course, has to be to play their natural
game. At their best they are a devastating attacking side with a
competent defence, so to believe they can go to Juventus and look
to win the tie by stealing a goal on the break will be tactical
suicide. It will also suit Juventus down to the ground. But as Fergie
is so keen to remind us, United can always score - if they give
themselves the opportunity to do so by playing their natural game
and looking to attack whenever they can. And history is on United’s
side too. When Sir Matt Busby’s legendary 1968 side won the
competition they disposed of Real Madrid in the semi finals after
drawing the first leg at home 1-1, then going on to make the final
on the away goals rule after a 3-3 draw in Spain.
"Juventus gave us a really hard time, especially in the first half,"
said Ferguson. "They were absolutely outstanding." True, but United
can and will play much better than this, which means that the tie is
now finely, perfectly balanced. If United are canny, calm and play
to their strengths, then they still have every chance.
More pics from OT + match report click on pic
Subject: Giggs throws United lifeline - Guardian
Last-gasp strike keeps the home fires burning. David Lacey reports from Old
Trafford
A goal from Ryan Giggs in injury-time last night gave Manchester United
reason to hope when they travel to Turin for the second leg in a fortnight.
They are fortunate to have any at all.
Giggs' strike came just as United were pondering a substandard performance
that had left Juventus with a priceless away goal and most of the plaudits.
But, just as the referee was checking the final seconds David Beckham
crossed from the right, Teddy Sheringham nodded on and Giggs hooked in
United's lifeline.
Until then, Juve had held most if not all of the cards. They played their
trump when Antonio Conte beat Peter Schmeichel as Zinedine Zidane and Edgar
Davids pulled United's defence apart at their leisure. After half-time the
English champions attacked with greater conviction and Giggs drove in shot
which struck Mark Iuliano on the hand, but no penalty was given.
Clearly United wanted a win last night but they could ill-afford one of the
pyrrhic kind. Juventus had made a habit of scoring here; now United needed
to offer them a nought for their discomfort.
In other words it was no time for another Barcelona, with whom United had
twice drawn 3-3 in the group matches. Nor did they wish to repeat their 3-2
defeat of Juventus 18 months earlier. Away goals were too important for
melodramatics.
With this in mind Roy Keane kept a close watch on Zidane from the outset.
The Frenchman might be playing with his right knee heavily strapped but a
even lame Zidane still presented a bigger threat than most.
Yet he was restricted in his movements, tending to play close to Filippo
Inzaghi, the lone striker, rather than roam with his usual freedom. When he
did move deep, however, his ability to pick out colleagues with long passes
was undiminished. Davids and Didier Deschamps, moreover, were quick to find
space behind United's midfield when Keane and Paul Scholes pushed forward.
At the back Juventus were less sure. Misdirected passes from Paolo Montero
caused them unnecessary angst in the opening quarter-hour and when Keane's
right foot delivered a telling centre from the left Andy Cole was
unchallenged as he rose to head wide. At this level such opportunities
should not go to waste. Fortunately for United Juventus proved no less
profligate when Inzaghi stole in at the far post but snatched at the ball,
allowing Schmeichel to block his shot.
Nevertheless, Juventus were taking command of the play between the penalty
areas and outmanouevring United with composed, accurate passing and
intuitive running off the ball. Angelo Di Livio in particular was fin-ding
a lot of space between Gary Neville and David Beckham on the United right.
In the 25th minute a sweet, neat passing movement exposed the flatness of
their defence and Juventus were in front.
Di Livio found Zidane who set up Davids for a short through pass which
found Conte slipping past Jaap Stam and Henning Berg to beat Schmeichel
from close range.
United redoubled their efforts to get at Juventus down the flanks,
especially on the left from where Giggs produced a centre on the half-hour
which found Cole reaching the ball a fraction ahead of Angelo Peruzzi only
to nod into the crowd.
United's increasing desperation threatened to leave them even more open at
the back. Nine minutes before half-time Zidane and Davids conspired to find
Angelo Pessotto, the left-back, advancing unchallenged into the United
penalty area. He shot over but United still needed to heed the war-ning.
They were thankful to come off at half-time still only one goal behind, and
had Inzaghi not shot wide as he raced in late to meet Zidane's low cross in
the 45th minute the contest would have been all but over.
United had to establish regular lines of communication between their
midfield and Dwight Yorke, who had been isolated in the first half as
Juventus closed down the space round him. But to do this they needed to get
Keane and Paul Scholes forward more often, no easy business with Zidane and
Davids running so much of the game.
Nine minutes after half-time a through ball from Scholes did give Cole an
opportunity to beat the defence for pace but again his finishing was off
target. From Beckham's corner on the left Giggs appeared at the near post
for a glancing header which Peruzzi, flinging up an arm, deflected to safety.
Manchester Utd (4-4-2): Schmeichel; G Neville, Berg (Johnsen, h-t), Stam,
Irwin; Beckham, Keane, Scholes, Giggs; Yorke (Sheringham, 80mins), Cole.
Juventus (4-4-1-1): Peruzzi; Mirkovic, Iuliano, Montero, Pessotto; Conte,
Deschamps, Davids, Di Livio; Zidane; Inzaghi (Esnaider, 88).
Referee: M Diaz Vega (Spain).
More pics from OT + match report click on pic
Subject: Times: Big Match Verdicts
Big match verdicts
JUVENTUS had not even taken off on the flight back to
Turin before Alex Ferguson was attempting to undermine
Italian confidence last night. "They may regret us scoring
so late," the Manchester United manager said with a
gravitas that was meant to spread foreboding - but he will
need to do better than that.
While the Italian side's spirits were undoubtedly damaged
by Ryan Giggs's injury-time goal, Carlo Ancelotti, the
Juventus coach, looked happy at his night's work.
"We could have killed them off in the first half, so that is
my biggest regret," he said. "I would have accepted a 1-1
draw until I saw the way the first half went.
"We neutralised Beckham and Giggs very well, so, apart
from long balls from the goalkeeper, there was very little
service to the front two. We didn't leave any space free
on the wings and Zidane's position caused them problems.
We have a small advantage now and a 1-1 draw will help
to sell all the tickets in the Stadio Delle Alpi."
A goalless draw will be enough to see Juventus through to
their fourth consecutive final, but Ferguson believes the
Italians may be undone by their own adventurousness.
"You ask your Italian friends and they will tell you that
playing for a 0-0 is not in the Juventus nature. They will go
for the win."
That, he hopes, will leave spaces for his side to exploit,
but he knows that they will have to equal the Juventus
spirit. "They had two World Cup winners out there, but
every one of them worked their tripes off," Ferguson said.
"It was a fantastic game of football, top-level stuff with no
nastiness, no cheating. The referee was excellent and we
must hope we get one that good in Turin."
More pics from OT + match report click on pic
Subject: GIGGS THE SAVIOUR AS JUVE RUN UNITED RAGGED
Manchester United 1 Juventus 1
IT TOOK over 70 minutes for Manchester United to start playing last
night, but when they did a Ryan Giggs goal kept their European
dream alive. The brutal truth is that should Alex Ferguson’s team go
on to lift the Champions League trophy now they will know that in
the first half especially they were out-played, and at times
out-classed. Juventus will feel they should have put the tie beyond
doubt before the United revival.
As it was, the flying winger blasted the ball high into the Juventus
net in the 91st on a night of tension at the Theatre of Dreams.
Antonio Conte had given the visitors a first-half strike which had
turned Old Trafford into a jangling bag of nerves. Even with the
equaliser, Ferguson's chances of emulating Matt Busby's 1968
heroes is hanging by a thread for this season.
The away goal gives United a huge task in Turin in a fortnight's
time. They will claim they had more chances. And it's true they had
to endure the agony of seeing an 86th-minute 'goal' from Teddy
Sheringham ruled out for offside. They saw Italian goalkeeper
Angelo Peruzzi save brilliantly from a last-minute Paul Scholes
header. And for much of the second half watched as the ball fizzed
like a pinball around the Juventus penalty area.
But, quite frankly, this was one European match too far for United.
A match which, even with their strongest and fittest team, proved
that they were just a notch below eclipsing sides at the very
highest level. For much of the time, they were out-thought,
out-foxed, out-skilled by an Italian side supposed to be reeling from
their own internal problems.
Rubbish. Juventus were bidding to become the first team to reach
four consecutive finals since the great Real Madrid side 40 years
ago. And with players of the class of Frenchman Zinedine Zidane
and Dutchman Edgar Davids controlling large chunks of this game
they threatened to make United's faces take on the colour of their
shirts.
In truth, Juventus had enough clear chances to make the second
leg a formality and at times their superiority was embarrassing.
United began brightly enough as befitted their reputation as the
most attacking side in the competition. But anyone who thought
Juventus would be content to sit back and soak up the pressure
was mistaken. From the first few minutes, it was clear that this
Juventus side were a much better organised and potent proposition
than United's last victims, Inter Milan. Their intention was clear.
They had come for an away goal, and the positive way in which
Zidane, the world's best player, and Davids set about their work, it
always looked as if they would be rewarded.
Indeed, after early sparring, United received their first serious
warning on 15 minutes when an exquisite ball over the defence
landed at the feet of Filippo Inzaghi in acres of space inside United's
penalty area. The Italian striker spun sweetly before firing a low,
left-foot shot which goalkeeper Peter Schmeichel was happy to turn
away for a corner.
The Italians were too often swifter to the ball, more composed in
possession and technically more adept. They might be seventh in
Serie A, have lost to bottom club Empoli at the weekend, still reeling
from the departure of coach Marcello Lippi and just feeling their way
under new coach Carlo Ancelotti but they oozed class. Where the
Inter Milan side which United defeated last month were a side of
talented individuals, this Juventus side was a much more powerful
collective unit.
Yes, Beckham went close with a 20-yard free kick after Andy Cole
had been brought down by Didier Deschamps, but when the away
goal came, it was just reward for Juventus's adventure. It arrived in
the 25th minute and owed as much to the flat-footed nature of
United's defence as to the alert thinking of Davids - Juve's most
dangerous midfield man.
Zidane had teased the United defence on the edge of the area and
when he lost possession, the ball squirted to Davids who slid a
superbly-precise ball into the path of Antonio Conte. With Henning
Berg and Jaap Stam mere spectators, the Italian midfielder swivelled
and struck a sweet, left-foot shot past Schmeichel.
A stunned silence gripped the stadium, save for a small black and
white enclave of 3,000 Italian supporters. The message was clear -
this was going to be a tough night.
It could have been even worse for United. For after they had tried
to respond with a wayward Cole header and a long-range effort
from Roy Keane, Juventus should have stretched their lead. First
Gianluca Pessotto was put in by the irrepressible Davids, and
Schmeichel could only watch in agony as the Italian's curling shot
sailed past the post. And then seconds before the interval, Zidane,
racing down the right, crossed dangerously, only for Inzaghi to stab
his shot wide when he should have done better.
Ferguson's response was to replace Berg with the speedier Ronny
Johnsen at half time - but the feeling was growing that this was not
going to be United's night. No-one protects a 1-0 scoreline quite
like Italians - but give United credit, they surged forward with
courage in relentless pursuit of the equaliser. At times it looked like
Manchester's version of the Light Brigade.
Paul Scholes put Cole through with an incisive 40-yard ball only for
the United striker to blast his shot high and wide. A long-range
Scholes effort went wide, and Giggs' header from a swirling Beckham
corner brought an agile save from Italian 'keeper Peruzzi.
No, you couldn't fault the quantity of United's attacking effort, it
was the quality at the highest level which left much to be desired.
Too often Cole proved that he does, as Glenn Hoddle once famously
pointed out, need a hatful of chances to get one on target, let
alone score.
In the 79th minute, Ferguson took off the ineffective Dwight Yorke
and replaced him with Teddy Sheringham in a desperate last throw
for the equaliser. Suddenly United were even more eager, more
desperate.
Soon a Keane shot was deflected lightly off Sheringham into the
Juve net. The players celebrated, the crowd were in raptures - but
the flag had gone up. It was far from clear if it was offside, and the
flag was certainly late. But while the referee could see the ball had
hit Sheringham, the linesman may have thought the ball had flown
clean in and not raised his flag until informed of the striker’s
intervention. Whatever, it seemed another indication that it was not
to be United’s night.
Cole soon went close but it seemed it wasn't to be - until deep into
injury time. Beckham hooked the ball back from the dead-ball line, a
cluster of heads rose to compete for it, and this time it fell to Giggs
all alone and with time to crash his left-foot shot into the roof of
the net.
Suddenly, the place was jumping with sheer relief. United had got
what their persistence - if not their first half showing - deserved,
and what their supporters, in truth, had despaired of - an equaliser.
And for a fortnight, at least, the Ferguson dream is alive and well.
LAST NIGHT’S TEAMS - PLAYER BY PLAYER
Manchester United
Peter Schmeichel Saved United on a number of occasions when he
was left unprotected by his defence. 8/10
Gary Neville The England defender will not look back at his
performance in this game with much delight. 6
Denis Irwin Solid game from the Irishman who tried to get forward
whenever he could. 7
Jaap Stam As ever the Dutchman was the rock of the United
defence. 7
Henning Berg Did not have the best of times before he was
replaced by Ronny Johnsen at half-time. 6
Roy Keane Gave everything as ever, but could not control the
midfield area for United. 7
Paul Scholes England's hat-trick hero got into the game after a
quiet start and could have scored twice towards the end. 7
David Beckham Had one or two moments, but he did not exert
anywhere near the same influence as he did against Inter Milan. 6
Ryan Giggs Handed United a lifeline with his equaliser in stoppage
time. 7
Dwight Yorke Could not get United going up front because of the
close attention of Mark Iuliano. 6
Andy Cole Struggled to cope with the class of Juventus' and their
tight marking. 6
Substitutes:
Ronny Johnsen (for Berg, 45 minutes) Shored up the defence
and had a headed chance which he nodded over the bar. 6
Teddy Sheringham (for Yorke, 79 minutes) Thought he had
headed United level, but his effort was disallowed for offside. 7
Juventus
Angelo Peruzzi Did not have that much to do until the end when
he made some fine saves. But was caught out for the goal. 6
Zoran Mirkovic Fine display, but picked up a booking which rules
him out of the return. 7
Paolo Montero Commanding performance from the Uruguayan at
the heart of the Juve defence. 7
Mark Iuliano Handled Dwight Yorke brilliantly and hardly gave him a
kick of the ball. 8
Gianluca Pessotto A solid display from the full back. 7
Angelo Di Livio Did well down the left flank and threatened the
United goal once or twice. 7
Antonio Conte Juve's captain popped up with the all-important
away goal for his side. 7
Didier Deschamps Dubbed a 'water carrier' by Eric Cantona, the
Frenchman did his bit in the Juve midfield. 7
Edgar Davids Outstanding, particularly in the first half, in the
middle of the park. 8
Zinedine Zidane Despite his suspect knee he still helped run the
show for Juventus. 8
Filippo Inzaghi Dived around a lot, but led Juve's line well and was
a constant threat. 7
Substitutes:
Ciro Ferrara (for Montero, 68 minutes) The highly-experienced
defender dug in when he came on. 6
Alessio Tacchinardi (for Di Livio, 77 minutes) Like Ferrara he did
his bit for the Juve cause when he came on. 6
Juan Esnaider (for Inzaghi, 87 minutes, no rating) The striker's
main contribution was to waste some valuable seconds for the
visitors when he came on.
Referee
Manuel Diaz Vega (Spain) Whistle-happy, interrupting play
too often, but rightly kept his cards in his pocket for
almost the whole 90 minutes. 7
More pics from OT + match report click on pic
Subject: United Juve comments by Terry
I suppose it was inevitable that we wouldn't win as soon as Fergie called
the Juve coach Ancelotti 'young and inexperienced' and then suggested we'd
probably score three goals. As it turned out, we were dominated for
two-thirds of the game and were probably lucky to get a draw. It's pretty
easy to see why Fergie admires Zidane. He played a brilliant game till he
tired in the last 15 or 20 minutes dominating the midfield along with
Davids.
The game started well for us. That is, I enjoyed the first 60 seconds.
But, for the rest of the half, it was downhill all the way as Juve took
over. They out-thought and out-played us in that first half though we
didn't do ourselves any favours with some sloppy defending. They took
their goal well, Zidane and Davids again orchestrating those around them.
Davids even nutmegged Scholsie to lay on a perfect pass for Conte to
score. Not much chance for Schmikes with that one though he did save us
on a couple of other occasions.
We did better in the second half and after 20 minutes or so started to
look like we might score. Chances were at last created for Cole, Scholes
and Giggs, who brought off a fine save from Peruzzi. On 74 minutes the
ref, who otherwise had a good game, missed a handball in the Juve penalty
area. But we got a second chance immediately when the ball fell to
Scholsie, who missed from close range. He was to do that again later with
his head.
There were too many back passes to Schmikes, who would then boot the ball
upfield into the grateful arms of the Juve defence. When we built up play
steadily from the back, we tended to look better. Teddy came on with about
10 minutes left in place of a very disappointing Yorke. Yorkie didn't
flash too many smiles tonight. The arrival of Teddy appeared to be the end
of the road but, in fact, he brought some urgency to the proceedings. On
86 minutes Teddy had the ball in the net ... tomorrow's headlines flashed
before his eyes: 'Super Ted Saves Reds' ... but the linesman raised his
flag for offside. The TV replays didn't provide conclusive evidence and it
looked to be a harsh decision. We all thought Juve had used up all their
luck escaping from their group and then sneaking into the semis but, no,
they've apparently still got some left.
United were pressing continuously now and as we moved into injury time, we
scored. Becks lobbed the ball speculatively over his head into the area, a
mass of players went for it (Teddy, I think, won it) and the ball fell
nicely for Giggs to smash it into the roof of the net from close range.
Giggsy had been pretty prominent in the final 20 minutes of the game but
had done little in the preceding 70 minutes. With only a couple of minutes
left, the goal came too late to give us the momentum to get a second.
It was a cruel goal, Giggsy. Now we have to continue hoping even though a
scoreless draw would be enough to take Juve through. I suppose with our
record away from home in this season's Champions League there is no reason
at all why we can't score a couple in Turin. The big question is: can we
stop Juve scoring? Recent evidence would suggest we can't.
Juve have the measure of us, there's no question about it. And on Sunday,
in the FA Cup, we play another team who also appear to have the measure of
us. One wonders what effect tonight's disappointment will have on the
team. Who knows, tonight's poor performance, coupled with all the taunts
of 'Just not good enough' from the press and delighted ABUs between now
and Sunday might just be all the incentive we need to get the treble back
on the tracks. True, we're not feeling very well tonight, but we ain't
dead yet.
_____________
Terry
Saudi
More pics from OT + match report click on pic
Subject: Juve game by Steve Edge
Another intense match for the Reds today. Zidane and Davids were awesome in
the first half, and United did not play well at all. Having said that, I
thought we were starting to settle down a bit after the first 15 minutes,
and Becks' free kick looked to be going in for sure. I can't believe it
missed! The next thing, Juve scored and you could see the heads drop a bit
after that. Everybody knows that an away goal is usually fatal, and it was
a bit like Dortmund again.
Unlike that semi final two years ago, United didn't create a string of
chances until very late in the game. And the catalyst for our mini-recovery
was none other than Teddy Sheringham, the man we all love to hate. He has
been accused of being lazy and uncommitted in the past. He looked very
committed to me in those 10 minutes, and it was his persistence - along
with Beckham's - which led to the equalizing goal.
I thought the officials had a pretty good game up until the penalty
incident. It really should have been a penalty. Iuliano was lucky not to
get a red card, it was so blatant.
Then the disallowed goal threatened to put the final nail in our coffin.
Was Teddy offside? Impossible to tell from the TV, since the defender
nearest the camera was out of the picture when Keano shot the ball. Fergie
thought the referee's assistant was late putting the flag up. Not late
enough, IMHO. Tomorrow morning would have been a better time to flag for
offside on that one!
I thought United were too respectful of Juventus in the first half. This
was partly dictated by the way Juve played, but United defnitely finished
the game in the ascendancy. Again, this is partly because Juve sat back. If
you're only as good as you're allowed to be then a draw would seem a fair
result. Both teams could have won it. I haven't seen the final statistics,
but I can recall quite a few more chances for United than for Juve.
Schmikes was excellent for the most part - 7
Gary Neville wasn't very good, but refused to give up - 6
Stam was magnificent - 8
Berg was poor - 5
Johnsen (Berg's replacement at half time) was very good - 7
Irwin was rock steady, as ever - 7
Beckham kept plugging away - 7
Scholes ditto - 7
Keane was brilliant - 9
Giggs started slowly but was flying at the end - 7
Cole led the line well - 7
Yorke was anonymous - 5
Sheringham only played 10 minutes, but did very well in all of them! - 8
Oh, what the hell. They were all Red-shirted heroes, almost martyrs, today.
Still waffling on ... Cole hasn't scored for four games, Yorke hasn't
scored for five. What's happening?
Now we turn our attention to the FA Cup, and to last year's
tormentors-in-chief, Arsenal. This is shaping up to be a pivotal game for
United. Win it and we just might win the lot. Lose it, and we could end up
with nowt. Worried? Not me. This is what following United is all about.
Bring 'em all on. It's do or die time again for the Reds.
Steve Edge
Vancouver Red
P.S. After the game today I was staggering around the shops - well, reeling
a bit from 3 pints of Kilkenny at lunchtime! - with "We'll keep the Red
flag flying high" ringing in my ears. Quite an emotional song, innit?
More pics from OT + match report click on pic
Subject: Independent Report Giggs' late strike rescues United
Manchester United ...1 Juventus ...1
A last-minute goal from Ryan Giggs enabled Manchester United to keep
their Champions' Cup dream alive after another pulsating European match
at Old Trafford last night.
By Glenn Moore
Behind to a 25th-minute goal from Antonio Conte, and totally outplayed,
United gradually regained their fire to draw level just as it seemed
this semi-final first leg would end in defeat.
Now they must become the first English team to win in Turin in 18 years
ifthey are to reach next month's final in Barcelona. United are bidding
to reach their second final, 31 years after their last appearance, the
Wembley victory over Benfica. For Juventus the target is a fourth
successive
final and their seventh in all. If that statistic underlined their
pedigree,
another illustrated United's need for a home win.
English clubs may have been the dominant force in Europe over much of
the last three decades but only once, in 33 seasons of meetings, have
Juventus lost to an English team at home. That defeat, to a goal by
Arsenal's Paul Vaessen in 1980-81, is the solitary blot on a record of
eight
victories and two draws.
United had to push forward but keep the back door locked. The first
part came naturally, the second was likely to rely heavily on the
revived form of Peter Schmeichel and the recovered fitness of Jaap Stam.
The Dane, indeed, came to their rescue after a quarter of an hour,
saving brilliantly low to his right from Filippo Inzaghi after the
striker had turned Henning Berg. Ten minutes later, however, he was
helpless after a bewitching spell of interplay opened United's defence
up.
Angelo Di Livio, on the left flank, bamboozled two defenders with a
clever back-heel. As they scurried to recover Zinedine Zidane fed Edgar
Davids, who slipped a pass through a thicket of legs to Conte. The
Juventus captain,who had scored against Schmeichel for Italy last week,
repeated
the trick.
Juve exulted and, as United briefly wobbled, they almost snatched a
second, Zidane and Davids engineering a break which only ended when
Conte, ambitiously, shot instead of pulling the ball back to Zidane.
And what of United in this opening half hour? They had begun somewhat
cautiously. Dwight Yorke almost released Paul Scholes with a neat
flick, but Mark Iuliano read it; then Andy Cole won a free-kick from
Paolo
Montero, but David Beckham put it wide. For the most part, however,
Juventus's
defenders were so quick in thought and deed they stifled United and
their flicks and tricks, so fundamental to their game, went astray.
Instead Zidane was the key influence. Though strapped up like an
Egyptian mummy he twisted, tackled and, most of all, passed with verve
and
imagination. With Davids and Deschamps in support Juve's midfield
easily eclipsed United's famous four, despite the endeavours of Keane.
Just briefly, soon after the goal, did United threaten in the first
period. Cole flashed a near-post header narrowly wide from Giggs' cross
then a Keane shot, from 20 yards, skimmed just over the bar.
The half-time address would have been one of the most important in
Ferguson's career but, whatever he said, it took time to sink in, for
United began the second period as tentatively as they had ended the
first.
Slowly, however, they created a series of half-chances. Ronny Johnsen,
on for
Berg, headed over from a Beckham free-kick while Cole, twice, and
Scholes
shot over.
Still, almost an hour had passed before Angelo Peruzzi was finally
tested, flinging himself up to palm away a sharp near-post header from
Giggs
following a Beckham corner. Soon afterwards Keane brought the keeper to
his knees with a strong shot and, though Yorke and Cole were still
playing like strangers, the United faithful began to hope again.
With 16 minutes left United's pressure almost brought reward. Cole, on
the left, tricked his way to the byline before whipping in a low cross.
There was a blur of shirts and legs as each side fought for a clear
strike at the
ball, to shoot for goal or thrash to safety. It fell to Giggs to shoot,
the ball was blocked, possibly by a hand, then Scholes shot, and the
ball flew wide. More
appeals rent the air as another cross caused similar confusion. Manuel
Diaz
Vega also waved them away.
In a final fling Teddy Sheringham, the Lord Lucan of Old Trafford, was
thrown into the fray. He thought he had gained an equaliser when, with
four minutes left, he steered Keane's shot past Peruzzi with a flying
header. The linesman thought otherwise but United's sense of injustice
fired them
anew and, after Peruzzi had stopped a Scholes header on the line, the
bombardment bore fruit when Giggs thrashed a loose ball from a Beckham
cross into the net.
Manchester United (4-4-2): Schmeichel; G Neville, Stam, Berg (Johnsen,
h-t), Irwin; Beckham, Keane, Scholes, Giggs; Cole, Yorke (Sheringham,
78). Substitutes not used: Van der Gouw (gk), Butt, P Neville,
Blomqvist,
Solskjaer.
Juventus (4-4-1-1): Peruzzi; Mirkovic, Iuliano, Montero (Ferrara, 68),
Pessotto; Conte, Deschamps, Davids, Di Livio (Tacchinardi, 77); Zidane;
Inzaghi (Esnaider, 88). Substitutes not used: Rampulla (gk),
Birindelli,
Amoruso, Tudor.
Referee: M Diaz Vega (Spain).
More pics from OT + match report click on pic
Subject: Times: Zidane scheming bears fruit
ALEX FERGUSON had warned the world before about
these dark, scheming Italians, but no one thought they
would stoop to tactics as low as this. An extra man in
midfield? Machiavelli himself never hatched a plot so
dastardly.
The bizarre thing was that it was no surprise at all. If
Zinedine Zidane playing behind Filippo Inzaghi was on the
back page of The Times yesterday, it can hardly have
come as a surprise to the Manchester United coaches.
Yet they still opted to detail Roy Keane to pick up the
world player of the year, with the knock-on effect that
Paul Scholes found himself swamped by Deschamps and
Davids.
It was like Lennox Lewis walking into the ring and finding
Mike Tyson limbering up as tag partner to Evander
Holyfield and you feared from the start that United would
walk into a knockout punch.
Ferguson had claimed that he never trusts what an Italian
puts under the sauce and his use of Keane last night as an
auxiliary defender, in the first half at least, suggested that
he does not believe what a Frenchman hides under his
bandage. Zidane's right knee was so trussed up that you
wondered if the strapping was holding his leg together, but
United feared that he would be fit enough to spread
havoc, if not at his peerless best. They judged it about
right.
Although restricted in his movement, as anyone would be
with half a mile of tape around his knee, Zidane was far
from the solitary ghost that Ronaldo had been in the San
Siro when United had last found themselves facing one of
the best footballers alive. The Brazilian realised he was not
up to the task and disappeared. The Frenchman was last
seen hurling himself into Keane. Enough said.
He had not played for almost a month and there were
occasional signs to prove that his World Cup hangover
has lasted longer than most. When the ball bounced five
yards off his shin, you had to rewind the tape to check if it
was true. It was like watching Nick Faldo shank one into
the bushes or Tim Henman slicing his forehand over the
fence. But it was a rare mistake from a player who would
have been seeking treatment back in Turin if this had not
been a European Cup semi-final. If this is what he can do
with one leg, you fear what he will do with two.
By the time that he tired in the second half, freeing Keane
to gamble farther forward, Zidane was leaving most of the
work to Deschamps, his countryman, and the magnificent
Davids, in particular. The Holland international,
notoriously arrogant, was once asked what it was like
playing with Del Piero. "Ask him what it's like playing with
Davids," was his typically haughty reply - but at least he
has the talents to justify his conceit.
Even Davids was calling for reinforcements in the second
half as United pushed the Italians deep into their own half,
but the damage had already been done by Antonio
Conte's first half-goal and Ferguson must now work out
how to handle Zidane in the next leg. It is just as well that
he has two weeks.
Ronny Johnsen in place of Henning Berg, who struggled in
the first half, would be a start and Ferguson will also
expect more from Giggs and Beckham in support of his
central midfield pair. "The two wide players were too far
forward," he said, "which meant there was two against
three with Zidane in that area. Every time we made a
mistake, it was an uphill fight."
He will know, however, that Zidane will be closer to full
fitness for the second leg, when Juventus will attempt to
protect their precious away goal. "In a game like this, you
have to make sacrifices," Zidane had said and while it
might have been painful, he will feel it was worth it.
More pics from OT + match report click on pic
Subject: Ferguson still optimistic after late equaliser
By Mike Collett
MANCHESTER, England, April 7 (Reuters) - Manchester United
manager Alex Ferguson said that although Juventus would consider
themselves favourites to win their European Cup semifinal after
drawing the first leg 1-1 at Old Trafford on Wednesday, he was
convinced his team would still reach the final.
"Something tells me we are going to win it," he said after
watching Ryan Giggs blast in a dramatic last-minute equaliser.
"It is in the nature of our club to go through this kind of
torture, so the only relief we can get is by winning it," he
added.
Whether he was referring to the tie -- or the club's
fruitless 31 year struggle to reach a second European Cup final
-- was not entirely clear, but what was unmistakable was his
belief in his side after they salvaged a draw from what looked
like a certain home defeat.
"There is no doubt we played very poorly in the first half,
we gave them far too much room and were exposed at the back. But
hopefully we have got that out of our system now.
"There was fantastic quality in the match from both
ourselves and Juventus -- and also I must say the referee who
was first class and let the match flow."
"Juventus's first half performance was the best I have seen
from them all season. But we improved dramatically after the
break and our midfield play was excellent.
"Juventus will consider themselves as favourites to go on
and win the tie now, but I am not so sure.
"Of course if it ends 0-0 in Turin they will go through, but
I just don't think they can do that, it's not in their culture
-- they'll go out and try and win the game -- and we know we can
score any time. This is a great result for them tonight, but
they may regret us scoring so late."
Juve boss Carlo Ancelotti admitted he was disappointed that
Juve let their lead slip so late, but took heart from their
overall performance.
"We made things very difficult for United and think we
showed our superiority for much of the match.
"The important thing for me is that we gave them no space on
the wings, had lots of opportunities to counter whenever
possible and could have scored more than one goal. We
neutralised David Beckham and Ryan Giggs who were unable to find
Andy Cole and Dwight Yorke and we can do the same in Turin."
Zinedine Zidane, who played superbly despite heavy strapping
on his right thigh, said he was delighted he lasted the full 90
minutes and was looking forward to the second leg on April 21.
"I don't think United are as good away as they are at home.
In the end it is hard to say they did not deserve their
equaliser because in the last 20 minutes they created a lot of
chances," he said.
His French World Cup-winning team mate Didier Deschamps
added: "We are disappointed we didn't score more in the first
hour when we were on top. Of course we are not pleased they
scored -- but we have an away goal and that is very important."
United skipper Roy Keane said: "Before the game we were
confident of winning and we were disappointed to let them get
the away goal but we are capable of going over there and scoring
goals so we are still confident of reaching the final."
More pics from OT + match report click on pic
Subject: BSkyB makes promises on Man Utd
Lucrative TV match rights hang on MMC decision
The satellite broadcaster BSkyB is reported to have offered to exclude
Manchester United from any talks on television rights as it seeks to
persuade the UK Government to clear its takeover of the club.
According to the Financial Times, a letter has been sent to the Trade and
Industry Secretary Stephen Byers stating BSkyB would stick to an agreement
which prevented it from using confidential bidding information from any
broadcasting negotiations.
The broadcaster is currently awaiting the findings of a report by the UK
competition regulatory body, the Monopolies and Mergers Commission, which
has investigated the implications of BSkyB's £623m bid for the club.
Investigation completed
Murdoch: Making a big play
It is understood the MMC's report was submitted three weeks ago and the
trade secretary may announce his decision before Tuesday.
There has been much speculation about the outcome of the bid with some
reports claiming the deal will be blocked because of concerns about what
this could mean for broadcasting rights. BSkyB currently broadcasts Premier
League football live and could soon own the largest club in Europe.
The company is thought to have given additional assurances that it would
not inititiate a breakaway league from the premiership.
BSkyB's letter
BSkyB is said to have written to Mr Byers following reports that ministers
were concerned about the issue of confidential bidding information in any
television deals.
The broadcaster is thought to have given guarantees that it would not abuse
its position, indeed it would exclude itself from any Premier League talks
on television rights.
More pics from OT + match report click on pic
Subject: COLOMBIA'S MONDRAGON TO REPLACE SCHMEICHEL??
AS SCHMEICHEL CLINGS TO EUROPEAN DREAM,GREEK GRANDPA'S THE KEY TO BID FOR
COLOMBIA'S MONDRAGON TO REPLACE THE DANE
By Iain Spragg
COLOMBIAN World Cup star Farid Mondragon is poised to replace Peter
Schmeichel as Manchester United’s goalkeeper for the next Millennium, and
fulfil a lifelong ambition to play in the English top flight. The
27-year-old is
currently on a short-term contract with Spain's Real Zaragoza but has already
had talks with the Old Trafford giants about a summer switch to the
Premiership.
Ryan Giggs' injury-time equaliser against Juventus last night means the
Dane's hopes
of a European Cup win is still alive; if United do go on to win the
tournament then the
South American should be between the sticks as they seek to defend the title.
United representatives flew out to meet Mondragon before Christmas but were
reluctant to make an immediate swoop because he was not EU qualified.
Mondragon, however, has since discovered he has a Greek grandfather and is
in the
process of obtaining a Greek passport. That would give him dual nationality
- clearing the
way for the South American to step into Schmeichel’s shoes before the start
of the
next Premiership season.
Paul Hodges, Mondragon’s agent, told Football365: “It has always
been Farid’s ambition to play in England and he has already had talks
with Manchester United. There has also been interest from Arsenal,
Sheffield Wednesday, Liverpool and Rangers. He wants to join a big
club and it is a virtual certainty he will be playing in the Premiership
next season. His Greek passport should come through in June.”
Mondragon was one of the biggest stars of last summer’s World Cup.
He was voted the best keeper in the first round and such luminaries
as Maradona, Beckenbauer and Pele all named him in their team of
the tournament. He was also the goalkeeper who saved the most
direct shots during the championship, although he could nothing
about David Beckham’s brilliant free-kick in England’s 2-0 win over
the Colombians in Lens during the group stages.
The Colombian custodian told Football365: “The biggest wish in my
life is to play in England. The English Premiership is the best, or one
of the two best, leagues in the world. The most important thing for
me is that I feel comfortable and well looked after. I have played long
enough in South America and that part of my career is done.”
United last month confirmed that Schmeichel was definitely leaving
Old Trafford over the summer to play on the Continent and Alex
Ferguson has been searching for a replacement all season. United,
however, could face stiff competition from Italian high-fliers Lazio,
who have already made a firm offer for his services. His registration is
currently held by Argentina's Independiente, but Mondragon’s
self-confessed love of England - he was educated at an English
school in Colombia - means United are still the front runners for his
signature.
More pics from OT + match report click on pic
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If ever they are playing in your town
You must get to that football ground
Take a lesson come to see
Football taught by Matt Busby
Manchester, Manchester United
A bunch of bouncing Busby Babes
They deserve to be knighted
Barry
J. Leeming Digest Prgram
by 
William
McArthur Canada
