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United give no hint of surrender as friendly fire repels
Chelsea
Henry Winter & John Ley | |
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Chelsea (0) 1 Man Utd (0) 1 IT WAS only a glorified friendly, if any fixture involving Roy Keane and Dennis Wise can be so described, but yesterday's Littlewoods Charity Shield revealed that those who hope to live with Manchester United this season must match the champions' nerve as well as their verve, writes Henry Winter. Chelsea, one of the main contenders for a season that promises such riches, competed manfully against United but then faltered during that examination of individual strengths, the penalty shoot-out. United, their will so steely and kicking so assured, did not fail from the spot, despite the departure of Eric Cantona and substitution of Teddy Sheringham. Ball after ball raced past Ed de Goey, from Paul Scholes and Denis Irwin, and then from two of an average game's dominant figures, Keane and Nicky Butt. The lights had quickly gone out on Chelsea's ambitions, dimming the moment Frank Sinclair's penalty was pushed away by Peter Schmeichel, a keeper making good use of the new licence to move along the line. Gianfranco Zola and Frank Leboeuf both found a way past the giant Dane but, in between, Roberto di Matteo, so deadly from 30 yards, had missed, completely conceding the initiative to United. Downhearted but not downtrodden, Chelsea can take some comfort from this artificial defeat. In Gustavo Poyet, Ruud Gullit has acquired an elegant midfielder capable of influencing events in either area. Danny Granville, although caught out a couple of times, continues his rise into national prominence. Zola, as ever, looked capable of embarrassing opponents whenever he dropped deep. For United, there were similar encouraging signs. Winning a match on penalties, Cantona's most powerful area, will have confirmed life goes on. Keane, despite a nasty raising of the studs at Poyet, charged between boxes like a latter-day Bryan Robson, disrupting and creating in equal measure. With the Irishman's careless boots and Wise's unbuttoned lip, the game's captains almost threatened an outbreak of foot and mouth. Such excesses were unnecessary at such a showpiece. For there was plenty to savour, particularly for those of a red (or now white) persuasion. Jordi Cruyff, a lively substitute, showed he is in the mood to challenge for a first-team place. David Beckham, who also arrived late, quickly became involved, his close control and passing adding an extra dimension to United's game. Beckham has been deemed exhausted in certain quarters but the only thing he seems to have lost is an 'h' from his shirt name. Not the first Londoner to have dropped his aitches, Beckham remains central to United's fortunes, although Alex Ferguson must also juggle Scholes and Ryan Giggs in midfield. Starting without Beckham, United were swiftly into their measured stride, releasing the ball early to turn Chelsea's backfour. Typically committed in pursuit of possession, United's use of the ball was impressive in the early stages. Sheringham, Scholes and Keane all teased the ball over Wembley's broad, manicured acres. It was not all beauty. Keane, ridiculously, escaped caution for raising his right boot into Poyet's unstooping head. Chelsea's busy Uruguayan is as tall as he is talented and was lucky to avoid serious injury. Peter Jones, taking the day's charity motif too far, allowed Keane to muscle on. Through brain and brawn, United were in control, their movement and hunger too much for Chelsea, particularly in midfield. Gullit had to act, which he did perspicaciously in switching Jody Morris, previously the anchor, with Wise, who had begun tucked in on the right. Morris was performing tidily enough but Chelsea needed some bite in the face of Keane and Butt. Wise, as prickly as ever, moved inside, quickly placing a heavy brake on United's surges. Operating from a firmer platform, Chelsea began piecing together those pleasing, passing moves with Poyet and, increasingly, Zola, to the fore. Zola almost scored in the 19th minute but was denied by a wonderful hooked clearance from Gary Pallister. Poyet, meanwhile, continued to catch the eye, rising high to head Wise's cross over. Mark Hughes went closer but planted his header too near Schmeichel. The game briefly deteriorated, Wise being booked for a foul on Sheringham although Pallister, sliding through the back of Zola, failed to earn similar censure. Mistakes were scattered across the game but there were moments to treasure, such as a thrilling Chelsea move which cut straight through United's midfield. The ball danced as if mesmerised from Poyet to Di Matteo to Zola, whose cut-back was wasted horribly by Poyet. The game's competitive side was always in evidence. Sheringham, chasing a high ball, felled Steve Clarke and was eventually booked. That should have been the end of the incident but for Wise, who took it on himself to convey personally his side's displeasure to Sheringham and Irwin. For all his bolshiness, Wise remains a pivotal figure in Chelsea's plans, as was witnessed eight minutes after the break. Moments after Zola had tested Schmeichel's elasticity, Gullit's team of many talents took the lead, following a short corner between Zola and Wise, small men with big ideas. The deliberate pause in the set-piece momentum ensured attackers could lose markers, so allowing Hughes to arrive at the far post and head vigorously past Schmeichel and Phil Neville. Such a perfectionist as Schmeichel may reflect on his positioning. Never more dangerous than when their pride is piqued, United poured forward and were level within three minutes. Giggs, hitherto disappointing, bent in a corner-kick shimmering with possibilities. Amidst the sea of blue shirts, a white one moved with directness and confidence. Ronny Johnsen charged on, strangely ignored by Chelsea's central defenders and trailed only by Granville. It proved an uneven contest, Johnsen meeting the ball with power and placement. The trading of goals improved matters. Scholes shot just wide but, when Chelsea threatened, Keane needed to be alert to break up an attack flowing between Wise, Gianluca Vialli and Di Matteo. Then came the penalties and confirmation of United's mettle. The Littlewoods FA Charity Shield Chelsea (0) 1 Man Utd (0) 1 M. Hughes 52; Johnsen 57. Chelsea: de Goey, Leboeuf, Clarke, Poyet, M. Hughes (Vialli 76), Wise, Di Matteo, Granville, Sinclair, Zola, Morris (Petrescu 46). Subs Not Used: Gullit, Hitchcock, P. Hughes, Nicholls, Clement. Booked: Sinclair, Wise, Petrescu. Man Utd: Schmeichel, Irwin, Johnsen, Pallister, Butt, Cole, Sheringham (Cruyff 72), Giggs (Beckham 72), P. Neville, Keane, Scholes. Subs Not Used: G. Neville, McClair, Poborsky, Van Der Gouw, Thornley. Booked: Sheringham. Man Utd won 4-2 on penalties Att: 73,636 Ref: P Jones (Loughborough). _________________________________________________________________ Gullit bored by errors in 'festival of bad passing' Managers unimpressed by Wembley fare, reports John Ley WEMBLEY'S traditional start to the season brought its customary disappointment, and neither Ruud Gullit nor Alex Ferguson minced their words in their description of the game. Gullit claimed the 1-1 draw, won on penalties by Manchester United, was a 'festival of bad passing' while Ferguson, whose side retained the shield, admitted there were too many bad mistakes. Gullit said: "We are not disappointed to have lost because penalties are always a lottery. But neither team played well. It became a game of cat and mouse with nobody creating any decent passes. It was all a little bit boring and from our point of view it was a bad, bad game. "Neither team created many chances and both goals came from corner kicks, which shows it was a bit sloppy. At least it shows we can cope with what is the top team in England." Ferguson added: "I didn't think it was a particularly good game and when the rain came there were a lot of mistakes because of it." The United manager shuffled his pack, bringing on Jordi Cruyff for £3.5 million striker Teddy Sheringham and said: "Teddy didn't do anything wrong but I wanted to give Jordi a game. We also gave David Beckham 20 minutes so he should be ready in two or three weeks' time." There were, at times, some niggling fouls and Sheringham's first competitive game ended with a caution for a foul on Steve Clarke, issued after complaints from Dennis Wise, the Chelsea captain. Ferguson said: "Nobody needs to go to the referee for him to book players and it wasn't a dirty game." Wise, though, insisted he did not get England team-mate Sheringham cautioned. "Teddy seems to think I got him booked but the referee was going to book him anyway," said Wise. Ferguson, meanwhile, reserved praise for Roy Keane, the man who has been given the captaincy on a short-term basis. Keane's performance and Ferguson's words suggest that he may get the job full-time. "I gave him the job because he has all the ingredients to be a good captain for us." Keane followed United captains Bryan Robson, Steve Bruce and Eric Cantona up the Wembley steps to collect the club's first, but probably not last, silverware of the 1997-98 campaign. He said: "Enough has been said about Eric [Cantona]. He will be missed but Manchester United goes on. Hopefully there will be more trophies along the way. It is a great honour to captain United and hopefully I will not let anyone down." There was confirmation, if any was needed, that Chelsea will be in the pack challenging United as they attempt to win the Premiership for the fifth time in six years. Ferguson said: "I couldn't pick one team who will pose the biggest threat. There are several candidates and Chelsea, with more consistency, will be one of them. Clearly there are a lot of clubs buying to win the premier division. Maybe they'll have to keep buying." Gianfranco Zola, last season's Football Writers' Footballer of the Year, collected another honour by being named man of the match. Zola said: "When you finish a game like today I think you should share the cup because both teams deserved it. But it's OK, we're happy because we played at the same level as the champions. We have been back for only 20 days but we know we can play better." United played their own name games at Wembley. While the name of Beckham was spelt wrongly, Cruyff emerged yesterday with the name Jordi. Last season the son of Johan insisted on using his famous surname, despite the fact that at Barcelona he used his first name. But at Wembley yesterday Cruyff, who has a close affinity to Spain, where he was born, emerged with Jordi on his back. _______________________________________________________________ Man Utd down Chelsea on penalties (Writethrough adding quotes, detail) By Clare Lovell LONDON, Aug 3 (Reuter) - Manchester United beat Chelsea 4-2 on penalties to win the Charity Shield on Sunday after English soccer's traditional season-opener ended in a scrappy 1-1 draw. Former United striker Mark Hughes put Chelsea ahead in the Wembley friendly between the league champions and F.A. Cup winners, nodding in a cross from Italian international Gianfranco Zola in the 52nd minute. But Ruud Gullit's cosmopolitan London side enjoyed only five minutes of celebration before Norway's Ronny Johnsen headed in a Ryan Giggs corner for the equaliser With United showing off new signing Teddy Sheringham and Chelsea parading tough Uruguayan midfielder Gustavo Poyet, the game proved evenly balanced with neither side able to turn on the skill for a capacity Wembley crowd. But when it came to the shootout United showed their mettle and poise. They put away all four of their penalties as Chelsea squandered two. Frank Sinclair's effort was easily saved by Peter Schmeichel, diving to his right, while Italian international Roberto Di Matteo, hero of last May's Cup final when he scored a goal after 45 seconds, blasted his shot over the bar. Paul Scholes, Denis Irwin and Roy Keane scored for United enabling Nicky Butt to fire in the winner. Neither side looked on top of their form in the first half, with passes going astray and chances missed. Gullit, who put himself of the bench but did not play, said afterwards the game was a "festival of bad passes, bad mistakes. It was not a good game." Sheringham, under enormous pressure to fill the boots of the departed United hero Eric Cantona, was busy but failed to connect to a Giggs free kick in the 10th minute and had shots blocked by young Chelsea back Danny Granville in the first half and by Poyet in the second. Poyet, himself, failed to connect after a piece of Italian magic between Di Matteo and Gianfranco Zola put the ball at his feet six metres out. And the ever-resourceful Zola also blew a golden chance as the rain fell in the dying moments of the match. More Italian wizardry between Gianluca Vialli, brought on as substitute for Hughes, and Di Matteo gave Zola the ball just outside the area but he shot wide as Schmeichel advanced. Four players were shown yellow cards, including Chelsea's explosive captain Denis Wise who developed an on-field feud with Sheringham littered with pushing and posturing. Sheringham was cautioned for flattening Steve Clarke with his elbow and United skipper Roy Keane was booked after he felled Poyet with a flying kick to the face. Gullit and United coach Alex Ferguson, relaxed and chatting happily to each other during the shoot-out, will be content no one got badly hurt before the serious stuff starts with the first premier league matches next weekend. Gullit said he was not disappointed to lose what he called the "lottery" of the shootout, adding: "We know we can cope with the best in England as we proved during the second half of last season." Ferguson, who said Chelsea would be one of the sides to watch in the coming season, added his team had not felt fully fit after a recent energy-sapping far-eastern tour. "But next week I think we will in better shape," he added. _______________________________________________________________ Manchester United - 1-Peter Schmeichel, 3-Denis Irwin, 5- Ronnie Johnsen, 6-Gary Pallister, 8-Nicky Butt, 9-Andy Cole 10-Teddy Sheringham, 11-Ryan Giggs, 12-Phil Neville, 16-Roy Keane, 18-Paul Scholes. Chelsea - 1-Ed De Goey, 5-Frank Leboeuf, 6-Steve Clarke, 8-Gustavo Poyet, 10-Mark Hughes, 11-Denis Wise, 16-Roberto Di Matteo, 17-Danny Granville, 20-Frank Sinclair, 25-Gianfranco Zola, 28-Jody Morris. |
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