Soccer - FA Cup Final : Chelsea Vs Man United

This year's FA Cup final, played in the newly re-built Wembley Stadium, featured the top 2 teams in the latest English Premiership Season which just concluded last week. Will Chelsea get some pride back for losing their crown? Or will Man United get an unprecedented fourth FA Cup and League double?

The new Wembley stadium

Chess game…

The first half was a largely drab affair, with neither side willing to push players forward and look for an early goal, opting instead to counterattack. Unfortunately, with so many players behind for each side, there was little space to maneuver once any player got the ball.

Half chances came for Drogba, who released a fierce shot that went narrowly wide, after being allowed to advance forward without much attention from the Man United defence. Lampard also had a chance after being let in by Ferreira’s square ball, but he failed to beat Edwin van der Sar at an acute angle.

Christiano Ronaldo who has had such an outstanding season, clearly looked fatigued as evidenced by the lack of his trademark mazy runs and snapshots on goals. This was also not helped by Chelsea’s tactics of man marking him with Ferreira and Shaun Wright Philips coming back to help out his teammate whenever Ronaldo is on the ball. With Man United dangerman out of the game, few (if any) chances came their way.

Opening up…

At the start of the second half, Arjen Robben came on for Joe Cole to add more pace and trickery to Chelsea’s attacking force. Indeed, Darren Fletcher had to retreat several times to help out Wes Brown in preventing Robben from creating any assist to Drogba, Chelsea’s sole target man.


The game also started to open up more. First, Wayne Rooney sidestepped Chelsea’s defenders and unleashed a powerful shot which Cech palmed away to Ryan Giggs. But his shot was again blocked by Cech, though Giggs was already offside anyway.


Paul Scholes, Man United best player of the match, delivered another pinpoint floated ball onto Giggs’s path but his fierce shot agonizingly arrowed over Cech’s head and went out of play.
Sensing that his team were on the ascendance, Rooney went on one of his trademark runs, bulldozing past several Chelsea’s players, but was unable to get past the indomitable Cech who saved at his feet at the last hurdle.

Essien, another key Chelsea player, had to produce two well timed crunching tackles on both Giggs and Rooney, just when they were about to pull the trigger.
Chelsea’s main chance in the second half, came from Drogba, whose curling free kick from the right hit Van Der Sar’s near post, which would have left him embarrassed if it had went in.

Right at the death.

Extra time started with both sets of players still trying their best to push their bodies forward with every ounce of strength they still had left.

Again, Man United had the better chances. A controversial moment came when Giggs failed to make clean contact with rooney’s low cross, under pressure from Essien. Gigg’s shot was saved by Cech but his momentum made him push Cech past the goal line together with the ball. Man United players protested furiously for the goal to be given, but the referee strictly refused to do so.

Another Scholes’s eagle cross send Rooney free, but his disappointing lack of control enabled Cech to save at his feet again.

Then, the concluding moment arrived when Drogba played a fantastic one-two with Lampard and finished with a delicate chip over the onrushing Van Der Sar, to send the Chelsea fans into ruptures and left Sir Alex Ferguson ruing the chances his side should had taken.

FINAL SCORE: MANCHESTER UNITED 0 – 1 CHELSEA