United tears Schalke apart
Source: Agencies |
April 28, 2011, Thursday
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MANCHESTER United overwhelmed Schalke 04 as it strolled to a 2-0 victory in its Champions League semifinal first leg on Tuesday in a one-sided match that left the home fans stunned.
Ryan Giggs and Wayne Rooney scored in the space of two second-half minutes and United could have had more but for the superb goalkeeping of Manuel Neuer with the final score hardly reflecting the huge difference in quality between the sides.
Alex Ferguson's team was superior in all aspects of the game and United - three-time winners of Europe's top prize - go into the return leg having gained a huge advantage after dominating the dazed Germans for about an hour.
"It was a top performance and credit to the players for their belief in themselves and the trust in each other," Ferguson told reporters. "It ranks as one of our best (performances in Europe)."
Whether attacking from the right, left or center, Schalke's home side's defense looked sluggish with United's players having time and space to create numerous chances.
Mexican Javier Hernandez, nicknamed Chicharito, and South Korean Park Ji-Sung saw their early efforts blocked by Neuer but it was just the start of a prolonged United assault that ended only after the visitors took their foot off the gas.
Neuer twice denied Giggs late in the first half but the Welshman, picked out in the box when Rooney flicked a pass through Joel Matip's legs, was on target in the 67th minute.
Frustration
The England striker, who was sent off in the same stadium against Portugal in the 2006 World Cup finals, then turned scorer by firing home from inside the area after Hernandez set him up with a well-timed pass.
"I think there was frustration towards the end of the first half with that final save from Ryan's (header). We had to correct that at halftime," said Ferguson.
"But what broke the camel's back was Chicharito's goal (that was disallowed early in the second half) because we saw that we could beat the guy (Neuer)."
Ferguson also heaped praise on Giggs, who at 37 is still lethal.
"This is strange because his peak seems to have lasted so long now," said Ferguson.
"I see no evidence of this waning. He won't be playing on Sunday (against Arsenal), he'll be playing next Wednesday (in the Schalke return) and when he gets that freshness he shows no signs of weakness. He is an amazing man."
Ryan Giggs and Wayne Rooney scored in the space of two second-half minutes and United could have had more but for the superb goalkeeping of Manuel Neuer with the final score hardly reflecting the huge difference in quality between the sides.
Alex Ferguson's team was superior in all aspects of the game and United - three-time winners of Europe's top prize - go into the return leg having gained a huge advantage after dominating the dazed Germans for about an hour.
"It was a top performance and credit to the players for their belief in themselves and the trust in each other," Ferguson told reporters. "It ranks as one of our best (performances in Europe)."
Whether attacking from the right, left or center, Schalke's home side's defense looked sluggish with United's players having time and space to create numerous chances.
Mexican Javier Hernandez, nicknamed Chicharito, and South Korean Park Ji-Sung saw their early efforts blocked by Neuer but it was just the start of a prolonged United assault that ended only after the visitors took their foot off the gas.
Neuer twice denied Giggs late in the first half but the Welshman, picked out in the box when Rooney flicked a pass through Joel Matip's legs, was on target in the 67th minute.
Frustration
The England striker, who was sent off in the same stadium against Portugal in the 2006 World Cup finals, then turned scorer by firing home from inside the area after Hernandez set him up with a well-timed pass.
"I think there was frustration towards the end of the first half with that final save from Ryan's (header). We had to correct that at halftime," said Ferguson.
"But what broke the camel's back was Chicharito's goal (that was disallowed early in the second half) because we saw that we could beat the guy (Neuer)."
Ferguson also heaped praise on Giggs, who at 37 is still lethal.
"This is strange because his peak seems to have lasted so long now," said Ferguson.
"I see no evidence of this waning. He won't be playing on Sunday (against Arsenal), he'll be playing next Wednesday (in the Schalke return) and when he gets that freshness he shows no signs of weakness. He is an amazing man."
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