Manchester United F.C. 2008–09 football season
The 2008–09 season was Manchester United ‘s 17th season in the Premier League, and their 34th consecutive season in the top part of English football. After winning a third base consecutive Premier League title for the second time to equal Liverpool ‘s record of 18 league titles, [ 1 ] the team aimed to become the inaugural team to retain the European Cup since Milan in 1990. however, they were beaten 2–0 by Barcelona in the final examination at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome on 27 May 2009. [ 2 ]
United started their season in August 2008 by winning the Community Shield. [ 3 ] In December 2008, the club became the beginning english side to win the FIFA Club World Cup when they beat LDU Quito 1–0 in the final. [ 4 ] Two months late, on 1 March 2009, the cabaret added the 2008–09 League Cup to their trophy cabinet with a 4–1 penalty gunfight gain over Tottenham Hotspur after a scoreless 120 minutes in the final. [ 5 ] United secured the Premier League title with a scoreless draw at home to Arsenal on 16 May 2009. This made them the first team to win three straight English top flight titles on two occasions, having besides done thus between 1999 and 2001. [ 1 ] This was the final season where Cristiano Ronaldo was on the Manchester United roll until the 2021-22 season, as he was sold for an at-the-time record-breaking transmit to Real Madrid following the end of this season .
Pre-season and friendlies [edit ]
After losing adjunct director Carlos Queiroz to the Portugal national team, [ 6 ] Manchester United began their pre-season schedule on 12 July 2008 with a stumble up to Pittodrie Stadium to play against Sir Alex Ferguson ‘s former team, Aberdeen. The regular was to celebrate the twenty-fifth anniversary of the Dons winning the european Cup Winners ‘ Cup, for which Ferguson himself was the coach. [ 7 ] Manchester United won the match 2–0, with a penalty from Michael Carrick and a heading from Wayne Rooney. [ 8 ] The team then left for South Africa to play in the 2008 Vodacom Challenge. The tournament began with United drawing 1–1 with Kaizer Chiefs in Cape Town, [ 9 ] before moving on to Durban to play against Orlando Pirates three days late ; they won the catch 1–0. [ 10 ] On 24 July, the Kaizer Chiefs beat the Orlando Pirates in Port Elizabeth and were rewarded with a farther regular against Manchester United in Pretoria on 26 July. [ 11 ] United won the match 4–0 to take the Vodacom Challenge, with goals from Ryan Giggs, Wayne Rooney, Tom Cleverley and Fraizer Campbell. [ 12 ] En route back from South Africa, United stopped off in Abuja, Nigeria, on 27 July, where they achieved a 2–1 friendly win over Portsmouth, with goals from Eagles and Tevez. [ 13 ] Coincidentally, this was a “ dress rehearsal ” for the Community Shield on 10 August. It was besides United ‘s beginning travel to Nigeria, the location of the club ‘s fourth-largest winnow base, with 13.6 million supporters. [ 14 ] Upon their retort from Africa, the Manchester United team was involved in Ole Gunnar Solskjær ‘s tribute on 2 August 2008. The match, played at Old Trafford against RCD Espanyol, [ 15 ] was won by United 1–0. The winner was scored in the 82nd hour by Fraizer Campbell. [ 16 ] This catch was followed by two more friendlies ; first, a 2–0 acquire over Peterborough United, managed by Sir Alex ‘s son and erstwhile United musician Darren, on 4 August at London Road Stadium, and then a 0–0 draw against italian giants Juventus at Old Trafford on 6 August. [ 17 ]
FA Community Shield [edit ]
The Red Devils retained the 2008 FA Community Shield 3–1 on penalties against 2007–08 FA Cup winners Portsmouth after the equal finished 0–0 after 90 minutes on 10 August. [ 18 ] [ 19 ] It was United ‘s moment game against Portsmouth in the space of two weeks .
Date
Opponents
H / A
Result
F–A
Scorers
Attendance
10 August 2008
Portsmouth
N
0–0
(3–1p)
84,808
UEFA Super Cup [edit ]
At the end of August, after the start of the Premier League season, United, as the winners of the 2007–08 UEFA Champions League, travelled to Monaco for the 2008 UEFA Super Cup against UEFA Cup winners Zenit St. Petersburg. however, they went 2–0 down in the inaugural hour of the bet on, and a Nemanja Vidić goal was not enough to save them from get the better of. A Paul Scholes handball in the 90th minute resulted in his irregular jaundiced card of the game, meaning that he would miss the Red Devils ‘ hatchway UEFA Champions League match against Villarreal. [ 20 ]
Date
Opponents
H / A
Result
F–A
Scorers
Attendance
29 August 2008
Zenit Saint Petersburg
N
1–2
Vidić 73′
18,064
Premier League [edit ]
Manchester United kicked off their defensive structure of the Premier League title on 17 August 2008, playing against Newcastle United at Old Trafford. Newcastle got the first finish of the game through an Obafemi Martins header, but United hit square back through Darren Fletcher two minutes later. Alex Ferguson handed debuts to both Rodrigo Possebon and Rafael during the bet on. [ 21 ] This was followed up by a narrow 1–0 winnings over Portsmouth on 25 August. Papa Bouba Diop went close for Portsmouth after precisely 12 seconds, before United opened the score in the 32nd minute, Darren Fletcher ‘s scuff shot deflecting off Sol Campbell before being turned into the roof of the net by Sylvain Distin. United dominated most of the match, with Portsmouth rarely testing Edwin van five hundred Sar in the United goal. [ 22 ] On 13 September, United travelled to Anfield to play Liverpool, who handed them their beginning loss of the Premier League season. United got murder to a potent originate with Carlos Tevez scoring in the third minute, but an own goal by Wes Brown in the twenty-seventh minute and a goal by Liverpool winger Ryan Babel in the 77th sealed United ‘s destine. The game saw the debut of Dimitar Berbatov, who had signed from Tottenham Hotspur on 1 September ; the Bulgarian marked his first appearance by providing the assist for Tevez ‘s goal. [ 23 ] The defeat was United ‘s first against Liverpool in the Premier League since 2004. [ 24 ] Following the loss at Anfield, United faced the daunting job of travelling to Stamford Bridge to play Chelsea. As in the previous plot, United opened the score, with Park Ji-sung score in the 18th infinitesimal after Chelsea ‘s Petr Čech parried Berbatov ‘s shot into the Korean ‘s way. United held on until the 80th minute, when Mikel John Obi ‘s free recoil found the head of Salomon Kalou, who headed in the counterweight. [ 25 ] United gave their league season a kick-start with a 2–0 acquire over Bolton Wanderers on 27 September. Bolton took the game to United early on in the first half, but the tide began to slowly shift back into United ‘s prefer ; alone the heroics of Bolton goalkeeper Jussi Jääskeläinen kept the visitors in the crippled going into half-time, although Fabrice Muamba did shoot wide from eight yards out merely before the whistle. The United breakthrough came 15 minutes into the second half, when referee Rob Styles awarded the home side a penalty, despite Jlloyd Samuel ‘s challenge on Cristiano Ronaldo appearing to have been a fair one ; Ronaldo converted the penalty himself. In the 71st hour, Paul Scholes came on for Anderson to make his 400th Premier League appearance, while Carlos Tevez was replaced by Wayne Rooney. not long afterwards, Rooney doubled the Reds ‘ star and secured the win with an unstoppable shot after being played in by a Ronaldo back-heel. [ 26 ] The Red Devils then made the inadequate trip up to Ewood Park the following weekend to take on Blackburn Rovers. Wayne Rooney declared himself fit after having picked up a pink against Aalborg BK in wednesday, and was the orchestrator of most of United ‘s attacks, including the one that led to the opening goal. Rooney took the return pass from his own short-change corner before swinging the musket ball into the Blackburn punishment area, where it was met by the question of Wes Brown and passed between the erect and the musician who was supposed to be guarding it. The Blackburn players believed that the goal should not have been allowed to stand, as Nemanja Vidić impeded goalkeeper Jason Brown from getting to the ball, but referee Steve Bennett allowed it to stand. Rooney himself scored United ‘s irregular goal halfway through the second base half, latching on to Cristiano Ronaldo ‘s pull-back and curling it past Brown from 12 yards. Carlos Tevez hit the post with a recently hit, but the score remained at 2–0 at full-time, pushing United up the table to sixth place. [ 27 ] After a week off for international duty, United returned to action on 18 October with a home match against West Bromwich Albion. The Baggies started off in a disciplined fashion, but were unable to prevent the in-form Wayne Rooney from putting the ball in the back of the net after 21 minutes. however, the finish was ruled out by referee Mark Halsey after he deemed Rooney to have pushed a West Brom defender to the floor before shooting past Scott Carson. Neither team found the back of the net again before half-time, but Rooney soon scored a legal goal ten minutes into the second half, picking up a long through bye from Berbatov out on the left wing before cutting back into the penalty area and firing a near-post stroke through Ryan Donk ‘s leg and past the goalkeeper. The home side then scored two goals in agile succession, Ronaldo shooting through Carson ‘s leg for the first before Berbatov stabbed home his first League goal for United following a cross from substitute Nani. Nani himself then added a fourthly goal for the Red Devils in the 90th minute, celebrating in his common flamboyant expressive style. The acquire propelled United improving to 4th place in the Premier League mesa, the beginning time they had been in the crown four that season. [ 28 ] A trip to Goodison Park to play Everton followed on 25 October, with Alex Ferguson preferring to stick with Rooney and Berbatov up front, leaving Tevez on the bench. United had the run of the play in the inaugural half, and after Darren Fletcher scored from a deep move into the box in the 22nd moment, they began to treat the match as slightly of an exhibition, with Everton hardly able to get a look in. however, United were unable to add to their reckoning and Everton came binding with added decide after the interval. United were rocked by Everton ‘s new-found animalism, and the Liverpudlians equalised in the 66th hour through Marouane Fellaini, who headed home Phil Neville ‘s cross after an uncharacteristic lapse in assiduity from Rio Ferdinand. Ferdinand was again at demerit a minute later, but Edwin van five hundred Sar saved his blushes by saving from Yakubu in a one-on-one position. Wayne Rooney was booked former for inciting the fans, and he was immediately substituted. The match finished at 1–1, a result that United will look on as two points dropped, but deserved for not having killed the game off earlier. [ 29 ] On 29 October, United hosted West Ham United. Unlike other opposing teams that season, the Hammers struggled to cope with the tempo set by the home side from the discussion “ go ”, and Dimitar Berbatov about opened the score after just two minutes, lone to see his stroke deflected over by Matthew Upson. The scoresheet did not remain space for much longer, however, as Nani received the ball on the leave wing after United had spent a prolong enchantment inside the West Ham box, before crossing for Ronaldo who scored with a left-footed shot to the far post. Ronaldo doubled his run 15 minutes late, although he would have found it more difficult to miss the target after Berbatov got past James Collins with a fantastic while of skill on the finish line. United continued to threaten Robert Green in the West Ham goal, but they did not add to their match. [ 30 ] United went into their 1 November match at home to Premier League newcomers Hull City two points behind their visitors in the league table, a position they would not have expected to find themselves in at the start of the season. Nevertheless, the Red Devils took the game to the Tigers from the kick-off, with Ronaldo opening the score after barely three minutes. Laying the musket ball off to Dimitar Berbatov, the Portuguese controlled the Bulgarian ‘s return ball 12 yards from goal before sweeping the ball in off the mail with his left foot. Hull equalised in the 23rd minute, but Michael Carrick restored United ‘s lead on the half-hour, besides shooting in off the mail with his leave infantry. Ronaldo extended the star barely before half-time, heading in from Nani ‘s corner. The narrative after half-time was much the same, as Nemanja Vidić added a one-fourth from a corner that never should have reached him. however, Hull responded through Bernard Mendy, whose lob over Edwin van five hundred Sar crossed the line before Vidić could hook it away. They opened the crippled up again in the 82nd moment, with Geovanni converting a punishment awarded after Rio Ferdinand brought Mendy down, but their response came besides late and the match finished 4–3 to United. [ 31 ] Manchester United travelled to Arsenal ‘s Emirates Stadium the play along weekend for a lunchtime kick-off. The match started at a high tempo, with United ‘s players harassing the Arsenal contingent at every opportunity. such harassment led to the first casual of the game, when Manuel Almunia was forced into handling Mikaël Silvestre ‘s underhit backpass with Wayne Rooney bearing down on him. however, the resulting indirect free kick was cleared and Michael Carrick hit the rebound wide. It was Arsenal who opened the score, though, with Samir Nasri ‘s 22nd-minute shoot deflecting off Gary Neville and past Van five hundred Sar. Nasri scored again just after half-time, about bursting the final after being played in by Cesc Fàbregas, while United never truly looked like threatening the Arsenal goal. Towards the end of the crippled, Michael Carrick unintentionally caught Manuel Almunia with his kick as the spanish goalkeeper bravely dropped on a idle ball, resulting in Almunia requiring several minutes of treatment. He attempted to carry on, but was soon replaced by Łukasz Fabiański. Rafael pulled a goal back for United in the final moment, but it was excessively small, excessively deep for the Red Devils who swapped places with Arsenal in the league postpone, dropping second to fourth. [ 32 ] The clubhouse ‘s adjacent repair was a home game against Stoke City on 15 November, the fiftieth anniversary of Alex Ferguson ‘s first appearance in professional football for Queen ‘s Park. Despite being without the hurt Rio Ferdinand, Ryan Giggs and Wayne Rooney, United took the lead precisely three minutes into the equal, with Cristiano Ronaldo hitting a dip and swerving loose kick past Thomas Sørensen in the middle of the Stoke finish for his 100th finish for Manchester United. United ‘s second goal came in stop time at the end of the first half ; Michael Carrick ghosted through the Stoke City defense and, with four defenders in finale proximity, hit a knock-down left-footed shot into the top corner of the net. Just minutes into the irregular half, United scored their third finish after Dimitar Berbatov controlled Carlos Tevez ‘s cross with the outside of his foot before volleying family. In the 84th moment, Danny Welbeck picked up the ball on the edge of the center circle in Stoke ‘s half, played a one-two with Manucho and unleashed a swerving shot from 30 yards for his first Manchester United finish in his Premier League debut for the club. Five minutes late, Ronaldo scored from another absolve kick to round off a 5–0 victory for the home english. The leave moved United up to third base place. [ 33 ] United then travelled to Villa Park to play Aston Villa on 22 November. The bind ended a scoreless pull, the first base time the Reds had failed to score a goal in a Premier League game since November 2007. United ‘s adjacent match took them crosstown to City of Manchester Stadium to play Manchester City on 30 November. The alone finish of the match came to United when a Michael Carrick photograph rebounded off City keeper Joe Hart and was put in the back of the net by Wayne Rooney, giving him his 100th baseball club goal and his 83rd at United. With the victory United increased their win entire in the Manchester bowler hat to 60 as compared to City ‘s 41. Six days late, United faced Sunderland at home, with United winning thanks to Nemanja Vidić ‘s goal in the first moment of moment half blockage clock. United ‘s next match was against Tottenham Hotspur at White Hart Lane on 13 December. Despite chances for both sides, Spurs keeper Heurelho Gomes and Edwin van five hundred Sar kept clean sheets for both sides. United then closed out the year with 1–0 wins over Stoke City at Britannia Stadium on 26 December and at home against Middlesbrough three days late, with Carlos Tevez scoring against Stoke and Dimitar Berbatov scoring against Boro. United started 2009 with a crucial 3–0 winnings over Chelsea, putting them 1 point behind Chelsea and 5 points behind Liverpool, but they did have two games in hand. Ferguson surprised the crowd by starting Ryan Giggs ahead of Michael Carrick in cardinal midfield, and the move paid off as Giggs was instrumental in the gain. Both teams attacked in the first half, but forced few saves from either goalkeeper for the unfold 30 minutes. In the 45th minute Wayne Rooney nudged the ball onto the peddle from a corner gripe, before sauntering off, allowing Ryan Giggs to stroll casually over as if he was supposed to take the corner all along. then, as Chelsea ‘s players arranged themselves, presuming the musket ball to be out of act, Giggs crossed to Ronaldo who headed the ball home. however, the goal was disallowed. United retook the corner and scored through Berbatov ‘s flick-on to Vidić who headed it in. Rooney stabbed the ball into the net after 63 minutes from a Patrice Evra thwart and a Ronaldo backheel, while Berbatov completed the rout in the 86th infinitesimal from a cross from a Ronaldo free gripe. [ 34 ] Following the winnings over Chelsea, United ‘s future game was at home to Wigan. Rooney scored from less than six yards after fair 54 seconds on a cross from Ronaldo, but hobbled off with a hamstring injury fair a few minutes belated. Tevez, who replaced Rooney, had a effective casual after 20 minutes, rounding Chris Kirkland in the Wigan internet, but his touch was excessively heavy and he failed to convert the gamble. Wigan improved after the black begin, but neither side could find a goal and the match ended 1–0 to United. With this result, United climbed to 2nd ( their highest position of the season then far ) above Chelsea. They remained 2 points behind Liverpool, but having played one game fewer than the Merseysiders. [ 35 ] The Reds then travelled the short distance to Bolton ‘s Reebok Stadium on 17 January. Both sides remained scoreless after 89 minutes, with Bolton keeper Jussi Jääskeläinen making several terrific saves and Van der Sar challenged by a Fabrice Muamba long-range shooting. finally, Berbatov headed in a Tevez cross in the 90th minute. With the win, United extended their clean sheet record to 10, tying a record set by Chelsea in the 2004–05 season. besides with the victory, United gained three points, enough to reach the top spot of the Premier League board. This was the first prison term United had returned to the top spot since winning the 2007–08 Premier League championship on 11 May 2008. [ 36 ] After a week off for domestic cup involvements, United returned to league action on 27 January with an away repair at West Bromwich Albion. Despite having several players out through injury, Alex Ferguson was able to name a reasonably potent starting eleven, including a fit-again Rio Ferdinand, starting his first match since the 2008 FIFA Club World Cup Final in December. Both sides started the meet in an attack mentality, with United posing the slightly greater threat, and it was they who opened the seduce in the 22nd minute through Dimitar Berbatov ; the Bulgarian exchanged passes with Michael Carrick before firing across Scott Carson into the army for the liberation of rwanda corner of the West Brom goal. shortly before half-time, the Baggies were reduced to ten men when Paul Robinson was shown a straight red poster for an innocuous-looking foul on Park Ji-sung. Their misery was compounded with about the end kick of the half as Carson failed to hang on to a Ryan Giggs free kick, dropping the ball at the feet of Carlos Tevez, who lashed it home with his entrust foot. Nemanja Vidić added a third base on the hour scar with a header from Giggs ‘ corner, before Giggs set up another for Cristiano Ronaldo five minutes later. Ronaldo completed the score in the 73rd minute, shooting through Carson ‘s leg after being put through by Berbatov, despite the West Brom players ‘ protests that both Berbatov and Ronaldo had been offside during the build-up to the goal. The gain took United three points clear of Liverpool, who were not to play until the come day, but the fact that they kept a clean sheet meant that they set a modern Premier League record for consecutive fairly sheets – with 11 – while Edwin van five hundred Sar had not conceded in 1,032 minutes of football, surpassing Petr Čech ‘s record of 1,025 minutes, set during the 2003–04 season. [ 37 ] After setting the Premier League clean sail record against West Brom, Edwin van five hundred Sar went into the follow bet on against Everton knowing that if he kept the Toffees off the scoresheet for 72 minutes, he would besides set a new blank tabloid criminal record for the entire English league – the previous record, set by Steve Death of Reading in 1979, stood at 1,104 minutes. In the end, he continued his flawless record for the stallion 90 minutes as United recorded another 1–0 win. The first half was largely dominated by United, who saw strikes from Park Ji-sung and Carlos Tevez stopped by goalkeeper Tim Howard, while Cristiano Ronaldo hit the inside of the post with Howard beat. The breakthrough came at the end of the first half, as Michael Carrick made his means into the box before being tripped by Mikel Arteta. Carrick attempted to stay on his feet, but when United were unable to gain an advantage, referee Mark Halsey pointed to the penalty spot ; Ronaldo converted the resulting penalty kick to open the score. During the second half, Carrick looked to have won another penalty for United when he was knocked to the ground by Joleon Lescott, but Halsey turned away the Red Devils ‘ appeals. Van five hundred Sar was forced into a save from a 30-yard exempt kick by Arteta on the hour bell ringer, but the shot never looked to be seriously troubling the goalkeeper. United continued to hold on for another 1–0 acquire to take them five points ahead of Liverpool and Chelsea, who were to play each other the follow sidereal day. [ 38 ] Liverpool won the match 2–0 with two late goals from Fernando Torres, which closed the gap between themselves and United to two points, although they had now played one more meet than United. [ 39 ] Liverpool returned to the lead of the mesa with a 3–2 aside win over Portsmouth on 7 February, but they remained there for less than 24 hours as United recorded a 1–0 away win over West Ham to restore their two-point conduct. West Ham came into the game off the back of a six-game unbeaten run, and it was they who had the better of the early chances ; first, Lucas Neill had a shot from the edge of the area stopped by Edwin van five hundred Sar, who then denied Carlton Cole as the English striker attempted to chip him from just inside the box. United settled into their characteristic pass cycle, but the two sides went into half-time still at 0–0. Halfway through the second base half, Ryan Giggs picked up a pass from Paul Scholes out on the leave wing. He then took the ball round a sliding Carlton Cole and cut into the box, before curling a shoot through a pin down col and past Robert Green ‘s outstretched left hand for the first finish of the game. The goal meant that Giggs maintained his record of having scored in every season of the Premier League since its origin. Cristiano Ronaldo was denied a penalty in the dying minutes of the game after he was tripped by Lucas Neill, and then he smashed a free kick into the chest of drawers of Scott Parker, but there were no far goals and United returned to the top of the table. [ 40 ] As a resultant role of their qualification for the 2008 UEFA Super Cup, United ‘s home repair against Fulham, which was primitively scheduled for the weekend of 30/31 August 2008, was finally played on 18 February 2009. United went into the match, their game in hired hand over second-placed Liverpool, two points ahead of the Merseysiders and could extend their lead to five points with a acquire over Fulham. With this in beware, the Red Devils started well, and opened the score in the 12th hour through Paul Scholes ; Michael Carrick picked out Scholes good outside the sphere with a pinpoint corner, and the seasoned midfielder volleyed the ball goalwards. Fulham goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer got down to stop the shot, but the spin and pace on the ball took it over the line. Carlos Tevez had a goal ruled out for offside soon after, before a Dimitar Berbatov hit was blocked on the line by Aaron Hughes, but the Bulgarian did end up doubling United ‘s tally soon before the half-hour, stealing in ahead of Schwarzer to convert John O’Shea ‘s squarely cross. Berbatov had the testis in the net again on the stroke of half-time, but he was deemed to have been offside in the build-up. Wayne Rooney, returning from a seven-game absence due to a hamstring injury, was introduced on the hour, and scored with his beginning contact, poking home Park Ji-sung ‘s misdirected shoot across goal. Bobby Zamora came close to ending United ‘s prevail of clean sheets in the closing stages, but his stroke went narrowly wide and United held on to win 3–0. [ 41 ] The pursue weekend presented United with an opportunity to stretch their lead over Liverpool to eight points, as United played against Blackburn Rovers on the Saturday, while Liverpool would not play Manchester City until the Sunday. With one eye on the Champions League round off of 16 tie against Internazionale the follow Tuesday, Alex Ferguson rested Edwin van five hundred Sar and Nemanja Vidić, and played Tomasz Kuszczak and Jonny Evans in their stead. Despite the defensive reorganization, United had the better of the early chances, with both Scholes and Ronaldo going close before Nani put Wayne Rooney through for the first goal in the 23rd moment. The portuguese winger curled a through-pass round the back of the Blackburn defense, and although Ryan Nelsen got a toe to the ball, it was not enough to take it away from Rooney, who poked it past Paul Robinson in the Blackburn finish. however, the tip only lasted nine minutes, as Blackburn became the foremost team in more than 22 hours of football ( 1,334 minutes ) to breach the Manchester United refutation ; after catching Nani in possession, André Ooijer played a through ball to Roque Santa Cruz, who took the testis round the sliding Rio Ferdinand and Tomasz Kuszczak and shot home from a narrowing slant. Jonny Evans looked to have restored United ‘s lead on the stroke of half-time, but his header was ruled out after the reviewer deemed Cristiano Ronaldo to have impeded Ryan Nelsen. Nelsen himself about gave Blackburn the lead curtly after the break, but his effort came back off the position, and the follow-up hit from El Hadji Diouf was saved by Kuszczak. In the end, though, it was United who regained the head in the sixtieth minute ; the Red Devils were awarded a free kick wide-eyed to the leave of the penalty area, and, as common, Cristiano Ronaldo stepped up to take it. Despite it looking like the angle was besides minute to strike at goal, the FIFA World Player of the Year hit a characteristic dip dart over the wall and over the head of Paul Robinson to make the score 2–1. The scoreline remained the same for the next half-hour, and although it looked like Morten Gamst Pedersen may have been pulled back by Rafael in the penalty area recently in the game, the referee deemed it not to be a foul and United held on for the win. [ 42 ] United ‘s next game was played away against Newcastle United. Van five hundred Sar was back in finish, having missed the previous two games ( the League game against Blackburn and the League Cup Final against Tottenham Hotspur ). however, his clean sheet record last came to an end after good 9 minutes as Peter Løvenkrands opened the score for Newcastle. Obafemi Martins should have put Newcastle 2–0 up, but he slid his shoot wide and was made to pay as Wayne Rooney slotted home midway through the beginning half, which ended 1–1. The plot was slightly marred by two questionable challenges, late in the first half, by Newcastle ‘s Steven Taylor, who first gear appeared to hit Cristiano Ronaldo with his sleeve and then, moments late, slid a dangerous tackle in on Michael Carrick. however, despite some anger from players such as Rio Ferdinand and Wayne Rooney, Taylor only received a unmarried yellow card. The second gear half started brilliantly, and Dimitar Berbatov scored what proved to be the achiever barely before the hour commemorate after Taylor mis-hit a back-pass. Neither team could manage another finish and the plot ended 2–1 to Manchester United. [ 43 ] The Reds ‘ adjacent Premier League meet saw the visit of Liverpool to Old Trafford which brought the two main title contenders neck and neck. United started the match brilliantly and took the lead on 23 minutes when Park Ji-sung was brought down in the penalty area by Pepe Reina and referee Alan Wiley pointed to the touch, where Cristiano Ronaldo converted the penalty kick to Reina ‘s proper. The jumper cable only lasted five minutes, however, as Nemanja Vidić failed to deal with a farseeing ball from Liverpool ‘s Martin Škrtel and Fernando Torres punished his error with a cool coating by United goalkeeper Edwin van five hundred Sar. The match went from regretful to worse for the hosts just before the break when Patrice Evra tripped Steven Gerrard in the penalty area and Gerrard scored the resulting blot kick. After the better, United drove at Liverpool in an try to find an equalizer, but Vidić was sent off after hauling down Gerrard on the edge of the punishment area and Fábio Aurélio scored the free complain to give Liverpool a 3–1 conduct. In wound time, Andrea Dossena compounded United ‘s misery by chipping Van five hundred Sar to score Liverpool ‘s fourth and close the gap at the circus tent of the table to four points. [ 44 ] United suffered a far reverse when they lost their future League meet against Fulham 2–0 at Craven Cottage, seeing the team ‘s jumper cable in the league cut to alone a point. Paul Scholes was sent off in the 18th moment for handling the ball on the goal-line and Danny Murphy scored the resulting penalty. Despite strong blackmail from United in the second half, following an unconvincing first-half expose, Zoltán Gera scored a second goal for Fulham to seal the catch. Wayne Rooney was besides dismissed for two bookable offences and would subsequently miss the adjacent match. This was the first time since 2005 that United had lost two consecutive league games. [ 45 ] On 5 April, after an international fail, United defeated Aston Villa 3–2 at home. Cristiano Ronaldo scored an early first-half finish to give United the lead, only for John Carew and Gabriel Agbonlahor to put Villa 2–1 in front. With United looking to avoid a third-straight Premier League kill for the beginning time in four years, Ronaldo scored an equalizer on 80 minutes to set up a delirious finale to the match. A belated injury clock time winner by debutant Federico Macheda won the match for United and took them back to the top of the League after Liverpool had briefly led, having beaten Fulham 1–0 the day before. [ 46 ] The Reds ‘ next game was aside to a struggling Sunderland, which they won 2–1 thanks to another Federico Macheda goal. United took the lead through Paul Scholes ‘ looping header from Wayne Rooney ‘s cross on 19 minutes but Sunderland equalised on 55 minutes through Kenwyne Jones ‘ bundled finish. United had created a few dear chances to double their lead before Sunderland ‘s goal, with Scholes and Rooney both shooting narrowly wide. however, with Sunderland trying to hold-on to a precious item, Macheda was introduced and within seconds had put United ahead. Michael Carrick had taken a stroke which looked to be going wide, but Macheda was in the box, alongside other players, and he flicked his impart foot towards the ball, directing it into Craig Gordon ‘s bottom corner to give United the win and put them back to the top of the postpone again. [ 47 ] Liverpool ‘s 4–4 draw with Arsenal on 22 April returned the Merseysiders to the top of the board, but only on goal dispute, with United having two games in hand on their rivals. United had the opportunity, 24 hours late, to retake top spot with a home game against Portsmouth. United – who picked a team containing nine changes from the one that lost to Everton in the FA Cup semi-final – did not start identical well and Portsmouth took the early possession, but following a good through-ball from Anderson, Ryan Giggs crossed for Wayne Rooney to score past England goalkeeper, David James to put United 1–0 up after merely nine minutes. The remainder of the foremost half see United waste a number of chances, the best of which being a goal-line clearance from a John O’Shea header. Portsmouth improved in the second half, although Edwin van five hundred Sar was rarely disruptive. It took until the 82nd hour for utility Michael Carrick to score from a perfect through-ball from Paul Scholes, who was playing his 600th game for United. The moment goal efficaciously killed the game and United finished comfortable 2–0 winners, taking them three points ahead of Liverpool. [ 48 ] United welcomed the visit of Tottenham Hotspur to Old Trafford for their next game, knowing that they had slipped down to second in the league on goal difference after Liverpool had beaten Hull City earlier in the day. What the Reds did n’t welcome, however, was being 2–0 down at half-time, with Darren Bent and Luka Modrić having taken advantage of two showings of poor defend by United. Bent scored from close image fair before the half-hour mark, finishing off a Vedran Ćorluka cross, having got the better of Rio Ferdinand. Within two minutes, Modrić had doubled Spurs ‘ lead, scoring close in after Aaron Lennon ‘s cross had beaten Ferdinand. After an uncharacteristically tone down first half from United ‘s position, they started the second well, with Carlos Tevez replacing Nani during the interval. United got a goal back twelve minutes after the resume, via a controversial penalty. Michael Carrick was fed through into the box, entirely to be brought down by Heurelho Gomes. Replays showed that Gomes actually touched the ball but despite the keeper ‘s protests, referee Howard Webb pointed to the spot. Cristiano Ronaldo stepped up and dispatched the punishment down the center of the goal. Ten minutes later, Wayne Rooney equalised in a less arguable fashion, hitting in a shoot at Gomes ‘ near post after Dimitar Berbatov and Rafael had combined well. only one moment after equalising, United were ahead. Rooney created some space down the left wing and crossed the ball in to find Ronaldo ‘s diving header. The rejoinder looked to be complete three minutes late when United went 4–2 up, with Rooney ‘s shot only equitable crossing the occupation despite Jonathan Woodgate trying his best to keep it out with his torso. The Reds ‘ attack had stunned Tottenham and to add diss to injury, ex-Spurs player Berbatov scored United ‘s fifth eight minutes after Rooney ‘s second. The Bulgarian ‘s initial header was saved by Gomes but he followed it up and poked the ball in with his boot. A very significant rejoinder, shadowing United ‘s 5–3 turnaround against the same team in 2001, put them three points ahead of Liverpool with five games left. [ 49 ] Middlesbrough were up next for United, at the Riverside. A normally catchy bet on for the Reds ended with a comfortable 2–0 away acquire, thanks to goals either side of half-time. Ryan Giggs opened the scoring with his first goal since being named as PFA Player of the Year, and his 98th Premier League finish in full. Giggs received the ball from Nemanja Vidić, steadied himself, and slotted it past Brad Jones ‘ leave hand from the edge of the area with 25 minutes played. United created a handful of chances in the remainder of the inaugural half but none worried Boro ‘s australian goalkeeper. Park Ji-sung doubled the Reds ‘ contribute though soon after half-time. Giggs and Federico Macheda combined with a one-two before Wayne Rooney threaded a communicate through the Boro defense to find Park wonderfully. Park then settled the game with a decisive hit low into the bed corner. [ 50 ] It was bowler hat day next up for United as Manchester City made the brusque trip to Old Trafford. Again, Liverpool were clear of the table on finish dispute with United having two games in hired hand. The match was behind and had few shots on target from either slope, although United ran out 2–0 winners, with both goals coming in the first base half. Cristiano Ronaldo got United ‘s first with a debar free kick back after City ‘s Stephen Ireland had fouled Dimitar Berbatov 25 yards out. On the throw of half-time, Carlos Tevez got United ‘s second, hitting the station on the way, after Berbatov had brilliantly controlled Darren Fletcher ‘s long ball before setting-up Tevez just outside the box. This was Tevez ‘s first league goal of the temper at Old Trafford. The second half was fairly forgettable, with few points of note. Robinho blazed well broad from a good stead for City, while Tevez hit the post from a matter of inches recently on. The only other talking period was the angry reaction of Ronaldo to being substituted with over half an hour to play. The result left United needing just four points from their concluding three games to win a third straight championship. [ 51 ] United gained three of those points away to Wigan three days belated, when Michael Carrick ‘s left-footed shot found the back of the net in the eighty-sixth minute. Wigan had about gone in front within 90 seconds of the start, when Antonio Valencia was fairly through, but shoot wide of the finish. United then missed two chances in a minute when both Carrick and Wayne Rooney could not get the ball on target. Hugo Rodallega opened the marking for Wigan in the 28th moment when he hit a guess past Edwin avant-garde five hundred Sar at the approximate position. By half time, United had not managed a single shoot on target, despite heavily dominating the self-control. Carlos Tevez was brought on for Anderson early in the second half and did not disappoint, scoring a goal with a back-heeled parry guess from Michael Carrick equitable three minutes after coming on. not satisfied with a guide, United continued to press and Carrick ‘s late nip through traffic put the Red Devils within one point of sealing the Premier League entitle, being now six points clear of second-placed Liverpool with two games to go, although the Merseysiders had a better goal dispute and both teams now having the lapp number of matches left. [ 52 ] On 16 May, United successfully defended their Premier League title for the second gear year running with a 0–0 draw at home to Arsenal. Arsenal took the game to United, although fighting lone for pride as their league position was already secured, and if it were not for some good champion by United, they could have taken the lead. Wayne Rooney could have put United ahead, but his first-half header went wide of Łukasz Fabiański ‘s post. The Reds had a well-worked Park Ji-sung finish disallowed for an incorrect offside subsequently in the second half. Park had slotted the ball into an empty web after playing a one-two with Cristiano Ronaldo, but Ronaldo was judged to have been ahead of the last defender when Park played the ball through. When the concluding whistle blow, the United players, director and backroom staff celebrated happily, having been laureled champions of England for the eighteenth time. [ 1 ] United ‘s concluding game of the Premier League, played on 24 May, was off to Hull. It did not matter if United lost, as they had already been crowned champions of England just less than a week in the first place. Hull escaped delegating thanks to Newcastle ‘s loss at Aston Villa and Middlesbrough ‘s get the better of to West Ham. Darron Gibson ‘s 20-yard shot was enough to give United victory in a 1–0 gain.
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Matches [edit ]
Final league table [edit ]
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
( C ) Champion
Notes: source : Premier League Rules for classification : 1 ) points ; 2 ) goal remainder ; 3 ) phone number of goals scored.ChampionNotes :
- a b Since both finalists of the FA Cup ( Chelsea and Everton ) and the League Cup winners ( Manchester United ) qualified for the European competitions based on their league position, the sixth-placed team ( Aston Villa ) received a berth in the Europa League play-off orotund and the seventh-placed team ( Fulham ) received a moor in the Europa League third base qualifying round .
FA Cup [edit ]
Manchester United entered the FA Cup at the Third Round stage, and were paired with Southampton at the draw on 30 November 2008. The match was played at St Mary ‘s stadium on 4 January 2009. [ 53 ] The draw for the Fourth Round was held immediately before the match, and United were given the expectation of a home draw against Tottenham Hotspur should they overcome Southampton. [ 54 ] As it turned out, United ran out 3–0 winners, Danny Welbeck opening the score in the twentieth hour of his FA Cup debut. Southampton then gave themselves fiddling casual of getting back into the crippled when their 19-year-old striker Matthew Paterson was sent off eight minutes before half-time for a gamey challenge on Nemanja Vidić. shortly after the interval, United were awarded a free kick, from which David McGoldrick was adjudged to have handled the ball in the wall. Match referee Mike Riley immediately awarded a penalty, which Nani converted to double United ‘s jumper cable. The Red Devils then continued to dominate the equal, introducing Rodrigo Possebon, Darron Gibson and Wayne Rooney halfway through the one-half. The latter two then combined with nine minutes left, with Rooney cutting the ball back for Gibson to smash the ball into the back of the net. [ 55 ] The Fourth Round was played at Old Trafford on 24 January 2009. due to United ‘s defensive injury crisis, Alex Ferguson had to call young defenders Fábio, Richard Eckersley and James Chester into the first team squad for the match, with Fábio starting at left back. The bedraggled nature of the United defense mechanism showed as Tottenham took an early lead through a glancing header from Roman Pavlyuchenko. however, United soon took the enterprise back as Carlos Tevez rattled the bar before forcing Spurs ‘keeper Ben Alnwick into a automatic save, while Danny Welbeck was alone denied by a last-ditch block from Chris Gunter after dancing past three defenders. The score was turned on its principal concisely after the half-hour tag, when the home side hit a two-goal salvo in as many minutes. In the 35th minute, Michael Carrick pulled the ball back to Paul Scholes on the edge of the box from a corner, and the midfielder ‘s guess was deflected off Tom Huddlestone past a flat-footed Ben Alnwick. then, a minute late, Carrick was the provider for United ‘s second goal as he played Berbatov through the middle and the Bulgarian fired past Alnwick from the edge of the area. early in the second gear half, United lost Fábio to injury and he was replaced by boyfriend debutant Richard Eckersley. United continued to apply pressure to the Spurs defense, but there were no foster goals and the Red Devils advanced to the Fifth Round of the rival. [ 56 ] The Fifth Round draw was held on 25 January 2009, and United were drawn against either Derby County or Nottingham Forest. [ 57 ] The replay between Derby and Forest was played on 4 February, and ended with Derby winning 3–2 to set up a third base cup clash between Derby and United in the distance of two months. [ 58 ] United dominated the match, which was played on 15 February, from the kick-off, as the Derby goal was peppered with shots from the beginning. Their honor for their dominance came shortly before the half-hour ; the ball was worked across the front of the penalty area to Nani, who cut back inside and curled a film past Stephen Bywater for the opening goal. United doubled their contribute curtly before half-time, when they were awarded a free kick within the shooting range of Cristiano Ronaldo ; the United winger crashed the dislodge kick into the defensive wall, and the ball ricocheted to Darron Gibson – who had broken from the wall – and the Irish international fired a low shot into the bottom corner of the final. The scoring continued after the break, Ronaldo heading home Ryan Giggs ‘ right-sided corner kick three minutes into the second half. John O’Shea and Danny Welbeck were brought on for Patrice Evra and Park Ji-sung in the fifty-fifth minute. however, no preferably than the substitution had been made, Derby had pulled a goal binding ; Miles Addison headed home a Kris Commons cross after a quickly taken rid kick by Robbie Savage. Despite a deep revival from Derby, it was United who had the concluding bible, as Danny Welbeck rounded off some clean interplay between Ryan Giggs and Darren Fletcher with a curling shot by Bywater to make the final mark 4–1 to United. [ 59 ] immediately after the pit against Derby, the Sixth Round pull back handed United an away tie with Swansea City or Fulham. [ 60 ] The replay between Swansea and Fulham was played on 24 February, with Fulham coming back from a finish down to win 2–1 and set United up with a trip to Craven Cottage on 7 March. [ 61 ] United ran out comfortable 4–0 winners in the Six Round Proper at Fulham. Two first-half goals from Carlos Tevez followed by second-half goals from Wayne Rooney and Park Ji-sung ensured that United qualified for a read twenty-sixth FA Cup semi-final appearance. [ 62 ] United drew Everton in the semi-finals to be played at Wembley Stadium on 19 April. [ 63 ] United fell at the semi-final stage of the FA Cup for the first fourth dimension under Alex Ferguson as they lost on penalties to Everton following a 0–0 draw. Ferguson came in for some criticism in the press following a team survival sheared of many first-team regulars – a situation he later blamed on the poor people department of state of the Wembley pitch. After a fairly forgettable game, albeit one which United dominated without creating besides many goalscoring opportunities, Dimitar Berbatov and Rio Ferdinand both had their penalties saved by early United goalkeeper, Tim Howard. Despite a penalty miss from Tim Cahill, Everton ran out 4–2 winners on penalties and United ‘s quest for five trophies was at an end .
League Cup [edit ]
The draw for the League Cup ‘s Third Round paired Manchester United with Middlesbrough. The catch was played at Old Trafford on 23 September 2008, [ 64 ] and resulted in a 3–1 acquire for the home side, who gave debuts to three young players ; Ben Amos, Danny Welbeck and Manucho. In his inaugural start for the clubhouse since returning from injury, Cristiano Ronaldo opened the score in the 25th hour, heading home Ryan Giggs ‘ corner. Adam Johnson equalised for Middlesbrough ten minutes into the second half, but in the 66th infinitesimal, Emanuel Pogatetz was sent off for a serious dirty on Rodrigo Possebon, which left the brazilian ask drawn-out discussion before being replaced by Darron Gibson. The disparity in the teams ‘ numbers meant that another United goal was much inevitable, and it came in the 79th moment via Ryan Giggs. The Welshman ‘s finish lifted him into 10th in the club ‘s all-time list of goalscorers. Because of Possebon ‘s injury, a total of nine minutes of injury time were played, and, in the fifth of the nine, Nani added a one-third goal for United, securing their passage into the Fourth Round of the contest. [ 65 ] The Fourth Round draw paired United with Queens Park Rangers, with the match to be played at Old Trafford on 11 November 2008. [ 66 ] Alex Ferguson rested many of his first choice players for the couple, while Rodrigo Possebon besides made his return to first team action following his wound in the previous round. United had the majority of the possession during the game, but misplaced passes from midfield let them down at the final hurdle on occasion. Park Ji-sung about scored the unfold goal on the hour stigmatize, but his 30-yard feat rattled the carpentry. It took until the 73rd infinitesimal for QPR to have their first try on goal, but it amounted to nothing and, minutes belated, Danny Welbeck was brought down in the box by Peter Ramage. Carlos Tevez stepped up to take the punishment, sending goalkeeper Radek Černý the amiss way to open the seduce. QPR ‘s Samuel Di Carmine had a goal correctly ruled out for offside in the close up stages and United managed to hang on and advance to the last eight of the competition. [ 67 ] The absorb for the Fifth Round of the League Cup took station on 15 November 2008, and United were drawn at home to Blackburn Rovers, [ 68 ] with the couple to be played on 3 December 2008. As common, Alex Ferguson rested many of his bigger names, opting for a mixture of youth and experience for the game. The equal started on a fairly even keel, with Blackburn defender Stephen Warnock testing goalkeeper Ben Foster early on. The meet soon swung back the other way, but it took until the 35th minute for United to get on the scoresheet ; Ryan Giggs sent over a cross, and Carlos Tevez outwit Aaron Mokoena to the ball to head home. Tevez then linked up with Nani for the Portuguese winger to blast the ball past Paul Robinson for United ‘s second base in the fortieth minute. Blackburn pulled a goal back curtly after half-time through Benni McCarthy, only for Tevez to double his personal total from the penalty spot after he had been brought down by André Ooijer in the box in the fiftieth minute. Tevez ‘s hat-trick came in the 54th moment, as he rounded off a brilliant team finish, orchestrated by Ryan Giggs and Anderson. Blackburn attempted to make a proper game of it as the meet entered its final examination ten-spot minutes, pulling two goals back through Matt Derbyshire and another one from Benni McCarthy, but a fourth goal for Tevez sealed a 5–3 winnings for United in the fourth minute of wound meter, as he lashed the testis past Paul Robinson from the border of the punishment area and sent the Red Devils into the League Cup semi-finals. [ 69 ] The semi-final draw, held on 6 December 2008, paired United with Championship side Derby County. As Derby were drawn out of the hat first, they were awarded the opportunity to play the first stage at their Pride Park home. [ 70 ] The first leg was played on 7 January 2009, and Alex Ferguson continued his policy of selecting weakened sides in the League Cup, playing Tomasz Kuszczak in goal, Darron Gibson on the right of midfield and Danny Welbeck up front with Carlos Tevez, while Cristiano Ronaldo and Wayne Rooney were on the bench. Despite there being a gulf of 35 league places between the two sides at the beginning of play, it was Derby who looked more up for the bet on having two shots blocked at abruptly roll in the open stages, before Kris Commons opened the score on the half-hour with a poisonous hit from 25 yards. infelicitous at being a goal down, Ferguson turned to his big guns, Rooney and Ronaldo, just after the hour mark, and the latter hit a free kick back just past the post in the close stages. Rob Hulse about doubled his team ‘s lead concisely before the final whistle, but he could only turn the musket ball over the barricade as it came to him off Kuszczak. [ 71 ] The moment leg was played at Old Trafford two weeks after the first on 20 January 2009. Ferguson kept religion with much of the same team that had lost the inaugural leg, with the exceptions of Ben Foster coming in for Kuszczak in finish, Gary Neville step in for Nemanja Vidić at center binding and Ryan Giggs in station of Paul Scholes in midfield. The first base chance of the bet on fell to Derby ‘s Kris Commons, who drove the ball just wide from long range, but it was Nani who opened the grade for United. The portuguese winger picked up the ball just inside the Derby one-half, pressed on towards the penalty area and hit a dip feat past Roy Carroll into the far side of the goal. A second goal came six minutes later, John O’Shea slotting home after being given enough of time by a poorly-executed offside trap. The score reached 3–0 just after the half-hour cross off, as Carlos Tevez nodded home from stopping point compass after Derby ‘s defense failed to deal with a hybrid from Rafael. United looked to have taken their animal foot off the natural gas after the half-time open frame, and rarely threatened the Derby goal. They used up the third base of their substitutions center through the half, so they were unable to replace Jonny Evans when he picked up an injury later on ; that injury subsequently looked to be a conducive gene when Evans felled Paul Green in the penalty sphere, allowing Giles Barnes to pull a goal back for the Rams from the spot. Substitute Cristiano Ronaldo restored the Red Devils ‘ three-goal lead with a punishment of his own after Carroll had tripped Tevez in the concluding minute, but Barnes had the final read in the game, pulling off a spectacular free kick to make the final score 4–2 to United on the night, and 4–3 on sum. [ 72 ] The consequence sent United through to the concluding, where they would meet Tottenham Hotspur at Wembley Stadium on 1 March 2009, after the London side beat Burnley 6–4 on aggregate. [ 73 ]
final examination [edit ]
The final was played at Wembley Stadium on 1 March. United continued with the policy of playing a concoction of younger, more inexperienced players in the League Cup with older, more feel ones. Wayne Rooney, who had been expected to play, was not in the squad, having been sidelined by a virus and Dimitar Berbatov was not selected to play against his former team. Edwin van five hundred Sar, who had not played any partially in the run up to the Final, was again rested and Ben Foster was selected in goal, ahead of Tomasz Kuszczak. [ 5 ] The game was played at a well tempo and both teams had several chances to score. United started better with both Darron Gibson and Rio Ferdinand going close to opening the score, before Spurs got back into the peer, forcing Foster into the first real save of the game. early in the second half, Danny Welbeck was replaced by Anderson and he helped United take master of the second half, Carlos Tevez good shooting wide after a mis-hit shoot from Jonny Evans. however, Tottenham were not out of the game and Aaron Lennon brought another good deliver from Foster fair a few minutes after Cristiano Ronaldo was gratingly booked for diving in the punishment area. A blastoff, three minutes into stop time from Ronaldo then smashed off the inside of the post, but came out and the game ended 0–0. [ 5 ] extra time was a more quiet affair with few actually beneficial chances, although Darren Bent brought even another good save from Foster and Patrice Evra shoot narrowly over with a copulate of minutes to go. however, extra time besides ended 0–0 and the game went to penalties – for only the second base prison term in League Cup Final history. [ 5 ] United won the mint flip and selected the penalties to be taken at the end where their fans were situated, and besides took the foremost punishment. Ryan Giggs scored the first – though only barely – hitting in off the upright. Spurs ‘ Jamie O’Hara saw his penalty saved by Foster. Carlos Tevez scored his penalty to give United a 2–0 leave, followed by a successful punishment from Vedran Ćorluka for Spurs. Cristiano Ronaldo then slotted his penalty home, past Heurelho Gomes before David Bentley sent his punishment wide-eyed of the goal. This left Anderson to score the victorious penalty, which he duly did and United won their third League Cup Final. [ 5 ] Ben Foster won the man of the Match award – the beginning goalkeeper since Liverpool ‘s Jerzy Dudek in 2003 to win the award .
UEFA Champions League [edit ]
Group phase [edit ]
As the tournament ‘s defend champions, Manchester United automatically qualified for the Champions League group stage as top seeds. This mean that they would avoid other heavyweights such as real Madrid, Barcelona, and Inter Milan in the group stage. The pull was held on 28 August 2008 and United were drawn with two familiar sides, Villarreal ( whom they had drawn in 2005–06 ) and Celtic ( 2006–07 ), and a fresh face in danish side Aalborg BK. Manchester United began their defense of the Champions League title at home to Villarreal, who set out their booth in a defensive manner, managing to hold the european champions to a third base straight scoreless tie between the two teams. Both teams put out attenuate lineups, but it was to United that the first base chance of the game fell. Owen Hargreaves ‘ corner eluded everyone in the box, including the goalkeeper, but Rio Ferdinand could merely scuff the musket ball across finish as he stabbed at it with his right animal foot. Carlos Tevez then had a 25-yard injection saved by Villarreal goalkeeper Diego López, while Park Ji-sung had two penalty claims turned down by german referee Wolfgang Stark. Twenty minutes into the second half, after Guillermo Franco had hit the inside of the post with a brash back-heel, Cristiano Ronaldo made his long-awaited render from injury to ecstatic applause from the Old Trafford push. Ronaldo ‘s arrival seemed to give the United team extra drift, as within minutes he sent Wayne Rooney on a breakaway. The England external squared the ball to Carlos Tevez, but the Argentine was quickly closed down by Diego López and the prospect was missed. The final two properly chances of the game fell to United ; first to Ronaldo, who headed just wide from Nani ‘s leftist cross, and then to Jonny Evans, who headed against the foot of the post after Ronaldo crossed in from the right. [ 74 ] United got their first winnings of the Champions League season on 30 September 2008, when they visited Aalborg BK. The Red Devils were soon on the attack and Dimitar Berbatov could have got his name on the scoresheet after fair six minutes, but he missed the target after Cristiano Ronaldo had charged down goalkeeper Karim Zaza ‘s clearance. Paul Scholes was injured in the 15th moment and was replaced by Ryan Giggs, who immediately played in Wayne Rooney for the foremost goal of the game. The grudge remained at 1–0 until ten minutes after half-time, when Berbatov ultimately put the ball in the back of the net after pouncing on a mistake by Thomas Augustinussen. Tevez was brought on in the 59th moment after Rooney took a knock on his ankle, and introduced fresh attack impulse to the United front argumentation ; he had a goal ruled out for unintentional use of the arm, before breaking into the corner only for his public square musket ball to Ronaldo to be wasted by the Portuguese international. Berbatov put the result beyond doubt in the 79th minute when he acrobatically volleyed Ronaldo ‘s right wing hybridization into the goal. [ 75 ] A home win over fellow Britons Celtic followed on 21 October, all but securing United ‘s progress to the knockout phase of the rival. Celtic were the first to threaten either goal, Aiden McGeady ‘s 20-yard strike being stopped low by Edwin avant-garde five hundred Sar after 11 minutes, but United went ahead on the half-hour via a contentious goal from Dimitar Berbatov. The bulgarian had appeared to be in an offside side when John O’Shea prodded Nani ‘s corner through to him, but it was not spotted by either the referee or his adjunct. There were like complaints about Berbatov ‘s second goal six minutes after half-time, but again they went ignored. Berbatov had been standing in an offside position when Ronaldo struck a long-range free kick, and after Artur Boruc was only able to palm it into the middle of the goal sphere, United ‘s £30 million serviceman was on hand to put it into the bet on of the net. United themselves were the next to question the linesman ‘s decision after a apparently legitimate Rooney goal was ruled out for offside, but Rooney had the ball in the net in the 76th moment to make it 3–0. [ 76 ] The come back game against Celtic was played two weeks later on 5 November. The hatchway exchanges were played at great pace, with Ryan Giggs partnering Carlos Tevez up front, but it was Celtic who got the first finish, as Scott McDonald lobbed Ben Foster ( who was making his Champions League debut ) from 14 yards. United continued to press at the Celtic bet on line, but a combination of misplace concluding balls and steadfast fight by the Scots kept the Reds ( who were playing in blue sky ) off the scoresheet. Dimitar Berbatov and Wayne Rooney entered the crippled during the second half, but when United ultimately got their counterweight, it was neither the bulgarian nor the Englishman who scored it. Cristiano Ronaldo hit a swerving inject from 25 yards, but it was excessively hot for goalkeeper Artur Boruc to handle and Ryan Giggs was on hand to head in from near image. Berbatov about won the plot for United in the concluding moments, but his shoot on the turn went fractionally past the post and the match finished at 1–1. The solution meant that United needed just a point from their final two matches to qualify for the smasher phase. [ 77 ] This necessitate point was gained with another scoreless draw off to Villarreal. United were the first gear to settle, Anderson testing Diego López in the Villarreal goal early on on, before Wayne Rooney had the ball in the internet in the eighth hour, only for his feat to be ruled out for offside. shortly before half-time, an attempt from Cristiano Ronaldo was tipped onto the crossbar by the fingertips of López, leaving the carpentry very. There were few chances in the moment half, the major incident being the sending-off of Joan Capdevila for raising his dot when going into a challenge on Ronaldo. Nevertheless, a 0–0 draw – the fourthly consecutive such result between these two teams – was enough to ensure that both qualified for the smasher phase. United remained top of the table on goal deviation, needing only to better Villarreal ‘s result on Matchday 6 to secure clear descry in the group. [ 78 ] The final match in the group was played on 10 December 2008, with a consume United side facing Aalborg at Old Trafford. Despite players being rested in training for the league game against Tottenham Hotspur the trace Saturday, United wasted no time in getting on the scoresheet. After merely two minutes, Giggs picked up the ball 25 yards from goal, before lobbing the ball over the defensive line with the outside of his left field foot to find Carlos Tevez just onside. The Argentine then placed the testis past Aalborg ‘s goalkeeper, Karim Zaza, with the outside of his right foot to score the quickest Champions League goal of the temper to date. however, a few minutes late, Tevez missed a dim-witted find to double both his and United ‘s reckoning when he side-footed the ball the incorrect side of the left post. From that point on, it looked like United had dropped down a gear, a degree that was emphasised when Aalborg not only equal, but went ahead before half prison term. First, Michael Jakobsen beat Tomasz Kuszczak with a glancing header from Anders Due ‘s 31st-minute free bang, and then Jeppe Curth directed a perfective header past the polish goalkeeper, again from Due ‘s delivery. Paul Scholes and Park Ji-sung replaced Ryan Giggs and Darron Gibson at half fourth dimension, and United equalised seven minutes late, Wayne Rooney toe-poking the ball through Zaza ‘s leg from just inside the penalty sphere. Rooney very about set up a goal for Gary Neville in the 69th moment, but his shoot was blocked by Zaza, much to the United captain ‘s disgust. United continued to make chances, but they were unable to find the net. however, in conjunction with Celtic ‘s 2–0 gain over Villarreal, the result meant that United finished on top of Group E, and besides extended the club ‘s unbeaten run in the Champions League to 19 games, equalling the previous record, set by Bayern Munich and Ajax. [ 79 ]
Pos
Team
Pld
W
D
L
GF
GA
GD
Pts
Qualification
1
Manchester United
6
2
4
0
9
3
+6
10
Advance to knockout phase
2
Villarreal
6
2
3
1
9
7
+2
9
3
Aalborg BK
6
1
3
2
9
14
−5
6
Transfer to UEFA Cup
4
Celtic
6
1
2
3
4
7
−3
5
Knockout phase [edit ]
The pull for the Champions League rung of 16 was made in Nyon, Switzerland, on 19 December 2008. United, as group winners could have faced teams such as real Madrid and Juventus, as both finished second in their respective groups, [ 80 ] but were ultimately paired with Inter Milan, managed by early Chelsea coach José Mourinho. [ 81 ] The first leg of the affiliation was played on 24 February 2009, with the major talking point being the fitness of United defenders Jonny Evans and John O’Shea. The two were pronounced fit an hour before kick-off, but, despite defense being the hot subject before the game, it was the United attack that did most of the talking during the first gear half. Cristiano Ronaldo tested Inter goalkeeper Júlio César with a barren kick before forcing the brazilian into a save from a herculean header in the opening few minutes. United continued to press throughout the half, and Ryan Giggs closely opened the scoring midway through, but he could only hit the ball straight at Júlio César after a sublime turn away from Nelson Rivas. Inter themselves went close shortly before half-time, but Adriano was unable to beat Edwin van five hundred Sar after being played in by Zlatan Ibrahimović. Inter came out impregnable in the second base half, and looked much more of a menace through Esteban Cambiasso, but United continued to search for that baffling away goal to take rear to Old Trafford, and about got it through Park Ji-sung, whose outstretched leg just missed Ronaldo ‘s low pass across the font of goal. Giggs then tricked his way through the Inter defense mechanism on the border of the area, only to be denied by Iván Córdoba ‘s lunge block, before Wayne Rooney – throw on as an 83rd-minute alternate – was denied by the legs of Júlio César. last, in the dying seconds of the game, Ronaldo was felled by Córdoba on the edge of the area, well within his strike range ; he stepped up to take the result free kick himself, but it was well saved by Júlio César, and the match finished as a scoreless draw. [ 82 ] The moment leg was a tight affair at Old Trafford with United knowing conceding an away goal could prove dearly-won and Inter knowing that a score-draw would be enough to send them through. Sir Alex Ferguson had won merely 1 of the former 13 meetings against sides managed by Inter coach, José Mourinho, a statistic that the media focused on heavy in the buildup to the game. however, United nerves were settled early as Nemanja Vidić headed in a Ryan Giggs corner after just four minutes. This led to a dominant period of play for United in terms of possession, although Inter had chances to score – Zlatan Ibrahimović heading against the crossbar and shooting wide from a tight angle. United besides missed chances to go further ahead, John O’Shea shooting excessively close to Júlio César when put through. Nerves were playing a separate as Inter grew into the game and it was the Italians who started strongly in the moment half, lone for Cristiano Ronaldo to head in from a Wayne Rooney center, four minutes into the second half. Inter had chances to score in the moment half, Adriano missing an excellent opportunity as he shot against the inside of the good, and Ibrahimović heading wide from close range. United besides missed chances to score a third base with Giggs and Berbatov both going close, but the score had come to an end and United ran out 2–0 winners on the night and on aggregate. The draw for the quarter- and semi-finals took place on 20 March 2009 and paired United with Porto in the quarter-final, with the home leg inaugural. United were besides put in the lapp side of the draw as Arsenal and Villarreal, meaning they will play either of the teams should they beat Porto. Beating Porto began to look baffling from a early as the one-fourth hour of the foremost stage at Old Trafford when Cristian Rodríguez scored for the visitors. This bet on was played good two days after a dramatic late win for United over Aston Villa in the league, which may have contributed to a lethargic performance from the home team. An awed back pass fifteen minutes into the match gave Wayne Rooney the chance to equalise for United, which he punctually did, but the hapless performance from United continued, with Porto putting United under regular coerce. Despite this, United created a number of chances throughout the bet on and finally took one on 85 minutes when a Rooney flick was buried by Carlos Tevez. This goal looked to have given United an important gain but Mariano González scored in the 89th minute to give Porto two away goals and a 2–2 draw. United started the game at the Estádio do Dragão in impressive fashion and scored an away goal of their own after equitable six minutes when a brawny strike from good short of 40 yards from Cristiano Ronaldo flew past goalkeeper Helton and into the top corner. United continued to press in the beginning 20 minutes and began to dominate the game, although Porto came second into the match as the first half progressed. Cristian Săpunaru forced a dear save from Edwin vanguard five hundred Sar and Bruno Alves headed wide from a free kick back before Nemanja Vidić missed a glorious find merely before half clock, managing to shoot over from four yards out following a corner. The second half began good for both sides, with Dimitar Berbatov shooting at the custodian for United, while Raul Meireles shot over and Hulk saw his free-kick saved by van five hundred Sar. Late on, Lisandro López saw his attempt saved by Van five hundred Sar and Ronaldo saw his low photograph well saved by Helton, but there were to be no more goals for either side and United became the beginning English team to beat Porto in the Estádio do Dragão, winning the tie 3–2 on aggregate. Their semi-final against Arsenal mean that there was a guarantee of an english team in the Champions League Final for the fifth straight year. Manchester United ‘s semi-final first leg was at base to Arsenal. United started well, with Wayne Rooney forcing Arsenal goalkeeper Manuel Almunia into a save within the first two minutes. Further chances for Cristiano Ronaldo and Carlos Tevez followed, before John O’Shea scored after 17 minutes after a corner. United continued to dominate the first base half-hour with Almunia again saving Arsenal from going far behind – the best opportunity being a close-range header from Ronaldo. United ‘s performance in the second half was not ampere estimable. Arsenal passed the ball approximately well, keeping possession but failing to seriously penetrate United ‘s defense. United hit on the break a number of times, Ronaldo hitting a snapshot from over 30 yards that cannoned off the crossbar, and stand-in Ryan Giggs, making his 800th appearance for United ( and his first since becoming PFA Player of the year ) had a goal ruled out for offside. The second goal never came and Arsenal had the death actual find, a header over the crossbar from Nicklas Bendtner. United held on to win 1–0, with the second leg at the Emirates Stadium six days late .
United were 3–0 astir on aggregate after fair 11 minutes at the Emirates, meaning that Arsenal needed four goals to make the final examination. It was the Gunners who started better and dominated the early possession, but with United ‘s beginning attack, Cristiano Ronaldo put in a deep crabbed. Defender Kieran Gibbs slipped at the vital moment and Park Ji-sung slotted the ball into the net after merely eight minutes. Three minutes late, a 40-yard free gripe from Ronaldo beat Manuel Almunia to give United a 2–0 lead on the night. Needing a four-goal swing, Arsenal dominated possession but were unable to break United down. fair after the hour scratch, a breakaway from United saw Ronaldo score his second and United ‘s third less than 15 seconds after Arsenal had taken a corner at the other end. With 15 minutes to go, Darren Fletcher was sent-off by referee Roberto Rosetti for bringing down Cesc Fàbregas in the penalty area, despite replays showing that Fletcher made contact with the ball inaugural. This crimson poster meant that he would miss the final if United advanced. The resulting punishment was slotted home by Robin van Persie, but Arsenal – needing four more goals to make the concluding – could not find momentum from the goal and the couple ended 3–1, with a 4–1 aggregate succeed for United, who became the first base team since Juventus in 1997 to reach the Champions League final the season after winning the tournament, and the beginning team to reach back-to-back finals since Valencia in 2001. On 27 May, United lost to Barcelona 2–0 in the final examination keep up goals from Samuel Eto’o after 10 minutes ( the Catalans ‘ first attack on goal ) and Lionel Messi 20 minutes from prison term. United performed ailing throughout, with the exception of the first ten minutes and Sir Alex Ferguson admitted after the game that Barcelona had been the better side in the concluding .
Date
Round
Opponents
H / A
Result
F–A
Scorers
Attendance
24 February 2009
Round of 16
First leg
Internazionale
A
0–0
80,018
11 March 2009
Round of 16
Second leg
Internazionale
H
2–0
Vidić 4′, Ronaldo 49′
74,769
7 April 2009
Quarter-final
First leg
Porto
H
2–2
Rooney 15′, Tevez 85′
74,517
15 April 2009
Quarter-final
Second leg
Porto
A
1–0
Ronaldo 6′
50,010
29 April 2009
Semi-final
First leg
Arsenal
H
1–0
O’Shea 17′
74,733
5 May 2009
Semi-final
Second leg
Arsenal
A
3–1
Park 8′, Ronaldo (2) 11′, 61′
59,867
27 May 2009
Final
Barcelona
N
0–2
62,467
Club World Cup [edit ]
As winners of the 2007–08 UEFA Champions League, Manchester United earned the correct to compete in the FIFA Club World Cup, alongside the champions from each of FIFA ‘s five early continental confederations. [ 83 ] The direction the competition is organised entail that United were entered at the semi-final phase, where they would play either Japan ‘s Gamba Osaka or the winner of a play-off between Adelaide United of Australia and Waitakere United of New Zealand. [ 84 ] Adelaide United beat Waitakere United in the play-off, [ 85 ] but lost to Gamba Osaka in the quarter-finals, [ 86 ] entail that Manchester United would face Gamba Osaka at the International Stadium of Yokohama on 18 December 2008. [ 87 ] bulgarian hitter Dimitar Berbatov was ruled out of the semi-final match with a viral infection the day before the game, but Sir Alex Ferguson was able to name his veteran three of Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes and Gary Neville in the begin eleven. The pit started fairly evenly ; although United had most of the ball, Gamba Osaka were able to counter-attack cursorily. The first finish did end up going United ‘s way, however, as Giggs picked out Nemanja Vidić from a recess bang for the serbian to head into the back of the net. United then went 2–0 up on the stroke of half-time, Giggs delivering another right-sided corner, this time for Cristiano Ronaldo to nod in. Darren Fletcher and Wayne Rooney were introduced in topographic point of Paul Scholes and Carlos Tevez halfway through the second half. however, Gamba pulled a goal back about immediately in the 74th minute, alone for Rooney to restore United ‘s two-goal lead a moment late. Fletcher then made it 4–1 in the 78th, before Rooney doubled his personal reckoning in the 79th. Five minutes from full-time, though, Gary Neville handled the ball inside the box and the referee awarded Gamba a penalty kick, which Yasuhito Endō converted. finally, in the first moment of injury time at the end of the game, Hideo Hashimoto scored another consolation goal to make the score 5–3. The solution meant that United were through to the final examination of the competition, in which they would face LDU Quito of Ecuador on 21 December 2008. [ 88 ] Like the semi-final, the concluding was played at the International Stadium in Yokohama. Dimitar Berbatov was unable to amply recover from his virus, but was named on the bench for United, while Wayne Rooney was rewarded for his semi-final brace with a space in the starting line-up, mean that the trio of Rooney, Ronaldo and Tevez all started the match. meanwhile, captain Gary Neville was left out in topographic point of Rafael, meaning that Rio Ferdinand captained the side. The match started very much in United ‘s favor, but they were unable to convert their dominance into goals, LDU goalkeeper José Francisco Cevallos keeping the Reds ‘ strikers at alcove. shortly after the break, Vidić was involved in an affray with LDU midfielder Claudio Bieler ; Bieler foremost committed a foul on Vidić, but while the two were grounded, Vidić lashed out at Bieler with an elbow. The Argentine rolled across the turf clutching his face, to which the Uzbek referee, Ravshan Irmatov, responded with a straight bolshevik card. In regulate to restore numbers in defense, Alex Ferguson withdrew Carlos Tevez and introduced Jonny Evans. The numerical advantage gave LDU supernumerary confidence, and they looked like they might be the ones to open the score. however, with 17 minutes to go, Cristiano Ronaldo picked the ball up on the edge of the penalty area and laid it off to Wayne Rooney on the leave side of the box, who then placed the ball past Cevallos into the far corner of the net. LDU came close to an equalizer in the final minute, Damián Manso hitting a long-range shot that forced Edwin van five hundred Sar into a save at full-stretch. Despite LDU ‘s late beat up, United held on for a 1–0 succeed and their foremost Club World Cup title. [ 4 ]
Squad statistics [edit ]
Transfers [edit ]
United ‘s first passing of the 2008–09 season was Chris Eagles, who signed for Burnley for an undisclosed fee on 29 July. On 20 August, Mikaël Silvestre departed for Arsenal ( besides for an undisclosed fee ). Eight days belated, United released Dong Fangzhuo, and on the same day that Dong departed ( 28 August ), Louis Saha signed for Everton for an undisclosed fee. United ‘s three summer arrivals were brazilian twins Rafael and Fábio, who joined from brazilian club Fluminense for an undisclosed fee, and striker Dimitar Berbatov, who became the first gear bulgarian to sign for Manchester United when he arrived from Tottenham Hotspur on the end day of the summer transfer window. United ‘s other two arrivals came during the winter transmit window. Zoran Tošić and Ritchie De Laet arrived respectively from Partizan and Stoke City in early January. United besides struck a conduct to sign Adem Ljajić from Partizan, with the child due to join in January 2010, but the transplant was cancelled in December 2009 .
In [edit ]
Out [edit ]
loan out [edit ]
References [edit ]
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