Sir Alex Ferguson will savor a Champions League triumph over Chelsea that has cemented his standing as one of the greatest coaches in European soccer.
But the driven Glaswegian will not spend too long reflecting on a penalty shoot-out victory that secured the fourth European trophy of his managerial career, 25 years after he led Aberdeen to the most unlikely of Cup Winners Cup wins over Real Madrid.
“I feel proud, I feel, very, very proud,” Ferguson admitted in the aftermath of what was a nerve-shredding evening in Moscow. “But I think the great asset I have got is that I don’t get carried away.”
PHOTO: AP
“Tomorrow I will be thinking about next season. It all drains away quickly for me, the euphoria evaporates very quickly,” he said.
Having batted away a suggestion that he might be tempted, at the age of 66, to retire on an unmatchable high, Ferguson went on to express his belief that fate had helped United to secure what was a poignant victory in the year that has seen the club mark the 50th anniversary of the Munich air disaster.
Edwin van der Sar’s save from Nicolas Anelka proved decisive but United were also fortunate that Chelsea captain John Terry slipped before missing their fifth penalty, which would have given them the trophy.
“I said we would not let the memory of the Busby babes down,” Ferguson said. “If fate has played its hand, then with John Terry slipping, it has certainly been on our side, as it seems to have been all season.”
Ferguson added: “It was my first victory on penalties. I lost three with Aberdeen and three at United, so it is seven times lucky and I’m delighted with that.”
At the end of a gruelling season, the evening’s conclusion was hard on a Chelsea side that hit the woodwork in both regulation and extra-time.
It was particularly painful for Terry, who might not have been taking the fifth penalty had Didier Drogba not been sent off shortly before the end of extra-time for tapping Nemanja Vidic on the face as several players on either side squared up to each other.
United’s early domination had yielded a deserved opener in the form of Ronaldo’s 26th-minute header, the Portuguese winger’s 42nd goal of an extraordinary season.
Ferguson’s men then had the chances to kill the contest before the break but Frank Lampard’s equalizer on the stroke of half-time levelled things up and Chelsea, dominant after the restart, almost claimed a winner when Drogba’s 78th-minute shot came back off the post with van der Sar beaten.
Chelsea struck the woodwork again in the opening period of extra-time, Lampard’s cute shot on the turn bouncing off the bar with United’s goalkeeper once more struggling.
Substitute Ryan Giggs then had a glorious chance to mark his record-breaking 759th appearance for United in style but the veteran winger never really connected with Patrice Evra’s cutback and Terry was able to head the ball to safety.
“We should have been three or four up and they got a lucky break with the equalizer. It gave them an impetus and they were the better team in the second half and I was quite glad to get to extra time,” Ferguson said.
Chelsea boss Avram Grant, whose future will inevitably be subjected to more intense speculation after another near-miss at securing silverware, insisted his side had done enough to lift the trophy.
“It is very hard to lose on penalties. I don’t know what to say, especially after — except for the first 30 minutes — we dominated the game,” Grant said.
“We hit the post, we hit the bar, we shot much more than them. Even in the penalties we came to the last one and it was in our hands — but we lost,” he said.
Chelsea would have won if Terry had not missed his side’s fifth penalty and Grant admitted his captain had been left distraught.
“One penalty can make the difference between happiness and sadness,” he said. “John did not say anything. He was very sad he cried but he is the main reason we are here.”
“It has not been a normal season for us. There have been many difficulties, Manchester United were always ahead in the league. But he was always there for us as a captain and he took the responsibility to take the penalty,” he said.
Grant refused to answer questions about his future, widely believed to be on the line after a season which has also seen Chelsea lose the League Cup final to Tottenham and finish second to United in the league.
“This is the last thing I am thinking about just now,” he said.
OUT AGAINST INDONESIA: Taiwan reached the semi-finals at the tournament for the first time by defeating Denmark, with Chou Tien-chen beating Viktor Axelsen Taiwan yesterday crashed out of the Thomas Cup team competition in Chengdu, China, but achieved their best result at the top-tier badminton event by reaching the semi-finals. Indonesia were too good in the semis, winning 3-0 to advance to today’s final against China, who eliminated Malaysia 3-1. In the opening singles of the men’s team clash at the Hi-Tech Zone Sports Center Gymnasium 2, Anthony Ginting defeated Taiwan’s Chou Tien-chen 21-18, 21-19 in 51 minutes, which put a huge hole in Taiwan’s aspirations to perhaps even make the final. In the men’s doubles, Fajar Alfian and Muhammad Ardianto downed Lee Yang and Wang
NO DOUBT: Spurs star Wembanyama was unanimously selected as NBA Rookie of the Year, winning all 99 votes to become the first Frenchman to capture the honor The Minnesota Timberwolves on Monday night produced a dominant defensive display to seize a commanding 2-0 lead in their best-of-seven playoff series against the Denver Nuggets with a 106-80 road victory. The third-seeded Timberwolves harassed Denver relentlessly to claim a second straight win over the NBA champions as the series heads back to Minneapolis for Game 3 on Friday. Karl-Anthony Towns and Anthony Edwards scored 27 points apiece, but the star of the show was Minnesota’s suffocating defensive effort, which knocked Denver out of their stride almost from the tip-off. The Timberwolves finished with 11 steals and 12 blocks, in sharp contrast to
Top-ranked Iga Swiatek on Saturday came through “the most intense and crazy final” she has ever contested to avenge her loss to Aryna Sabalenka in last year’s Madrid Open final with a grueling three hour, 11 minute victory in the Spanish capital. Coming back from 1-3 down in the decider and saving three match points in total, Swiatek claimed a 7-5, 4-6, 7-6 (9/7) victory to secure the Madrid Open trophy for the first time. “Well, who is going to say now that women’s tennis is boring, right?” Swiatek said. Swiatek, who picked up the 20th title of her career, and ninth at
One of Malaysia’s top soccer clubs has pulled out of today’s season-opening Charity Shield after a spate of assaults, including an acid attack, on players in the country. It leaves the kickoff of Malaysia’s season this weekend under a cloud following the unprecedented acts of violence against players, which have left the country shocked and angry. Authorities said they have imposed tighter security, but Selangor said that they would not play in the showpiece curtain-raiser against Malaysian Super League champions Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT) citing “a series of criminal incidents and recent threats.” Selangor and Malaysia winger Faisal Halim is in intensive care