Chelsea and Manchester United launched the English season in explosive fashion as the Blues’ 4-1 penalty shoot-out win in Sunday’s Community Shield was marred by an ugly clash between Michael Ballack and Patrice Evra.
With United keen to prove a point to the critics questioning their ability to cope without Cristiano Ronaldo and Carlos Tevez, and Chelsea trying to impress new boss Carlo Ancelotti, there was a definite edge to a match that finished 2-2 after 90 minutes.
The bubbling tension boiled over in the second half when United defender Evra fell to the Wembley turf in pain after a cynical body-check by Chelsea substitute Ballack.
PHOTO: AP
Referee Chris Foy waved play on, but United’s players wanted Chelsea to kick the ball out so Evra could get treatment. Chelsea refused and Frank Lampard took advantage to score, much to the frustration of Evra, who became involved in a row with Ashley Cole and then scythed down Ballack to earn a booking.
Sir Alex Ferguson’s team had taken an early lead when Nani drove home from the edge of the area. Ricardo Carvalho equalized after halftime before Lampard’s controversial strike, but Wayne Rooney leveled for United in injury-time.
For Ancelotti, the feisty encounter was an ideal introduction to the no-holds-barred nature of English soccer, while United could take heart from a determined display that showed they won’t give up their three-year reign as champions without a fight.
After a disappointing start to his career at Old Trafford, Nani has the chance to make amends this year. Ronaldo’s departure has opened up a berth for the Portuguese winger on the left and he gave a glimpse of his potential with a fine strike to put United ahead in the 10th minute.
Collecting Darren Fletcher’s long pass, Nani shifted away from Bransilav Ivanovic and Michael Essien before firing in a powerful drive that flashed past unsighted keeper Petr Cech into the far corner.
If Cech could have done better with that one, there was no questioning his agility when he plunged to his left to claw away Park Ji-sung’s shot and then kept out Dimitar Berbatov’s flicked effort.
Just as he did at AC Milan, Ancelotti used a midfield diamond formation that saw Frank Lampard deployed just behind Didier Drogba and Nicolas Anelka, while John Obi Mikel shielded the back four.
The system may need some work, however, judging by the way United, and Nani in particular, were able to find holes in Chelsea’s defense in the first half.
United goalkeeper Ben Foster, selected ahead of Tomasz Kuszczak as the stand-in for the injured Edwin van der Sar, had a chance to underline his England credentials, but he looked nervous at times and twice dallied dangerously over back-passes when a quick clearance was needed.
Fletcher’s curling effort forced a brilliant tip-over from Cech before halftime, but it took Chelsea just seven minutes of the second half to equalize.
When Florent Malouda lobbed a cross toward Drogba, the Ivory Coast striker collided with Foster and accidently floored the United keeper, giving Carvalho time and space to direct a diving header into the empty net.
Nani left the field in obvious pain after 60 minutes clutching his arm and was replaced by new signing Antonio Valencia.
“He has dislocated his shoulder and the worrying thing was is that we couldn’t put it back in straight away,” United manager Alex Ferguson told reporters, without confirming how long Nani would be out for. “He will definitely not play for Portugal in the week.”
Lampard’s controversial strike arrived in the 70th minute. Ballack clearly blocked off Evra, but Foy didn’t give the foul and Chelsea broke through Drogba, whose pass allowed Lampard to drive home via the post.
United protested furiously that play should have been stopped as Evra had a head injury and the French star became involved in an argument with Blues defender Ashley Cole.
Evra was clearly incensed and made a crude attempt to seek revenge on Ballack with a lunging tackle that earned a booking.
That wasn’t the end of the drama. With just a minute of injury-time to go, Rooney ran onto a Ryan Giggs pass, held off Jose Bosingwa and planted a low shot past Cech to send the match to penalties.
Cech saved from Giggs in the shoot-out and then easily kept out Evra’s weak effort, before Salomon Kalou slammed home the winner.
College basketballer Kaitlyn Chen has become the first female player of Taiwanese descent to be drafted by a WNBA team, after the Golden State Valkyries selected her in the third and final round of the league’s draft on Monday. Chen, a point guard who played her first three seasons in college for Princeton University, transferred to the University of Connecticut (UConn) for her final season, which culminated in a national championship earlier this month. While at Princeton, Chen was named the Ivy League tournament’s most outstanding player three times from 2022 to last year. Prior to the draft, ESPN described Chen as
Robinson Cano spent 17 seasons playing in the MLB in front of all kinds of baseball fans, but he said there is something special about his stint with the Mexican Baseball League’s Diablos Rojos. He is not alone. The league last week opened its 100th season, aiming to keep an impressive growth in attendance that began after the national team’s surprise run at the 2023 World Baseball Classic, and is already surpassing some first-division soccer clubs. After finishing third in the 2023 tournament, many casual fans, some of them soccer enthusiasts disappointed after Mexico were eliminated in the first round in the 2022
Noelvi Marte on Sunday had seven RBIs and hit his first career grand slam with a drive off infielder Jorge Mateo, while Austin Wynn had a career-high six RBIs as the Cincinnati Reds scored their most runs in 26 years in a 24-2 rout of the Baltimore Orioles. Marte finished with five hits, including his eighth-inning homer off Mateo. Wynn hit a three-run homer in the ninth off catcher Gary Sanchez. Cincinnati scored its most runs since a 24-12 win against the Colorado Rockies on May 19, 1999, and finished with 25 hits. Baltimore allowed its most runs since a 30-3 loss to
Arne Slot has denied that Darwin Nunez was dropped from Liverpool’s win against West Ham because of a training-ground row with a member of his coaching staff. The Liverpool head coach on Sunday last week said that Nunez was absent from the 2-1 victory at Anfield, having felt unwell during training the day before, although the striker sat behind the substitutes throughout the game. Speculation has been rife that the Uruguay international, whom Slot criticized for his work rate against Wolves and Aston Villa in February, was left out for disciplinary reasons. Asked on Friday to clarify the situation, Slot said: “He
RSS