Manutd.com report: UCL Q-finals Leg 2: Porto 0 - 1 Man Utd (Man Utd wins 3-2 on aggregate)
Van Der Sar
O'Shea - Ferdinand - Vidic - Evra
Rooney - Carrick - Anderson (Scholes 78') - Giggs (c)
Ronaldo - Berbatov (Nani 68')
scorer:
Ronaldo 5'
What a fantastic return to form! Sir Alex got back to basics, starting with his defence, and got his tactics spot on as well with a 1-0 win to advance to the semi-finals of the UCL. It may have been another narrow win but the general outlook was that Man Utd actually had never played this good for quite some time which made the win even sweeter.
With a 2-2 draw, Porto may have been looking to wind up this game the way they did in the previous round when against Atletico Madrid, they brought home a 2-2 draw after the 1st leg and played out a dour goalless draw in the 2nd to advance on the away goals rule.
Man Utd, truly pegged back last week when Porto bamboozled them from the start, had other ideas. They seized the initiative when in the 5th minute, Ronaldo scored a stunning scorcher for Man Utd to take the overall lead on aggregate. Any win for Man Utd will see them advance but the danger was that Porto still had another away goal and if they were to draw 1-1, Man Utd would be knocked out.
Instead, Porto did not look the same team compared to last week and were totally outclassed in all departments though Man Utd were not exactly looking to score more goals themselves, happily passing the ball around deep in their opponents' half and keeping possession well.
Man Utd were simply solid from defence all the way through attack. Rooney was the surprise tactical switch. Deployed on the right wing this time, in place of Ronaldo, who had taken a striking role up front, Rooney produced a superb individual performance putting in an excellent shift juggling attacking and defending duties. Ferdinand, in the heart of defence, exuded his calmness and composure from whom his backline drew upon to finally secure a clean sheet in weeks. Berbatov was silky with his first touch sublimely bringing the ball into control and bringing others into play. Anderson returned to central midfield and added steel and bite, putting tackles in and distributing play.
On this form, Man Utd may have found the best team to last the remainder of the season. But of course, Sir Alex would be looking to freshen his squad as best as he could. It sure is happy time again for Man Utd fans.
Ratings:
van Der Sar (7): Kept things safe and simple with solid goalkeeping and deliberate time-wasting.
O'Shea (7): Another solid performer especially with Rooney sharing defensive duties as well.
Evra (7): Unlucky to earn a yellow card and was defending more heavily than usual.
Ferdinand (8): His class as a true leader shone through when it mattered most. Provided the defensive foundation for Man Utd to build on.
Vidic (7): Almost scored at the end of 1st half but the Serbian enjoyed a very comfortable partnership with Ferdinand at the other end.
Rooney (9): A great team player who was the vital cog in Man Utd's tactics on the night. Superb showing. Running out of superlatives really. His deployment on the right flank though sacrificed his striker tendency. Don't expect him to permanently feature on the wings (he played on the left flank at the weekend).
Giggs (7): Lasted the entire match which stongly indicates his withdrawal from the Everton game on Sunday. Not as prominent as Rooney on his flank but still policed it well.
Carrick (7): With Anderson doing the dirty work, Carrick was able to unleash his creative freedom.
Anderson (9): Just the man Man Utd needed to revive the energy and fatigue that had been sapped in Man Utd's recent performances. Did not shy away from the hard battle and linked up play between defence and attack.
Ronaldo (8): Given a starring role up front, the Portugese enjoyed his freedom and scored a fantastic long-range scorcher that is one of the best goals ever. Was lively throughout and obviously happy he has been released from his defensive shackles. As he said in his post-game, striker is not his favourite position but I prefer him there for now.
Berbatov (7): Did not get much look-in at goal but his first touch and close control with the ball was simply a joy to watch.
Sub:
Nani (6): Brought on for Berbatov as Man Utd adopted a 4-5-1 formation. Nani got on better as the match wore on.
Scholes (6): Like-for-like replacement for the tiring Anderson.
akim
O'Shea - Ferdinand - Vidic - Evra
Rooney - Carrick - Anderson (Scholes 78') - Giggs (c)
Ronaldo - Berbatov (Nani 68')
scorer:
Ronaldo 5'
What a fantastic return to form! Sir Alex got back to basics, starting with his defence, and got his tactics spot on as well with a 1-0 win to advance to the semi-finals of the UCL. It may have been another narrow win but the general outlook was that Man Utd actually had never played this good for quite some time which made the win even sweeter.
With a 2-2 draw, Porto may have been looking to wind up this game the way they did in the previous round when against Atletico Madrid, they brought home a 2-2 draw after the 1st leg and played out a dour goalless draw in the 2nd to advance on the away goals rule.
Man Utd, truly pegged back last week when Porto bamboozled them from the start, had other ideas. They seized the initiative when in the 5th minute, Ronaldo scored a stunning scorcher for Man Utd to take the overall lead on aggregate. Any win for Man Utd will see them advance but the danger was that Porto still had another away goal and if they were to draw 1-1, Man Utd would be knocked out.
Instead, Porto did not look the same team compared to last week and were totally outclassed in all departments though Man Utd were not exactly looking to score more goals themselves, happily passing the ball around deep in their opponents' half and keeping possession well.
Man Utd were simply solid from defence all the way through attack. Rooney was the surprise tactical switch. Deployed on the right wing this time, in place of Ronaldo, who had taken a striking role up front, Rooney produced a superb individual performance putting in an excellent shift juggling attacking and defending duties. Ferdinand, in the heart of defence, exuded his calmness and composure from whom his backline drew upon to finally secure a clean sheet in weeks. Berbatov was silky with his first touch sublimely bringing the ball into control and bringing others into play. Anderson returned to central midfield and added steel and bite, putting tackles in and distributing play.
On this form, Man Utd may have found the best team to last the remainder of the season. But of course, Sir Alex would be looking to freshen his squad as best as he could. It sure is happy time again for Man Utd fans.
Ratings:
van Der Sar (7): Kept things safe and simple with solid goalkeeping and deliberate time-wasting.
O'Shea (7): Another solid performer especially with Rooney sharing defensive duties as well.
Evra (7): Unlucky to earn a yellow card and was defending more heavily than usual.
Ferdinand (8): His class as a true leader shone through when it mattered most. Provided the defensive foundation for Man Utd to build on.
Vidic (7): Almost scored at the end of 1st half but the Serbian enjoyed a very comfortable partnership with Ferdinand at the other end.
Rooney (9): A great team player who was the vital cog in Man Utd's tactics on the night. Superb showing. Running out of superlatives really. His deployment on the right flank though sacrificed his striker tendency. Don't expect him to permanently feature on the wings (he played on the left flank at the weekend).
Giggs (7): Lasted the entire match which stongly indicates his withdrawal from the Everton game on Sunday. Not as prominent as Rooney on his flank but still policed it well.
Carrick (7): With Anderson doing the dirty work, Carrick was able to unleash his creative freedom.
Anderson (9): Just the man Man Utd needed to revive the energy and fatigue that had been sapped in Man Utd's recent performances. Did not shy away from the hard battle and linked up play between defence and attack.
Ronaldo (8): Given a starring role up front, the Portugese enjoyed his freedom and scored a fantastic long-range scorcher that is one of the best goals ever. Was lively throughout and obviously happy he has been released from his defensive shackles. As he said in his post-game, striker is not his favourite position but I prefer him there for now.
Berbatov (7): Did not get much look-in at goal but his first touch and close control with the ball was simply a joy to watch.
Sub:
Nani (6): Brought on for Berbatov as Man Utd adopted a 4-5-1 formation. Nani got on better as the match wore on.
Scholes (6): Like-for-like replacement for the tiring Anderson.
akim
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