charity shield

The TimesAugust 6, 2007
Ferguson celebrates as Van de Sar saves dayChelsea 1 Manchester United 1Oliver Kay at Wembley Stadium
The season’s first piece of silverware is barely worth its weight in scrap metal, but try telling that to the Manchester United players who cavorted around the new Wembley Stadium with the FA Community Shield while their Chelsea counterparts were contemplating an injury crisis that will consume José Mourinho during the final countdown to the new Barclays Premier League campaign.
A man with Mourinho’s competitive instincts would not readily concede a game of tiddlywinks - not to mention chess, as Sir Alex Ferguson did in a somewhat withering pre-match assessment of Chelsea’s entertainment value - but, as Wayne Rooney’s kick condemned them to the most perfunctory of penalty shoot-out defeats yesterday, the rueful smile across the face of the Portuguese seemed less to do with the loss of a trophy than with the potential absence of up to ten players when the new season starts for real this weekend.
Nor would United claim to be in rude health just yet, but Ferguson was happy to report afterwards that the cavalry is on its way, with confidence that Carlos Tévez will be on board in time to appear in a friendly match against either Dunfermline Athletic or Glentoran on Wednesday, when Owen Hargreaves, Anderson and Nani also expect to be involved after featuring only sporadically in pre-season. Contrast that with the absence of John Terry, Claude Makelele, Michael Ballack and Didier Drogba, to name but four, and it was easy to see why Mourinho’s smile had cracked by the time he entered the post-match press conference.
Ferguson suggested that there were few meaningful conclusions to be drawn from the exercise, but if, as he said, the fixture represents a “stepping stone” towards the new season, it was United who crossed it with greater purpose. Mourinho dismissed such talk, claiming that a depleted Chelsea had “controlled the game for 90 minutes” against the league champions, but it was one of those days on which his attempts at defiance fell short.
United won the day thanks largely to Edwin van der Sar, who saved penalties from Claudio Pizarro, Frank Lampard and Shaun Wright-Phillips while Rio Ferdinand, Michael Carrick and Rooney all beat Petr Cech, but they were also marginally the better team over 90 minutes. Ryan Giggs’s expertly taken goal gave them a lead that was more than deserved on the balance of play, while they will also reflect that Chelsea barely mounted a serious attack either side of Florent Malouda’s equalising goal on the stroke of half-time.
“We’re happy with the trophy,” Ferguson said. “This kind of match is not a great gauge because both teams were missing some players, but it was good for them anyway. It was a very warm day, but it will bring players on to the required pace of our game. There wasn’t much in it between either side, in terms of possession, but we did make the clearer chances. We deserved it for that reason.” United always looked the livelier team in a match that succeeded in whetting the appetite for next weekend. There is no such thing as a friendly match, let alone a meaningless one, where these two teams are concerned and, as Malouda introduced himself to English football by barging into the back of Cristiano Ronaldo with just ten seconds on the clock, it was apparent that this would be more than an exhibition match.
Rooney, perhaps unsurprisingly, was the player who was most eager to carry the fight to the opposition. A generous judge would give the young United forward the benefit of the doubt over a twelfth-minute incident when his studs landed on the thigh of Ashley Cole, but Mark Halsey saw fit to show him the yellow card in first-half stoppage time when he caught Cech, having overcommitted himself in his latest running battle with Tal Ben Haim.
Ben Haim, along with Malouda, was one of just two new faces on view of the 22 who started the game and, with United taking the initiative, he was to endure a difficult first 45 minutes in the Chelsea defence. Even more uncomfortable was Glen Johnson, recalled at right back after a season-long loan at Portsmouth but quickly identified by United - and, no doubt, by the notoriously unforgiving Mourinho - as a rare chink in Chelsea’s armour. Expect the Chelsea coach’s interest in Daniel Alves, the Seville right back, to be heightened before the transfer window closes on August 31.
It was a slick move down the United left that ended with Giggs putting them ahead in the 35th minute. Patrice Evra exchanged passes with Ronaldo to get behind Johnson before pulling the ball back towards Giggs, who steered a perfect shot beyond Cech and Ashley Cole, who was covering on the goal-line. Remarkably, it was his first goal in 17 appearances at Wembley at senior level, his only previous strike way back in the days that he represented England Schoolboys under the name of Ryan Wilson.
Unsurprisingly, given the lack of a recognised centre forward in their starting lineup, with Pizarro not yet match-fit, Chelsea were struggling to make any headway in attack, but Malouda equalised with a show of the strength and skill that would seem to make him perfectly equipped to adapt to English football. It is a goal that Ferdinand will not look back on with any fondness, as the Chelsea player beat him to Ashley Cole’s flighted ball down the inside-left channel, but Malouda showed considerable enterprise and determination in beating the United defender before shooting past the hesitant Van der Sar.
After a flat second period, Van der Sar emerged as the match-winner, a redemption of sorts after he blamed himself for Drogba’s winning goal in the FA Cup Final in May. This time it was the Chelsea players who left Wembley with heads bowed. For United, even the slightest psychological advantage is to be welcomed in advance of the challenge ahead, even if it is likely to be forgotten long before they resume hostilities in the Premier League at Old Trafford on September 23.
PENALTY FLOPS
CLAUDIO PIZARRO
Van der Sar dives to his right, but the goalkeeper manages to stretch out his left arm and block the Peruvian’s effort with a hand
FRANK LAMPARD
The England midfield player struggled to impose himself on the game and his strike lacked the power to beat Van der Sar
SHAUN WRIGHT-PHILLIPS
Van der Sar is quick off his line again as Wright-Phillips adds to Chelsea’s woes with another weak strike from 12 yards
Chelsea 1 Malouda 45
Manchester United 1 Giggs 35
How they rated
Chelsea
4-3-3 P Cech 7 G Johnson 4 T Ben Haim 5 R Carvalho 6 A Cole 8 F Lampard 5 M Essien 7 J O Mikel 7 S Wright-Phillips 5 F Malouda 7 J Cole 5
Subsitutes S Sidwell (for Johnson, 78min), L Diarra 5 (A Cole, 68), C Pizarro 5 (Malouda, 52), S Sinclair (J Cole, 82) Not used C Cudicini, Hilario, H Worley
Manchester United
4-4-1-1 E van der Sar 7 W Brown 6 R Ferdinand 6 N Vidic 6 M Silvestre 5 C Ronaldo 7 M Carrick 7 J O’Shea 6 P Evra 7 R Giggs 7 W Rooney 7
Subsitutes Nani 5 (Silvestre, 68min), D Fletcher (Giggs, 81) Not used T Kuszczak, G Pique, P Bardsley, C Eagles, L Martin.
Referee M Halsey Attendance 80,731 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Telegraph:
Ryan Giggs an ageless inspiration for UnitedBy Henry Winter
Chelsea 1(1) Manchester United 1 (1) (United win 3-0 on penalties)
Football, the sport that never sleeps, hardly seems to have had a lie-down this summer, and events here yesterday maintained familiar themes from last season. All the talk was of Chelsea's injury travails, Jose Mourinho's quixotic streak, Manchester United's rich attacking potential, and the enduring excellence of Ryan Giggs, who continues to give Old Father Time the runaround.
Giggs' manager, Sir Alex Ferguson, keeps expanding United's creative department as if fearful of some flair famine stalking the land. Such an intelligent frontrunner as Carlos Tevez, who makes his debut on Wednesday, will doubtless link instinctively and prolifically with Wayne Rooney while Nani showed glimpses of his gifts against Chelsea. Like Cristiano Ronaldo, Nani can operate on either flank. Paul Scholes returns from injury soon. Marvellous options abound. Ferguson can play fantasy football for real.
Yet there was Giggs, 33 years of age but with the enthusiasm of a teenager, gliding through to score a superb 35th-minute goal to shake a clammy Community Shield into life. Florent Malouda subsequently conjured up a terrific equaliser, and Edwin van der Sar proved unbeatable in the penalty shoot-out, but the main memory was of Giggs, of a class that never ages.
When Patrice Evra crossed from the left, and Rooney cleverly dragged blue shirts out of position, Giggs calmly stroked the ball from 15 yards into Petr Cech's goal. "Ryan placed it,'' said Ferguson, his eyes lighting up at the recollection. "Ryan could see Ashley Cole on the line with the keeper looking after the other side of the goal, so he placed it.''
If the goal was exceptional, it certainly produced an extraordinary statistic. It was so long ago that Giggs last scored at Wembley that he had a different name. Then known as Ryan Wilson and captain of England Schoolboys, this special player last found the mark at Wembley 18 years ago.
Rooney was three at the time, and sometimes does not have appear to have matured much. The England international disclosed the shortness of his fuse as well as the depth of his talent yesterday, and the fear is that his conduct will continue to vex officials. Yet his booking yesterday was unwarranted: Rooney accidentally caught Cech while chasing a loose ball and knocked off balance by Tal Ben Haim.
Chelsea fans, some sporting T-shirts declaring that the title was only "on loan to United'', were enraged, and loudly questioned everything from Rooney's weight to his parentage. United's No 10 responded by holding up a solitary finger to signal who were the No 1 team in the land.
The Community Shield is rarely a good form-guide, but few would question that United are favourites to claim the Premiership. For all his "mellow'' intent, Mourinho remains a one-man debating society and he sent eyebrows rising faster than the mercury with his comment that "Chelsea controlled the game for 90 minutes in quite an easy way''.
Nonsense. Ashley Cole, who again dealt well with Ronaldo, and the purposeful Malouda certainly impressed for Mourinho's side, but they were hamstrung by the absence of John Terry and Didier Drogba with knee problems. Drogba aims to be back within 10 days but Terry's anticipated month on the sidelines is desperate news.
Such a committed leader and shrewd defensive organiser would have engineered more resistance to United's goal. Ben Haim, otherwise all right, played Evra onside while Ricardo Carvalho clearly missed Terry. Such were Chelsea's injury woes (with Michael Ballack, Arjen Robben, Wayne Bridge, Andrei Shevchenko and Salomon Kalou also unavailable) that Mourinho was forced to field Joe Cole at centre-forward in a 4-3-3 and name two keepers among the subs to make up the numbers.
Also on the bench was Avram Grant, Chelsea's new director of football, and the chemistry between him and Mourinho will be much scrutinised this season. Mourinho is not the type to accept interference in his first-team domain, but those who know Grant insist that he is far too savvy and diplomatic to engage in power struggles. Maybe it was the heat yesterday but there appeared a thaw in Chelsea's Cold War with Roman Abramovich consoling Mourinho and the players in the dressing room afterwards.
Chelsea will play better than this, and Mourinho looks to have invested smartly in Malouda, who showed courage, speed and technique to cancel out Giggs' strike on the cusp of half-time. Ashley Cole, uneasy on his right foot, used the outside of his left to bend a fine ball into the path of Malouda and United were exposed. Rio Ferdinand was left trailing, Van der Sar's attempt to close Malouda down was half-hearted and Chelsea's £13 million signing clipped the ball expertly home.
Van der Sar made amends spectacularly in the shoot-out, saving from Claudio Pizarro, Frank Lampard and Shaun Wright-Phillips. Rio Ferdinand and Michael Carrick both calmly converted their kicks, leaving Rooney to apply the coup de grace, and then repeat his No 1 signal to the departing Chelsea fans. Rooney, Giggs et al are again the team to beat.
Match details
Chelsea (4-3-3): Cech; Johnson (Sidwell 77), Ben Haim, Carvalho, A Cole (Diarra 67); Essien, Mikel, Lampard; Wright-Phillips, J Cole (Sinclair 81), Malouda (Pizarro 51). Subs: Cudicini (g), Hilario (g), Worley. Goal: Malouda (45). Booked: Ben Haim, Carvalho, Mikel. Manchester Utd (4-4-1-1): Van der Sar; Brown, Ferdinand, Vidic, Silvestre (Nani 67); Ronaldo, Carrick, O'Shea, Evra; Giggs (Fletcher 80); Rooney. Subs: Kuszczak (g), Pique, Bardsley, Martin, Eagles. Goal: (Giggs 35). Booked: Rooney.Referee: M Halsey (Lancashire). --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Indy:
Chelsea 1, Man United 1: Mourinho's new mood blighted by loss and looming injury crisis By Sam Wallace Published: 06 August 2007 From his place on the bench even Jose Mourinho found it hard to suppress a smile at the appaling success his team endured from the penalty spot – and he is not known for making light of failure. On the English football season's great irrelevant opening day, Edwin van der Sar was the hero but the atmosphere was soon a good deal chillier around the Chelsea manager as the start of his campaign threatened to disintegrate.
While Manchester United walked off with the Community Shield, polished even brighter than the alloys on a Premiership footballer's Hummer, Sir Alex Ferguson could talk optimistically about Carlos Tevez's debut this week. For Mourinho there was only more injury misery; he now has 11 players out injured, and already the siege mentality was descending upon the Chelsea manager.
The mellow attitude he has claimed to have adopted looks like it will be severely tested in the next few weeks. Ferguson waits only upon Paul Scholes, Gary Neville and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer in terms of injuries – Mourinho has a much more serious problem. John Terry's absence will be for a month at the very least, while Didier Drogba will find out today how serious the problem with his knee has become.
Days like yesterday may be the opportunity for experimentation but Mourinho admitted that he had never before been forced to pick a side that did not include an orthodox striker. With Claudio Pizarro not yet fit enough to play a full game, he started with Joe Cole as a makeshift centre-forward. It was far from a disastrous Chelsea performance but the implications for the start of their season could be much more dramatic.
Andrei Shevchenko, Claude Makelele, Paulo Ferreira, Salomon Kalou and Arjen Robben were the other absentees, as well as the long-term injured, Wayne Bridge and Michael Ballack. It was reflected in Mourinho's mood as he first refused even to take questions on the seriousness of his players' injuries, only brightening later to say he was not worried. "I'm ready for the fight and I'm happy with the team," he said.
At pitchside, temperatures crept past 35C and while the match never approached the intensity of last season's FA Cup final less than three months ago, it was not for lack of effort on the part of some individuals. Wayne Rooney discovered that it was not just the referee who can book him now, the linesman can have a say, too. Via his headset, Darren Cann advised the referee, Mark Halsey, of a kick at Tal Ben Haim from Rooney that earned the England striker a booking.
It was Rooney who looked among the sharpest on the pitch and Cristiano Ronaldo, too, but not before the latter mistakenly backheeled the ball mid-stepover and in doing so effectively tackled himself. United were blessed with pace in attack, especially with Patrice Evra promoted to a left-wing position where he excelled and was integral in the creation of the United goal for Ryan Giggs.
On 35 minutes, Evra's exchange with Ronaldo allowed him to cross to Giggs and United's 33-year-old captain struck the ball up into the roof of Petr Cech's goal. The Chelsea goalkeeper had made a brilliant save from Giggs in the 21st minute and Cech remains one of the very few whom Mourinho simply cannot afford to be without.
From his seat in the sunshine at Wembley, Steve McClaren will already have been worrying about the state of his England team's defence against Germany next week when Florent Malouda embarrassed the only fit first-choice centre-back the national-team manager has left. Chelsea's £13.5m signing did extremely well to out-muscle Rio Ferdinand as he ran on to a long ball from Ashley Cole and, with his last touch, steered the ball past Van der Sar. Just Mourinho's luck then that Malouda would later limp off with the injury he picked up in the act of scoring and later Glen Johnson was also forced to withdraw.
Pizarro gave Chelsea more presence in attack in the second half, but as a player who spent eight years in Germany, Mourinho might have expected him to be better at penalties. The Peruvian had his spot-kick saved by Van der Sar, as did Lampard and Shaun Wright-Phillips. When Rooney smashed in the third United penalty it was all over
Tevez will make his debut on Wednesday in one of two friendlies United play that day against Dunfermline Athletic and Glentoran in Belfast. Ferguson had clearly read the theories that his new Argentine is too similar to Rooney for the two to be compatible and was not of the same mind.
"I don't think they're identical at all, other than that they're both of a similar physique," he said. "Both are two-footed, both are quickish, both can beat their man. I don't think those similarities are a bad thing. When they get playing with each other, they'll hopefully get an understanding."
On the Premier League title race he was more cryptic. "Everyone in the country knows we're the two best sides, but Arsenal and Liverpool will play a bigger hand this season."
The United manager still claims that there is not much to be deduced from days like these but as a guide to the next month, the form favours the champions.
Chelsea (4-3-3) Cech; Johnson (Sidwell, 78), Carvalho, Ben Haim, A Cole (Diarra, 67); Essien, Mikel, Lampard; Wright-Phillips, J Cole (Sinclair, 82), Malouda (Pizarro, 51). Substitutes not used: Cudicini (gk), Hilario (gk), Worley.
Manchester United (4-4-2): Van der Sar; Brown, Ferdinand, Vidic, Silvestre (Nani, 68); Ronaldo, Carrick, O'Shea, Evra; Rooney, Giggs (Fletcher, 81). Substitutes not used: Kuszczak (gk), Pique, Bardsley, Martin, Eagles.
Referee: M Halsey (Lancashire).
Booked: Chelsea Ben Haim, Carvalho, Mikel; Manchester United Rooney.
Man of the match: Evra.
Stamford Bridge sick list
* John Terry
(knee, one month)
* Wayne Bridge
(hip, three months)
* Frank Lampard
(broken toe, still playing)
* Didier Drogba
(doubtful for opener)
* Andrei Shevchenko
(back, doubtful for opener)
* Florent Malouda (right)
(doubtful for opener)
* Glen Johnson
(muscle, doubtful)
* Michael Ballack
(ankle, two to three
weeks)
* Salomon Kalou
(muscle, doubtful)
* Arjen Robben
(knee, doubtful)
* Claude Makelele
(knee, should be fit for opener)
* Paulo Ferreira
(muscle, doubtful)
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Van der Sar spots weak point to claim first trophy
Kevin McCarra at WembleyMonday August 6, 2007The Guardian
Given enough talent, a man can distil potent memories out of even a Community Shield match. Holland have had angst-ridden days when it comes to taking penalties but Edwin van der Sar has no inhibitions about facing them.The Manchester United goalkeeper threw himself lithely to his right, denying Claudio Pizarro and then Frank Lampard in the shoot-out. It was understandable that Chelsea's third effort would be downcast, as Shaun Wright-Phillips allowed Van der Sar an elementary save. Wayne Rooney then ended the contest by converting his penalty as methodically as Rio Ferdinand and Michael Carrick had done.
Van der Sar, who turns 37 in October, was troubled by his lapses towards the close of last season and very conscious that little time might be left to him in an Old Trafford contract that ends next summer.His pre-season had not been convincing but United can barely afford to let him retreat into the shadows. Tomasz Kuszczak is not regarded as his natural heir and Ben Foster's cruciate ligament injury will rule him out until the end of this year at the earliest. Even then he will have to build on the impression made at Watford.
For Sir Alex Ferguson the principal benefit of the afternoon at Wembley could be the fillip it gives Van der Sar. It would be rash to come up with larger deductions. The fact that each club can make six substitutions is the Community Shield's confession to being a jumped-up friendly, although neither manager was shameless enough to make full use of that facility.
While United, busier in attack, deserved to be victors, they will be conscious, too, that Chelsea's line-up was a distorted reflection of the prowess that Jose Mourinho can call on when there are fewer problems. Didier Drogba has hurt his knee and, though a scan should confirm that he will be back in 10 days, Mourinho was not confident enough of Andriy Shevchenko's fitness to use the Ukrainian here. If it was peculiar to witness Joe Cole give his own interpretation of centre-forward play, it is likely that Mourinho wanted to protect Pizarro, who eventually took part for 38 minutes, since he has no other fit strikers remaining.
The Peruvian was released from the dug-out to take over from Florent Malouda, who would have been feeling the effects of the knock he had taken while scoring a determined equaliser at the end of the first half. That moment of purpose and craft identified the Frenchman as the epitome of the sort of footballer who can capture Jose Mourinho's heart. Malouda has even played full-back trenchantly on occasion.
In the 45th minute the excellent Ashley Cole swerved a pass down the left and the £13.5m acquisition from Lyon had more resolve than Ferdinand, forcing himself free of the centre-back to clip an impressive finish past Van der Sar. The goal rounded off a first half in which the sides had striven to play in earnest.
There was even a sprinkling of spite to add flavour. A pointing Wayne Rooney, having been booked for a late challenge on Petr Cech, seemed to be in dispute with a section of Chelsea fans who had been demanding a red card. Even when there was no animus, United, with superior means at Wembley, were livelier in attack and Cech needed to block Ryan Giggs's effort following a Cristiano Ronaldo run in the 21st minute.
While Michael Essien and Mikel John Obi both failed to head home a Malouda free-kick shortly afterwards there was more of a flourish to United's display. The opening goal had thinking and technique that were both sharp. With 35 minutes gone, Patrice Evra took a crossfield ball on his chest, touched it to Ronaldo and raced after the return pass.
His low cross was probing and a lunge by Carvalho could not distract Ryan Giggs from recording his first goal at Wembley since his schoolboy days with a sweeping drive high into the net. By and large Chelsea showed that they retained the knack of stifling United all the same and Tal Ben Haim in defence seemed to be as reasonable a deputy for John Terry as Mourinho could have landed on a free transfer this summer.
So far as the flamboyant football now required of him is concerned, the manager can expect patience from his employers until genuine attackers are present. The main lesson of the afternoon may be that Chelsea, so well rehearsed in most areas, are not at all adept at shoot-outs, having previously been vanquished on penalties by Liverpool in the Champions League semi-final.