man utd 1-2

Independent:


Rooney finds the old magic to reduce Chelsea dream to ruins

Manchester United 2 Chelsea 1 (United win 3-1 on aggregate)

By Sam Wallace at Old Trafford



From his seat in the Old Trafford directors' box last night Roman Abramovich did not need his coterie of advisers and hangers-on to tell him the cold, hard truth that the best part of £750m still does not buy you what Sir Alex Ferguson has got.

And what is that? The simple answer would be a team in the semi-finals of the Champions League for the fourth time in five years but the reality is even harder for Chelsea to take. What Ferguson had last night was a team, from Javier Hernandez at 22 to Ryan Giggs at 37, that – there really is no other way of saying it – just looked better than their opponents in every department.

In Wayne Rooney, United had the game's most effective player. By the end of the game he had grown in confidence to the extent that he attempted a lob of Petr Cech from virtually the halfway line. He was not quite taking the rise out of Chelsea but it was not far off. Rooney was not the only one who sealed United's domination, there were many others too.

As John Terry trailed down the tunnel behind his team-mates, we were reminded that this was not a Chelsea team going out of the Champions League with a snarl and an angry finger jabbed in the direction of another controversy. This was a team outplayed and out-thought for the second successive year and, like every failure in Europe for this club, it is hard to believe that it will not have consequences for Carlo Ancelotti.

This was not a disastrous Chelsea performance – Didier Drogba's second-half goal gave them brief hope – but they were never really close to rescuing this tie from the 1-0 deficit of the first leg. They had their moments, but that was never going to be enough against a United team that looked from the very start like they were not to be shaken from their destiny of a place in the semi-finals against, in all likelihood, Schalke.

The big decision from Ancelotti was dropping Drogba in favour of Fernando Torres, a decision he unpicked at half-time when he substituted Torres for Drogba. There was a clear message in that decision and the message seemed to be that Ancelotti had got this one wrong. Maybe playing Drogba from the start would not have changed the outcome, but it surely would have been a better option.

Ferguson said after the game that any manager would have taken a player of Torres's calibre in January. The problem for Torres was that he walked straight on to the set of Abramovich's serial Champions League obsession and has, if anything, made things worse. It is also worth bearing in mind that when Ferguson is as generous with an opposing manager as he was with Ancelotti last night it is because he has written him off.

Either side of that Drogba goal on 77 minutes, United scored the goals that decided this tie. The first from Hernandez on 43 minutes was just reward for a dominant first half, particularly in the 30 minutes leading up to the break. The second from Park Ji-sung came 21 seconds after the re-start following Drogba's goal. It was the tap on the shoulder from United that, whatever ideas Chelsea might have, this was not to be their night.

The dismissal of Ramires with 20 minutes left came before the last two goals of the game. The second booking, for a tackle on Luis Nani from behind looked harsh. But then Terry's trip on the same player four minutes later looked more justifiably like a yellow card for the Chelsea captain, who was already on a booking.

Ramires had to take his first booking on 32 minutes to stop Nani and a United counter-attack that had swept from one box to the other. Earlier, Rooney had hit a superb cross around Michael Essien from the right side which Hernandez headed in at the near post. The Portuguese linesman called him offside, fractionally.

In the first half especially, United found generous space down Chelsea's left side. That is nominally Frank Lampard's territory but in the 4-3-3 formation that Ancelotti picked last night, Lampard gets drawn inside.

The first United goal came from that side. Rooney struck a half-cleared corner out there to Giggs who, with one touch, played the ball back to John O'Shea. He responded with a beautiful ball inside Nicolas Anelka that allowed Giggs to run at goal. Giggs picked out Hernandez with a fine ball to the back post and, from two yards, the Mexican never misses.

Logic dictates that Giggs should, at his age, have been overrun by a midfield including such athletes as Essien and Ramires but the veteran was superb, creating both United goals. Michael Carrick was again very solid. Park was bright all evening. Rio Ferdinand played through a thigh strain when it looked as if he would have to go off.

Ferdinand never had to chase Torres last night like he has in the past. In defence of the £50m man's performance, he did not have much created for him. The best chances of the first half for Chelsea came around the 15-minute mark and fell to Anelka and Lampard. Neither did much with them.

Drogba gave Chelsea purpose after the break but by then the momentum was already in one direction. At one point in the second half, not only did Rooney win a header on the halfway line against Terry but he won the sprint to the loose ball and crossed to Giggs, who should have scored with his header.

After Ramires' dismissal Chelsea hobbled on, stretched at the back but still only needing one goal to open the tie up again. It came on 77 minutes. Essien's throughball put in Drogba who scored under the body of Edwin Van der Sar. Suddenly Chelsea's 10 men needed just one more goal to win the tie. United's response was quick.

Antonio Valencia, on for Nani, started the move on the right and from Rooney the ball went to Giggs who, for the second time in the game, made the telling pass to Park. In the left channel inside the area, he scored United's second. It was a swift put-down to Chelsea's 10 men and it was a conclusion entirely in keeping with the mood of this game.


Man of the match Rooney.

Match rating 7/10.

Referee O Benquerenca (Portugal).

Attendance 75,000.




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Guardian:


Manchester United send 10-man Chelsea out of Champions League

Manchester United 2 Chelsea 1

Kevin McCarra at Old Trafford



Manchester United have been as relentless over the course of the years as they were in the three hours of this Champions League quarter-final. It is Chelsea, winners of the Double last season, who allowed themselves to grind to a halt following that glory.

Chelsea have now been beaten home and away by opponents who will be confident about an encounter in the last four that will almost certainly see them face the German side Schalke.

Last season, Chelsea won each Premier League encounter with United, but they have since become diminished and, in practice, have no hope of a trophy this year. They are reduced in stature and also saw their numbers cut here when the midfielder Ramires, already booked, was sent off with a second yellow card after he had fouled Nani 20 minutes from the end.

As that episode showed, Chelsea have been stripped of their judiciousness. The manager, Carlo Ancelotti, should be appreciated for what he did 12 months ago, but is at least as likely now to get the sack.

None of that will have weighed on the minds of an Old Trafford crowd that has witnessed Sir Alex Ferguson reassert his command so swiftly. He has been astute as ever, introducing new faces while still tapping the talent of some senior footballers. There is, of course, no sentiment and Paul Scholes, for example, remained on the bench here, just as he had at Stamford Bridge.

Ancelotti has not had the means to dictate events and some issues still gnaw at Chelsea. The Italian took off Fernando Torres at the interval after a first goal for the team had again eluded the Spaniard. It was his replacement, the 33-year-old Didier Drogba, who scored to tie this match at 1-1.

Drogba did so within moments of Ramires's dismissal by advancing on to a Michael Essien pass and finishing with force and technique. All the same, nothing could suppress Manchester United for long. Almost immediately, Park Ji-sung was in an abundance of space to restore his side's lead in the game. The South Korean had been picked out by the outstanding figure in this contest.

Ryan Giggs dominated by showing not only the know-how of a 37-year-old but also the sort of zest that ought by rights to be the exclusive property of colts just making their entry into the sport. It is very hard to think that limited time remains for the Welshman in football, even though the plain facts of physiology mean that, before too long, time will run out even on him.

An evening such as this will, all the same, keep him safe from melancholy. Gloom, on the other hand, may well be engulfing Torres, since he seemed to have lost even the hope that something must come his way in the goalmouth. He is far from being above criticism but the reshaping of Chelsea will demand more invention – no matter who happens to be in the thick of the attacks.

The verve was largely United's. Indeed Chelsea were very nearly behind after 19 minutes. Wayne Rooney was ruled offside by a fraction as headed in a splendid cross by Javier Hernández when the Englishman, in effect, was barely leaning beyond his marker. The disquiet of Chelsea was apparent in three bookings while United started to take a hold of events.

Ferguson's team recorded the opener in the 43rd minute to establish a 2-0 lead on aggregate. Giggs linked with John O'Shea and took the Irishman's sharp pass to angle the ball towards the far post where Hernández waited to score. The attacker is the embodiment of the perceptiveness with which Ferguson has reinforced his squad.

There was no scope left for etiquette on Ancelotti's part and Torres was withdrawn. The Spaniard, as usual, suffered to some degree because creativity has been leaking out of the Chelsea line-up and the sheer force of Drogba did indeed make more of a dent, but the verdict of the manager also confirmed that it is difficult these days to strike the right balance.

As a veteran, the Ivorian, after all, ought not to be viewed as a key performer. United, in any case, were intent on discouraging any notion of a revival by these opponents. With 57 minutes gone, the Chelsea substitute did put a low drive wide from distance as if to confirm to Ferguson's men that they could not pause in their efforts to deter the Stamford Bridge side.

With an hour gone, Edwin van der Sar had to be alert as he moved to his right and turned away Drogba's attempt from a set piece. All the same, it was Chelsea who needed to achieve something spectacular. Ancelotti could not be passive either and Salomon Kalou took over from Nicolas Anelka after an hour.

Chelsea sought to push downfield but the kind of episode that saw Alex head wide from a corner did not unnerve the opposition greatly and Petr Cech was still the more heavily involved of the goalkeepers. The desperation was shown most vividly in the red card that ended Ramires's night and Chelsea's already dwindling hopes.





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Telegraph:


MANCHESTER UNITED 2 - 1 CHELSEA

By Henry Winter



Manchester United’s glorious obsession with the Champions League proved far stronger than Chelsea’s. Ryan Giggs, Wayne Rooney, Ji-sung Park, Michael Carrick and company were simply far hungrier than their visitors, whose interest in the season’s grand prizes ended in embarrassing circumstances with the listless Fernando Torres hauled off and Ramires sent off.

It required an admiring glance only at one special cameo to appreciate why United were better, why they utterly deserved victory and a semi-final with Schalke (barring a miracle for Inter Milan).

The game’s defining memory came not from the build-ups to the goals of Javier Hernandez or Park, however fine those moves were; it came with Giggs sliding in on the sluggish Frank Lampard, winning the ball and a standing ovation.

That moment showed who had the greater appetite: Giggs at 37, playing 90 stamina-stretching minutes in central midfield, tackling and creating, the epitome of elegant determination. Remarkable.

United fans chorused his name, warning the opponents that Giggs would tear them apart again. He is a national treasure, a marvellous role model and a poster boy for the career-enhancing joys of yoga. He had Chelsea tied up in knots.

It required only the briefest of checks of Uefa’s head-to-head statistical comparisons to see the detail that underpinned United’s superiority. Ferguson’s men ran further (111,884 metres to Chelsea’s 110,046m), earned more corners (7 to 2), attempted more passes (548 to 497) and committed fewer fouls (13 to 17). Such numbers added up to a performance of great maturity, a disciplined display of relentless application.

By the time Giggs nicked possession off Lampard, Roman Abramovich had left this theatre of broken dreams. The Russian looks rueful at the best of times and he spent long periods after the break with his right hand cradling his chin, resembling a depressed version of Rodin’s “The Thinker".

Abramovich’s passion for Europe had been ignited by watching Real Madrid and United duelling here in 2003; now another season has passed, possibly another manager, and he remains no closer to the Champions League trophy.

Chelsea’s oligarch will doubtless buy again when the transfer window re-opens, probably with a new man in the dug-out. “You’re getting sacked in the morning,” came the Stretford End’s caustic serenade for Carlo Ancelotti. Probably the summer. For those who admire the engaging Italian this will be a sad eventuality but Abramovich is hardly noted for his patience.

Ancelotti has always insisted that he wanted Torres but the striker currently seems only a £50m problem. Ancelotti keeps changing his tactics in an attempt to coax the best out of Torres. He adopted a 4-3-2-1 Christmas tree formation here but this served only to blunt Lampard as well. Chelsea looked a force only when Didier Drogba stormed on, giving their attack a focus and United’s defence a hard time.

Drogba’s arrival was no great surprise. Torres struggled painfully, the striker flicking an early header wide, slicing a shot and then attempting a give and go with Lampard. Unfortunately for Chelsea, Torres forgot to go.

The contrast with the bright, breezy movement of Rooney was clear.

Rooney was excellent, ghosting wide, racing into the box and also dropping deep, giving extra protection to midfield in Ferguson’s well-balanced, successful 4-4-1-1 configuration.

There was a confidence to United, a belief in their system and in each other. The work-rate was typically first rate. When Nicolas Anelka sought to dart through, there was Rio Ferdinand sliding in to win the ball. Ferdinand had suffered a slight knock, briefly restricting his movement, but he soldiered on.

United were giving little away. Florent Malouda did glide through, guiding the ball around Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic, but the Frenchman’s lay-off was wasted by Lampard.

United were building. Hernandez was ruled offside for a diving header but he was getting closer. Before the Mexican finally struck just before the break, United had to negotiate a brief scare. When Anelka chased a ball down the right, Edwin van der Sar charged out but then hesitated. The Dutchman then decided to go for it, racing on and dispossessing Anelka with two expert tackles. The Stretford End loved it.

The atmosphere was relentlessly good and the volume increased two minutes before the interval. Carrick, again a composed presence, seized on a Malouda clearance and laid the ball off to Rooney.

Parading all his vision and passing dexterity, Rooney picked out Giggs on the right. The Welshman’s first touch was exceptional, controlling the ball before passing back to John O’Shea.

The Irishman turned and laced a superb return pass between Malouda and Anelka, statues in the face of the red-flecked zephyr. Giggs calmly placed the ball towards the far-post for Hernandez, timing his run superbly, drove the ball into the roof of the net. It was United’s 500th European goal according to Uefa.

Torres’ failure to emerge for the second period delighted the United fans, whose bonhomie intensified when Ramires departed for another challenge on Nani in the 70th minute. Chelsea actually sprang to life with 10 men, Drogba running on to Michael Essien’s fine pass to shoot past Van der Sar.

No matter. United just went through the gears within 21 seconds, the ball fizzing between Antonio Valencia, Giggs and Rooney before Giggs played one of those delicate yet devastating passes to set up Park, who drilled the ball past Cech. The Treble is on for Ferguson. Trouble is all that lies in store for Ancelotti.




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Mirror:


Man United 2-1 Chelsea (agg 3-1): Park puts Fergie into semis

By Martin Lipton



Determined as hell, relentless as ever, remorseless when it matters. Just like 1999, in fact.

While Sir Alex Ferguson does not like the growing talk of The Treble, knows this team is not as good as the one that conquered every peak 12 years ago, something is stirring at Old Trafford.

Something far too powerful for a Chelsea side fatally compromised by the arrival of Fernando Torres, the ultimate vanity purchase but hooked after a miserable 45 minutes that summed up how he doesn't fit this Blues squad.

Something that, through the enduring, remarkable brilliance of Ryan Giggs has a common thread with the United team that will never be forgotten.

And on the night that surely spelled the beginning of the end for Carlo Ancelotti, as Roman Abramovich walked out seconds before the final act was ended by the Portuguese referee, something that is starting to develop a legend of its own.

Javier Hernandez has supplanted Dimitar Berbatov, not through weight of goals but quality of performances when it really mattered, his 17th of the season demonstrating all of his natural poacher's instincts.

Others are shining too. Edwin Van Der Sar at 40, Nemanja Vidic, Nani and a restored and re-energised Michael Carrick.

And, of course, the man from Liverpool. Last night, every United fan was willing to forgive Wayne Rooney for all his indiscretions, the contract stand-off, the embarrassments brought by his misadventures on and off the pitch, the injuries and the loss of form.

Giggs may have created the two goals that first gave United breathing space and then sealed the deal, but Rooney was the difference.

If there was a blade of Chelsea turf he left uncovered they will have spent all evening searching for it.

For all that Chelsea had dominated early on, they did not possess the extra quality, the real threat, that brought Old Trafford to its feet whenever Rooney took up the ball.

And Rooney's energy, effort, desire made Torres' failure to make any impact all the more stark and graphic.

United might have done the hard work at Stamford Bridge but with Wembley's Arch moving into sight, this was about sealing the deal.

At times, they wobbled, no question.

Even with Torres, an early header aside, little more than a passenger, Ancelotti's tactical "surprise" and shift to a 4-3-2-1 shape with Frank Lampard and Nicolas Anelka supporting the £50million flop created the openings.

The problem, as has been the case for most of the past few months, and certainly since Torres' arrival, was Chelsea's inability to convert them, to take advantage of the 20-minute spell when Rio Ferdinand was struggling with an early ankle knock.

Anelka, teed up by Torres, shot inches wide before Florent Malouda, running purposefully from deep, gave Lampard the sort of chance from 14 yards he would surely have taken in any other of his nine Chelsea seasons.

This time, though, Lampard shot too close to Edwin Van Der Sar and by the time Ancelotti reacted, dumping the Spaniard and sending on Didier Drogba, the striker he should have started, the momentum had shifted.

Only a matter of inches - but correctly - denied Hernandez with a flying header from six yards out as the flag went up as Rooney drilled in a superb cross from the right mid-way through the first period.

And two minutes from the break, after a spate of deserved yellow cards which saw Ramires pick up the first of the two bookings that was to leave Chelsea man short for the final quarter, Hernandez got one that did count.

Rooney picked out the pass to Giggs, who ghosted behind Anelka from John O'Shea's return and steered across goal for Hernandez, behind the ball, to nudge home from a couple of feet.

Ancelotti did what he had to do, sending on Drogba but time was against Chelsea, unable to test Van Der Sar until after Ramires went through Nani from behind to see red.

United, who had stuck to their game plan and threatened on the counter, looked home and hosed, only for Drogba to explode onto Michael Essien's clip over the top and smash through the keeper.

Five minutes of equality and it might have got twitchy. Instead, United were back in front within 47 seconds.

Rooney found Giggs, who amid the bedlam looked up to spot a peach of a pass with the outside of his left foot.

There, in space, was Ji-Sung Park to bury the ball, bury Chelsea, and, surely, bury Ancelotti.

No way back for the Blues, no Holy Grail for Abramovich.

United, though, have glory stretching out in front of them, as far as the eye can see.



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Sun:


Man United 2 Chelsea 1

By SHAUN CUSTIS



IT'S all coming together at the right time for Manchester United.

The Little Pea, Javier Hernandez, continues to sprout at an astonishing rate.

Ryan Giggs is laughing in the face of his pension book and United can swear by Wayne Rooney once again.

This may not be the greatest side ever to be seen at Old Trafford but they are as confident as any of their predecessors and will firmly believe they can land the Treble.

Giggs has seen it all and done it all but the 37-year-old is as enthusiastic as when he burst on the scene at the age of 17.

He was the creator of all three goals in this Champions League quarter-final tie, laying on Rooney's strike at Stamford Bridge and the two here last night for Hernandez and Ji-Sung Park.

Hernandez, 22, is the find of the season and has emerged as one of United's key men.

At £7million, the Little Pea did not even cost big potatoes - unlike Chelsea's £50m misfit Fernando Torres, who was embarrassingly subbed at half-time.

It was the Mexican's 18th goal of his debut campaign which set United on the road to victory in the 43rd minute. Chelsea midfielder Ramires was sent off for two bookable offences with 20 minutes left but sub Didier Drogba equalised on 77 minutes to give Chelsea hope.

Only for United to snuff that out within 21 seconds after play had re-started when the ever- reliable Park netted from 12 yards.

Chelsea's season is done. All that remains is to get a top-four spot so they can have another go at trying to win the trophy which has once more eluded them.

Expect more forensic examination of the tormented Torres along the way. He has now gone 692 minutes without a goal since joining the Blues from Liverpool.

Andy Carroll's double against Manchester City the previous night would suggest it has all worked out rather well at Anfield. As for Chelsea boss Carlo Ancelotti, can he really survive?

He says his job is not under threat but Blues owner Roman Abramovich, watching from the directors' box, is obsessed by Europe's biggest club prize and will not take this elimination well.

Few would have chosen Torres in the starting line-up but Ancelotti had clearly decided to appease Abramovich by selecting the Spanish striker.

Drogba had good reason to feel aggrieved about that. This game was made for him and his second-half performance showed why he should have got the nod to start.

For all that, Chelsea began the stronger as Torres glanced a header wide and laid a ball back for Nicolas Anelka, who smacked an effort past the post.

But that was it for Torres - we never saw him again. Remember the days when he used to run rings round Nemanja Vidic?

The worry for United was that Rio Ferdinand, so vital to their cause, was limping around at the back having been hurt in a scramble on the edge of the box.

And he was still struggling as Florent Malouda fed Frank Lampard in space.

The England midfielder should have scored but his side-footed shot neither had the power or accuracy to beat Edwin van der Sar.

An Anelka strike whistled over but Hernandez thought he had eased the tension when he met a cracking curling cross from Rooney to head in.

The linesman's flag curtailed celebrations - it was a marginal offside call. But United hit Chelsea with a sucker-punch two minutes before the break.

Rooney played a great pass out wide over the head of Anelka before Giggs cushioned it back to John O'Shea.

The full-back saw Giggs dart in behind the Blues rearguard and picked him out with a defence- splitting ball.

Giggs took the pass in his stride, whipped it across the six-yard box for Hernandez to finish.

It put United two up on aggregate but Chelsea's task was still the same in that they needed to score twice to go through.

Drogba had to replace Torres - which Ancelotti recognised at half time. Ramires was dismissed after two fouls on Nani to add to the Blues' woes.

But suddenly Michael Essien picked out Drogba with a raking pass and the Ivory Coast hitman rattled the ball home.

Nerves were jangling round Old Trafford - but not for long.

Giggs was again the creator, playing in Park who made no mistake and set up a likely date with German side Schalke.

It will be United's fourth Champions League semi-final in five seasons.

Next up, it is the FA Cup and a last-four tie against arch-rivals City at Wembley on Saturday.

The mood United are in, you would not want to be a City player or a fan - even with Rooney suspended.




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Mail:


Manchester United 2 Chelsea 1 (agg 3-1): Hernandez and Park heap more heartache on Roman's Blues

By Matt Lawton



This was all about the contrast between opposing strikers - a contrast that could not have been more pleasing for Manchester United or more painful for Chelsea.

On the one side stood Wayne Rooney and Javier Hernandez, the scorers of two of the three goals that settled this terrific Champions League tie and two players as determined as they were deadly.

On the other stood a pair of apparent misfits, selected together in the first leg, played for a half each in the second and in the end unable to salvage something from what has been a desperate season for Chelsea. A season that descended deeper into crisis with the dismissal of Ramires in the 70th minute.

It amounted to Carlo Ancelotti's worst nightmare. He started with Fernando Torres and the Spaniard was predictably awful, sending on Drogba as his replacement only to see him score a superb goal. It was not enough to alter the outcome of this Champions League quarter-final but enough to embarrass his manager, humiliate the club's new £50million signing and prove a point that could yet prove Ancelotti's downfall.

What a mess it really has become at Stamford Bridge. Only Ancelotti can say why he picked Torres and whether it had anything to do with the pressure he might have been under from his billionaire employer to pick the most expensive player in British football history. Whatever the genesis of the decision, it was a bad one.

Torres was as bad during that opening 45 minutes as Drogba was good after the break. Torres is now without a goal in 693 minutes of football for Chelsea. That, as Ray Wilkins pointed out from his position in the Sky television studio, was Drogba's 143rd goal in 300 Chelsea appearances.

In fairness to Ancelotti, he did get the formation right this time. He reverted to the tried and tested 4-3-3 shape and it appeared to be paying off until Hernandez struck two minutes before the break. Chelsea had played marginally the better football, with Florent Malouda and Ramires causing United real trouble.

The problem for Chelsea was the guy at the pinnacle of that three-man attack. The guy so lacking in confidence he struggled to even execute the simplest pass. The guy who was the antithesis of those marvellous men in red.

They all deserve credit for another superb display but it is hard to praise anyone more than Ryan Giggs when the wonderful Welshman followed his contribution at Stamford Bridge by creating both goals here.

While the surging run that enabled him to deliver the ball to the feet of Hernandez again defied those who expect him to be slowing down at 37, the pass that invited Park Ji-sung to score United's second in the 77th minute was probably more impressive.

Less than a minute earlier, Drogba had dragged the 10 men of Chelsea back into this tie but from Giggs came a quite exquisite ball; a perfectly-weighted chip which the Korean was able to control before beating Petr Cech with a super left-footed finish. What a response.

Others, of course, excelled. Edwin Van der Sar produced the saves when it mattered while Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic provided further security in front of him. For Ferdinand that is now 22 United appearances this season without defeat. Ahead of them Michael Carrick was a composed, confident presence, as was Park.

Rooney and Hernandez are forming quite a partnership and the Mexican went desperately close to opening the scoring in the 26th minute. He met Rooney's cross with a close-range header Cech was powerless to stop but the assistant referee raised his flag. Television replays revealed that he was indeed offside, but by no more than a few inches, much to the disappointment of a vociferous United crowd.

There were no objections, though, when Hernandez found the net for a second time. That was a goal for United and, far more crucially, their second of the tie after Rooney scored in the first leg. Coming just before the break, it amounted to a crushing blow for Chelsea and an example of how not to defend.

While it remained a beautifully executed goal and further evidence of Giggs' enduring qualities, Nicolas Anelka will certainly wince when he sees how easily he was beaten by the reverse pass John O'Shea delivered into the path of his colleague. It enabled Giggs to accelerate into the Chelsea penalty area with the ball at his feet before driving it across the six-yard box where Hernandez was waiting to score.

Ancelotti responded to that by withdrawing Torres for Drogba and the Ivorian wasted little time in demonstrating why he should have been picked from the start. There was a presence about him, determination, too. When he drove a shot narrowly wide, the United back four began to look a touch nervous.

By replacing Anelka with Salomon Kalou, Ancelotti gave United something else to think about. But then Ramires caught Nani for the second time with a challenge that brought a second booking, a tie that he was already going to remember for that penalty appeal rejected at Stamford Bridge turned into a complete disaster. Olegario Benquerenca produced a yellow card and then his red. Game over for the Brazilian.

It was not game over for Chelsea, however, Drogba controlling a ball from Michael Essien before using his pace, strength and considerable finishing ability to put his side within a goal of an unlikely victory.

Until, that is, United responded immediately by scoring their second of the night and so securing a seventh Champions League semi-final for Ferguson. It means the pursuit of the Treble continues.

For Chelsea, though, the future is less certain. There will be bitter recriminations after this. Drogba is sure to be furious but, more significantly for Ancelotti, so is Roman Abramovich. The Russian might have only one thing in mind for his latest manager. What he would perhaps call his own special Roman holiday.