Prior to kick off yesterday there was nervous energy and
uncontrollable excitement felt by Manchester and Madrid fans alike. The first
leg saw Manchester go into the Bernabeu and grab a precious away goal while coming
out with a draw, a positive result to say the least. After a two week respite
from Champions League competition, the stage now shifted to Old Trafford as the
eyes of the football world descended upon the “Theatre of Dreams”.
As the match inched closer to starting Twitter came to life
as seemingly everyone had something to say on the contest. It started with the
usual score and lineup predictions (none of which were right) but took an
unexpected twist as Sir Alex Ferguson did the unthinkable, he dropped one of
Manchester’s favourite sons, Wayne Rooney. While many supporters preached
loyalty with their #InFergieWeTrust tweets, many (myself included) couldn’t
believe the omission. To drop the co-highest paid player (RVP is on similar
wages) and arguably the clubs best player was a move reminiscent of the David
Beckham, Ruud Van Nistelrooy, and to a lesser degree Dimitar Berbatov benching’s.
All three of those players found themselves leaving United shortly after being
left out of the starting XI (Berbatov got a reduced role before leaving), and
now speculation of Rooney’s possible departure is rampant.
We all know what happened in the match so I’ll abstain from
providing any real summary other than this; the first sixty minutes went to
plan for United as they grabbed the first goal and thoroughly frustrated
Madrid. Danny Welbeck’s man marking of Xabi Alonso was an unexpected tactic
that was a masterstroke as it kept Madrid from establishing any real attacking
threat. With Alonso not pulling the strings a victory looked well within United’s
grasp; that was until referee Cuneyt Cakir did the unthinkable and sent of Nani
for an unintentional high boot (that hit Arbeloa’s arm). A dangerous play that warranted
yellow, but nowhere near vicious or dangerous enough to be given a red. That
decision swung momentum in Madrid’s favour and they mercilessly attacked a
shocked United. Below is a compilation of tweets from managers, players,
journalists, pundits, and twitter users on the main storylines from the match.
Wayne Rooney on the
bench
Colleen Rooney
(@ColleenRoo): Can’t believe @WayneRooney isn’t starting tonight!!!
Piers Morgan
(@PiersMorgan): Sorry, but picking an old man (Giggs) and a 2nd-rate
striker (Nani) over Shrek @WayneRooney is a shocking, suicidal decision by
Sir Alex.
Jose Mourinho: "Sir Alex
Ferguson has won the right (to pick his team) over the years. Every
decision is correct and every decision should never have a question mark in
front. He's the best, he's the top, he's created an incredible history. You
(reporter) are nobody, I am nobody, to put a question mark in front. His team
was very well-organised. The defence was fantastic and I think he did a great
job."
Mike Phelan: “The
decision was tactical, in that dressing room everyone was fit. Big decisions
had to be made; tonight we had the balance just right.”
Me (@InOnGoal): People
saying Rooney will come on and do a job is ridiculous, you can't leave out your
best player and depend on him as a supersub #mufc
Me (@InOnGoal): Wow
no Rooney, this is a massive decision that could have an impact beyond this
match. Rumuors have been swirling of another possible rift! ---The links to PSG
and Real Madrid will only get louder
Michael Owen: "For
Rooney not to start it's got to be a big worry for him. It's the biggest game
of the season and the manager has not included him"
The Red Card
Mike Phelan: “The
decision… was amazing. But we had to carry on. In a game of this magnitude,
with the whole world watching, we feel very disappointed."
“We all saw and
witnessed a decision that seemed very harsh. We had a massive audience around
the world with people watching in how many countries I do not know, and everybody
will be sitting there wondering what happened. A great performance was marred
by one decision."
“We felt the ball was in the air, the player was watching
the ball. Yes, there was contact, but that's the nature of football and to get
a red card seems unbelievable."
Jose Mourinho: “Playing
with one man down for such a long period is going to change a lot in the
game."
Michael Owen (@TheMichaelOwen):
Disappointing that a game of that size was decided by a refereeing
decision. Can understand why he sent him off but got to say it was harsh.
Gary Neville
(@GNev2): Nani is a player who regularly tries to control a pass
like this over his shoulder and its never a red card! Changed the whole game! Poor
ref
Richard Keys
(@tSKeysandGray): Difficult for @gnev2 to be objective at a time like this. Was Nani endangering the well being of an
opponent? Yes. Therefore it's a red card
Matt Le Tisser
(@MattLetiss7): Some dim people on today who dont understand that nani was trying to control the ball and not
making a challenge/planting studs in ribs
Dietmar Hamann
(@DietmarHamann): If Nani jumps in
like that in a crowded area then its a different story,Arbeloa made up a lot of
ground.If that's a red then good night.
Vincent Kompany
(@VincentKompany): Never a red card.
Gary Lineker
(@GaryLineker): Unbelievably harsh red. Rotten decision.
Joseph Barton
(@Joey7Barton): Red card for that is a joke!
Kevin-Prince Boateng
(@KPBOfficial): How can u give a red for that??? Is he serious…??? That’s sad
killing a big game like that…#ManUvRealM
Tim Cahill (@Tim_Cahill): @rioferdy5 feel for u and the boys tonight mate.
That 1 decision destroyed the game. I was enjoying the game up until then..... #harsh
Edwin Van Der Sar (@vdsar1970): Disbelieve at this score and
decisions #manrea
What do you guys think of the red card?
The Tactician (@ManToManMarking):
Cannot
complain particularly. Ruined the game, yes, sadly. However, it was a good
decision in the most part.
Me (@InOnGoal): Of course Ramos is the first one
in the refs ear…An unintentional high boot, that was barely a yellow
Me (@InOnGoal): “Doesn't make it ok. If it
happens once that’s too much. Incompetence shouldn’t be justified by more
incompetence” ß-------- In response to people saying
Manchester United has gotten the call before
Paddy Crerand: "Roy Keane was in a minority
of one. Not one person said it was a red card except Roy Nobody
else thinks it was a sending off apart from him. Does Keane want to be noticed?
Or is he envious or jealous? Has he got the needle with Manchester United
because of what happened to him here? Why are we talking about Roy Keane? What
about the other 99.9 per cent of people who said it wasn’t as sending off? Let
me tell you… I played for Manchester United. I played in a European Cup final.
Roy didn’t.”
Roy Keane (@RoyMKeane16): Nani's tackle was a clear red -
no arguments.
Roy Keane: “I think the referee has actually made the right call, everyone’s upset about it and it’s slightly unlucky, but it’s dangerous play. Whether he meant it or not is irrelevant. It’s dangerous play – it’s a red card. Whether he meant it or not doesn’t matter.”
An
excerpt from the Dailymail.co.uk
But now it can be revealed just how
fond the Insurance agent is of waving cards around after it emerged the
36-year-old has not refereed a single game without booking someone all year. He has shown an incredible 36 yellow
cards and three reds in just eight club games since mid-January. Only on Saturday, in his last domestic
game before travelling to Manchester, Cakir showed six yellow cards in a game
between Akhisar Beledi and Elazigspor in Turkey. A week earlier, meanwhile, he booked
five players and sent one off in Gaziantepspor’s win over Bursaspor. Turkish journalist Fatih Ozkan
confirmed that Cakir has caused controversy in his home country. 'He was one of the best in recent years
but after he was assigned to European games, he lost his concentration in the
Turkish leagues,' he said.
A Final Thought
"Independent of the [referee’s] decision, the
best team lost. We didn't play well. We didn't deserve to win.” --- Jose
Mourinho
I am not sure whether or not I believe the best team
lost, but I do feel as though Madrid would have struggled to break down United
twice if Nani was not sent off. What’s done is done and although this loss
stings, it is important to pick up the pieces and look toward the future. A
bright future that could still see United win the double. I wish Madrid luck as
they continue on in the competition as they handled the incident (Sergio Ramos
notwithstanding) with class.
Thank you for reading, if you have any comments please
feel free to leave a comment or contact me on twitter @inongoal.
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