Trouble at Stamford Bridge

What a semi final it turned out to be at Stamford Bridge between Chelsea and Barcelona. After a pretty boring 0-0 draw last week in Spain, this tie turned out to a very entertaining affair. Chelsea took the lead in the 9th minute through a spectacular Michael Essien volley, soon after they had a clear penalty appeal turned down when Malouda appeared to be taken down in the box. In the second half, Drogba appeals for a penalty when the ball clearly strikes Pique's hand, before Abidal sees a red card for taking down Anelka just outside the area. With 10 men Barcelona continued to try find a way through only to see a wall of Chelsea players each and everytime. In the 90th minute, Barcelona had NO SHOTS ON GOAL, and with 10 men Chelsea are on the way to Rome, right? Wrong! Iniesta scored a screamer deep into inury time when the ball was fed to him at the top of the box. The away goal sent Barcelona through to the Champions League final where they will play Manchester United.

After the game, all hell broke lose. After Barcelona had scored, Chelsea sent everyone forward and had another clear penalty appeal turned down when Michael Ballack's rocket clearly hit a Barcelona defenders arm. The ball was cleared, but Michael Ballack had alot to say about the referee's decision to not call a penalty. Chasing the referee, he clearly threw his arms around the official, screaming at him. When the final whistle went, Didier Drogba who had been subbed in the second half, had to held back from the official, Ovrebo, as the Chelsea striker shouted into a television camera: ‘Are you watching this? It is a f****** disgrace.’Drogba, sent off against United in last year’s final defeat in Moscow, had to be restrained by manager Guus Hiddink before storming off to the dressing room.

Also See:
Chelsea vs Barcelona statistics
Manchester United Win Premier League

Fletcher Suspended for Champions League Final

Darren Fletcher will not be able to appeal against the red card he received in the Champions League win over Arsenal. In what was a great night for Manchester United, Fletchers red card was the only negative point. A ball into the United area, saw Fletcher stretch across Arsenals Cesc Fabregas and seem to win the ball while taking Fabregas down. Replays show that Fletcher did in fact win the ball, taking it away from Fletchers body. In defence of the referee, he really could not see Fletcher striking the ball, and it did look like he took Fletcher down.

Although the Football Association have moved towards a position where referees regularly rescind red cards, both UEFA and FIFA strictly maintain the rules that match officials' decisions should remain sacrosanct. Thus, unless Fletcher was red carded when it was someone else who commited the foul, it can not be appealed. It is unfortunate for Fletcher who stayed on the bench for last seasons final. "He's one of the most honest players in the game and to miss the final, it's a tragedy," said Ferguson. If there is anyone who can console Fletcher it will be team mate Paul Scholes who, along with Roy Keane, had to sit out the 1999 final when Manchester United beat Bayern Munich.

Also See:
Manchester United Win Premier League
Nike Mercurial Vapor Berry Still Available

Galaxy Find a Way to Win

LA Galaxy finally got their first win of the season at the weekend and now sit at 1-1-4 for the season. After what has been a difficult few weeks due to injuries, Galaxy battled to a 1-0 win over the New York Reb Bulls. It was Landon Donovan who scored the goal in the 39th minute, slotting home a controversial penalty. The ball seemed to hit Seth Stammler on the hip, but the linesman put his flag up for a penalty. The win was Galaxy's first in 6 games, after 4 draws and 1 losses. In the six games Galaxy have played this season, Donovan has been involved in every goal the team have scored, showing his importance to the team. David Beckham returns to Galaxy in late June, so until then it is a case of trying to get some wins on the board, starting at Real Salt Lake this coming weekend.

New York Red Bulls (1-5-2) vs. Los Angeles Galaxy (1-1-4) May 02, 2009 -- The Home Depot Center

Scoring Summary: LA -- Landon Donovan 4 (penalty kick) 39


New York Red Bulls -- Jon Conway, Carlos Johnson, Kevin Goldthwaite, Carlos Mendes, Alfredo Pacheco (Danleigh Borman 66), Macoumba Kandji, Jorge Rojas, Seth Stammler, Sinisa Ubiparipovic (Albert Celades 59), Juan Pablo Angel, Dane Richards (John Wolyniec 79),
Substitutes Not Used: Danny Cepero, Mike Petke, Luke Sassano, Khano Smith

Los Angeles Galaxy -- Donovan Ricketts, Sean Franklin, Gregg Berhalter, Omar Gonzalez, Todd Dunivant, Chris Klein (Bryan Jordan 75), Dema Kovalenko, Josh Tudela (Stefani Miglioranzi 68), Eddie Lewis, Edson Buddle (Jovan Kirovski 85), Landon Donovan,
Substitutes Not Used: Alan Gordon, Mike Magee, Tony Sanneh, Josh Saunders

Champions League Semi Final First Leg's

The semi final of the champions League took place this week- with more English teams playing than goals scored! Without a doubt, four of the top clubs in Europe battled it out, trying to get a foot into the Final that will take place in Rome. Barcelona entertained Chelsea in a huge battle Tuesday night. Even with some of the best attacking talent on show, neither team could find a way through. Chelsea came closest when Didier Drogba got a one on one with the Barca keeper, but what a rare chance that was for Chelsea. The advantage will definitely be with the Stanford bridge outfit in next week’s second leg.
In the other semi Final, John O’Shea was the unlikely hero, as he belted in a half volley mid way through the first half. United absolutely pummeled the Arsenal goal and should have scored more goals. It could very well come back to haunt them as they go to Highbury for the return leg next Tuesday. Could it be a repeat of last season final - Chelsea vs Man Utd? I would not be surprised, and what a game that would be!

Giggs Finally Scoops PFA Award

In what has been one of the most glittered soccer careers of all time, Ryan Giggs was named this seasons PFA player of the year for the first time. Giggs has been at Manchester United for 17 seasons, winning 10 Premier League titles and 2 Champions League titles to name a few. This season has only seen Giggs on the starting sheet 12 games times. Many will see this accolade as an award handed to Gigg's for his service to the Premier League, but in all honesty, it is also a deserved award for his performances this season. Instead of playing out wide on the left, Giggs has been employed as a stalewarth in the center of United's midfield. Ferguson has used him to full effect, and when needed Giggs has stepped upto the plate, putting in experienced performances.

After receiving the award, Giggs praised Alex Ferguson, who has been his only coach at Manchester United. ''The manager has been massive in my career from when I first met him when I was 13, that's over 20 years and he knows me better than anyone and our relationship has been brilliant and just gets better" Giggs stated. Manchester United host Arsenal in the first leg of the Champions League semi final on wednesday, with Giggs relishing the opportunity to be involved, "These are the games you want to be involved in. They don't come bigger than that - a Champions League semi-final at Old Trafford. I can't wait." If Giggs is selected he will be making an astonishing 800th appearance for the Red Devils. The game can be seen LIVE online on ESPN360.

Toon Army and Shearer Feeling the Pressure

With only 4 games left in the season, Newcastle United are feeling the pressure of the relegation zone and a season in the Championship. Alan Shearer took the reigns on Tyneside less than 3 weeks ago, with the task of saving the Toon army from relegation. But thins have not got any better since his arrival, with a record of 2 draws and a loss, 2 points from a possible 9. One of those draws occured last night in a pretty boring 0-0 home draw with Portsmouth. Shearer had started with a very attacking team that included Owen, Viduka, Martins, Smith and Duff. But even with so many attacking players on the field, Newcastle really struggled to create any chances. The miss of the match went to Michael Owen in the 63rd minute. Chances were at a premium for the Magpies striker, but when the time came the former Liverpool marksman fluffed his lines. It was Viduka who managed to squeeze the ball through the Portsmouth defence, despite having been wrestled to the ground, to leave Owen with just the keeper to beat, but James blocked with his legs to leave Shearer with his head in his hands.

It does not get any easier for Newcastle in the remaining 4 games. They will need at least 7 points to have any chance of survival. First up is a trip to title contendors Liverpool, followed by home games with fellow strugglers and Neighbors Middlesborough, and a home game with Fulham. They then finish the season away to Aston Villa. My verdict: loss to Liverpool, win over Middlesborough, draw with Fulham, draw with Villa. What does that mean? Championship status for Newcastle next season.

Everton vs Chelsea FA Cup Final

Chelsea took a step closer to their quest of a triple cup haul this season. After Wednesdays 4-4 Champions League draw with Liverpool, Chelsea took on cross town rivals Arsenal in another tough battle. Arsenal took the lead through Theo Walcott, but Florent Malouda scored before half time to leave the teams level. Then in the 86th minute, Didier Drogba scored the winning goal after a huge blunder by Polish international keeper Lukasz Fabianski, the game finished 2-1.

That left Manchester United and Everton to battle for the other final spot. In what was to be one of the most boring games in FA Cup history (no exaggeration!), Everton secured the win after the game went to penalties. It will be Everton's first final appearance since 1995. Tim Howard turned out to be Everton's hero by saving the first 2 penalties, leaving Manchester United needing Everton to miss. That was not to be. One thing to note about the game was team that Alex Ferguson put out to start the game. With Macheda, Wellbeck, Fabio and Rafael Da Silva, Gibson, and Anderson starting, the average age of the United team was just over 22 years old (Ji-Sung Park was the second oldest player on the field at 27). This, of course, does not take away from the fact that Everton deserved to win.

The final will be played on May 30th 2009 at the new Wembley stadium. This will be the 3rd final at the new Wembley since it was rebuilt, and the 128th final of the world's oldest domestic football tournament. Last years final was won by Portsmouth, who beat Championship team Cardiff 1-0.

Cristiano Ronaldo puts his Nike Mercurial Vapor Superfly to good use!

Manchester United went to Portugal this week, knowing that only a victory would see them through to the semi final of the Champions League. Porto left Old Trafford last week with a well deserved 2-2 tie, meaning that a win or draw would see them through. But less than 10 minutes in, the tie had taken a turn in the direction of Manchester United, a Cristiano Ronaldo strike from 35 yards set the stage for Manchester United to march on to the next round. And what a strike it was. Ronaldo picked the ball up just inside the Porto half, took a few steps and launched an absolute rocket the left the Porto keeper with no chance. It seems like the Superfly's worked for him, helping him put extra power and precision behind his shot.

Manchester United will face Arsenal in the semi final after Arsenal dispatched of Villareal in style with a 3-0 win in London. In the other semi final, Chelsea and Barcelona will meet in what is sure to be an absolutely cracking battle, with a lot of history between the two teams over the past several years. More reviews to come later.