Faith, hope, and passion…in sport and in life!
Posted May 28, 2008 by james in Sports Journal | 0 Comments
I am getting ready to attend Book Expo America in Los Angeles tomorrow. It should be a very interesting three days. I will make daily blog entries from the show to let you know what is going on.
I want to write about football today, because the soccer world just witnessed one of the all-time greatest games ever played this past week.
The setting was Moscow, Russia, and the match was between two British giants, Manchester United, and their arch rival, Chelsea of London.
This was the Champions League final, the culmination of nine months of qualifying for the best club teams in Europe. The venue for the final game changes every year, and this was the first time the championship game had been played in Moscow. Over 50,000 British fans made the trip, and from all reports the Russian hosts were up to the task.
It was the first time two English teams had ever met in the final. Teams are drawn into pools initially, and as it turned out, the last four teams to reach the semi-finals included a third English team, Liverpool, and Barcelona of Spain.
The game had extra emotion for Manchester United, because it was exactly 50 years earlier that a plane carrying their team home from a European Cup game crashed in Munich, Germany.
Eight of the United players died in that crash, and it took a decade before the United club was able to win the championship again.
The game in Moscow was pure magic for football fans. The red-shirted United team versus the blue shirted Chelsea squad. Full out, non-stop rugged action from start to finish.
United scored first, on a brilliant header by their Portuguese idol, Cristiano Ronaldo, in the 26th. minute. Englishman Frank Lampart, equalized for Chelsea in the 45th. minute.
There was no scoring in the second half, although many close calls were witnessed. The frantic pace never let up. Caution was thrown to the wind, even though one mistake could turn out to be disastrous.
Thirty minutes of extra time were then played, two fifteen minute halves, with no sudden death goal to decide the outcome. No goals were scored during overtime, so penalty kicks would decide the champion of Europe.
The 67,310 fanatics in Luzhniki Stadium held their breath, as a driving rain poured down on the tense scene below.
Each team would select five players to take alternating shots on their opponent’s goalkeeper from the penalty spot.
Manchester United won the coin toss and elected to go first. The initial two payers scored for their respective teams.
Then, to everyone’s shock, European player of the years, and the man that had given United their only goal during the match, Cristiano Ronaldo, missed the net.
The game’s other goal scorer, Frank Lampart of Chelsea, promptly “tickled the old onion bag,” as the British announcers often say.
Chelsea seemed destined to be champions.
The soccer Gods are fickle, however, and strange things can happen when the elements and emotion are combined.
John Terry, the Chelsea captain and fifth shooter, had a chance to put the game away with a goal, but his footing gave way on the slippery turf as he took his shot.
The United goalie was able to bat the ball to safety. United were still alive.
After five shots for each team, the score stood at four goals each.
As the rain turned into a downpour, the ultimate champion awaited to be crowned under the dark Russian night.
The teams would continue to rotate shooters until a result was arrived at.
Anderson for United scored on his shot, and Kalou for Chelsea responded.
Ryan Giggs, the oldest player on the United team, was true to form for the Reds.
As fate would have it, the blue shirted Anelka of Chelsea was not. United keeper Van Der Sar parried away his low drive to the left post.
United were champions of Europe!
In a game such as this, it really is a shame for anyone to lose, but that is sport.
Faith, hope, and passion…in sport and in life.
