Season 4: Manchester United (first year in charge)
Match Day 38: The clouds rolled in over Stamford Bridge, perhaps foreshadowing the emotions of whoever came up short in this massive match. Chelsea, who knocked United out of the League Cup Semifinals in a penalty shootout, stood second in the table on 76 points. One spot ahead of them, the Red Devils shared the same 76 points. With both teams at 23-7-7, only a victory would do for Chelsea, while a draw would do nicely for United. Of course, a win would be the best way to end a good league campaign. However, the league was not in the bag yet, with many key injuries forcing United to play squad players in the starting lineup. In the prior match against Villa, Cristiano Ronaldo suffered a damaged metatarsal, and was set to be out for a couple of weeks. Earlier in the season, league-leader Louis Saha went down with spasms in the lower back. His return will be an untimely one, just five days after the Chelsea match. Also, first-choice midfielder Alan Smith suffered anterior cruciate ligament damage, and won't be back for a few more months.
Chelsea's main scoring threats marked their trade in the midfield. Frank Lampard and Joe Cole scored 25 and 24 goals, respectively. Robben and Essien both hit 14 on the season, while Damien Duff and striker Hernan Crespo had scored 12. Shaun Wright-Phillips was an ever-present threat, and the back four of Gallas, Del Horno, Terry, and Ferreira had accumulated a total of 8 goals between themselves, with an extra 2 from Carvalho. Petr Cech has established himself as one of the leading keepers in the world, miles above Tim Howard.
Manchester United Lineup:
GK: Tim Howard - 83
RB: Wes Brown - 83
CB: Rio Ferdinand - 93
CB: Roberto Fabian Crespo - 93
LB: Gabriel Heinze (c) - 86
RM: Carlos Torres - 77
CM: Darren Fletcher - 80
CDM: Paulo Gavilan - 73
LM: Park Ji Sung - 83
ST: Ruud van Nistelrooy - 95
ST: Ole Gunnar Solskjaer - 82
Substitutes:
CB/LB/CM: John O'Shea - 84
CB/LB: Mikael Silvestre - 81
RB: Jelle Bisconti - 77
LM/CM: Kieran Richardson - 82
ST: Guissepe Rossi - 69
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Chelsea Lineup:
GK: Petr Cech - 98
RB: Paulo Ferreira - 81
CB: John Terry - 90
CB: William Gallas - 85
LB: Asier del Horno - 80
CM: Ricardo Carvalho - 85
CM: Frank Lampard - 86
CM: Joe Cole - 86
RF: Damian Duff - 85
LF: Arjen Robben - 91
ST: Hernan Crespo - 86
This match will most certainly decide the outcome of the league. One thing is for certain, however. The Shield match will be between Chelsea and Manchester United.
It was Manchester United who enjoyed, but did not prosper from, early pressure. Two good chances in the first ten minutes forced fine saves from Cech, and a Fletcher header glanced narrowly over the far side of the net. Gavilan, in the 22nd minute, had a crack from 20 yards out, but the ball ended up sailing well wide. A few minutes later, Park Ji Sung picked up the ball from an overhit cross and lashed one that flew by the far post. The remainder of the half was primarily a midfield battle, with some nasty tackles flying between Essien and Gavilan. When it seemed that the half would end scoreless, Chelsea won a corner. The ball was whipped in by Robben, and met by the head of Essien. The ball beat Howard easily, but it was Heinze who was able to clear the ball off the line, resulting in the halftime whistle blowing.
The second half started off with little action. A tame shot from Park flew into the hands of Cech, but neither keeper had to touch the ball for quite some time. Then, in the 65th minute, Robben got hold of the ball on the left flank and sent in a high, looping cross to the penalty spot. Hernan Crespo was able to rise above Ferdinand, and drilled a skipping header past Tim Howard towards the bottom corner, and past the sliding Wes Brown. 1-0 Chelsea. If the score remained the same, the Blues would have the league to add to their English Cup.
Facing an uphill battle, United switched to a more attacking style of play, utilizing the wings more often. Immediately, it paid divedends. Solskjaer held the ball up 30 yards from goal, and played a support pass to Park, and then ran down the flank to receive a give-and-go ball. From near the touchline, Solskjaer whipped in a fierce cross towards van Nistelrooy. The Dutchman was able to outmuscle Asier del Horno, and unleashed a wicked first time volley. The shot seemed to be heading to the near post, where Cech was positioned, but at the six yard box, an unlikely anti-hero John Terry gave the ball the deflection that it needed to put the ball between Cech's legs. Just like that, United hit back in the 72nd minute. 1-1. United now held the league title, so long as they could fight off any late heroics from Chelsea. Earlier in the play, the right winger Torres took a knock, and was replaced by John O'Shea after the goal.
United did not intend to sit back and simply weather the storm. After a few minutes of good Chelsea pressure that saw Hernan Crespo cleanly tackled by Roberto Crespo just outside the box on a last ditch effort, the ball was cleared out to van Nistelrooy, who held the ball up and played a ball back to Gavilan. The Paraguayan midfield anchor then sprayed the ball down the right wing to the world's laziest utility player, John O'Shea. O'Shea ran unopposed down the flank and played a good short ball to van Nistelrooy, who turned off of Del Horno at the corner of the penalty area. From a decent enough angle, Ruud dispatched a good left footed shot towards the far post from around 15 yards out. The ball looked to be going in, but Cech stretched brilliantly to push the ball away. A great save, but not enough. The ball fell to the opposite corner of the six yard box, just feet from Solskjaer. The 37 year old won the ball and hit a hard drive to the near post of the empty net. Game over, surely there is no way Chelsea could come back to win when behind 2-1. But wait, Cech somehow scrambles to his feet and pulls off an even more astonishing and unorthodox save with the inside of his right forearm, this time putting the rebound to William Gallas who cleared the ball to safety. Game on, once again. Chelsea seemed invigorated by Cech's performance, and immediately stepped their game up. However, the United back four, and Gavilan, were up for the task. Gavilan blocked two Lampard perimeter shots within seconds of each other, and Roberto Fabian Crespo sacrificed a yellow card to take down Hernan Crespo near the half line to ensure that his fellow Argentine would not be allowed a breakaway on Tim Howard. It was in the 88th minute that Chelsea saw hope. Lampard played a nice give and go with Essien, and the Ghana international used his momentum to get past Ferdinand for a chance to win the game - and more importantly, the league. The midfielder hit a low shot that grazed Tim Howard's torso, and bounced towards the line with much of its original pace negated. It neared the line, until the captain, Gabriel Heinze, charged towards the ball and cleared it into the stands.
On the ensuing throw, Wes Brown was content to pick up a yellow card on a tackle near the corner flag, as Arjen Robben was about to hit a cross into the box. The Lampard free kick was headed away by Ferdinand, and hit up to Gavilan. He quickly played the ball to Solskjaer, who held the ball up until he spotted Gavilan making a run past him. With a nice stepover and a clever nutmegging backheel, Solskjaer played Gavilan into the corner, where he proceeded to shield the ball from two Chelsea players. He was finally fouled by Terry, and the free kick was played short for possession, with Gavilan again holding the ball up, this time winning a corner. Park was the recipient of the short ball, and after a few seconds of shielding, the whistle blew, much to the dismay of the blue crowd at Stamford Bridge.
The Sun: Champions! May 8, 2010
Manchester United ensured itself of a FA Premier League title today after playing the last game of the season. The club has dominated the season and has won fans across the country with its attractive, offensive style. Thousans of supporters cheered players and waved flags. "Champions! Champions!" they chanted. "We worked very hard for this. We've believed for a long time that we could take the league this season, and through hard work we've done it."
for 9,000 ....85 
