I just finally got around to watching this game, but it was worth the wait. A great, fast-paced game between two quality teams banging away at each other's goals, something I don't often see with all the Chelsea vs East Piddlington Chip Shop games that Fox likes to show now that Chelsea are the big money team. Seriously, since Abramovich/Mourinho took over Chelsea, the two biggest achievements in English football have been Arsenal's undefeated season and Liverpool's European Cup win, and the most thrilling story is Ferguson coaching up United into a contender when they looked likely to collapse under Glazer's belt-tightening regime. So why is boring-ass Chelsea on TV all the time again?
In this game Wayne Rooney ironically broke a goal-scoring drought when Ferguson played him out on the wing to take the pressure off of him. A cross was flicked by Kolo Toure in the Arsenal box, but the central defense and Lehmann were all drawn to the near post cross. On the backside of the play Gael Clichy, watching the ball, let Rooney stray from him and when the flick from Toure went to the far post Rooney had the space to head it down onto the goal line, and Lehmann couldn't get to that in time.
Arsenal had taken a lot of weak or off-target shots, and really weren't turning their numerous attacks into solid scoring opportunities, and it looked like United were going to control the game after Rooney's score, until the last ten minutes. In the 83rd minute Henry sent a cross to the far post and Robin van Persie, somehow extended a toe past his defender to knock it into the roof of the net past a diving Van der Sar's hand. In injury time with less than a minute left, a cross from Eboue to a strangely open Henry let him put in a rare header for the win.
A great comeback in an exciting game, and a couple of nice goals to do it. And Cristiano Ronaldo is still a cheating prick.
Rooney '53
Van Persie '83
Henry '90
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