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Thursday, May 03, 2007 - ore 19:04

ECCO UN ARTICOLO DEL TIMES
(categoria: " Vita Quotidiana ")

Kaka assumes starring role as United’s hopes are left in tatters

AC Milan 3 Manchester Utd 0 (Milan win 5-3 on agg)

Matt Dickinson, Chief Football Correspondent in Milan

Manchester United will need to remind themselves this morning that the Double, a prize that is only a couple of victories away, would still be more than anyone had expected of them this season. But they will have to repeat it quite a few times in the mirror before it begins to ease the pain of last night’s crushing defeat by AC Milan.

This was by far the most humbling and comprehensive loss of Sir Alex Ferguson’s three at the semi-final stage of the Champions League, a competition that has left many scars on the United manager. The great exception, of course, was in 1999 and his players set about reprising the famous semi-final against Juventus in Turin by falling two goals behind in the first half.

What they could not manage was the comeback. They did not even come close.

Players such as Michael Carrick and Darren Fletcher were blown away by experienced operators such as Gennaro Gattuso and Clarence Seedorf, while the defence was repeatedly ripped apart by the exceptional, breathtaking Kaka – once again proving that, if it comes to arguing over who is the world’s best player, he sits well ahead of Cristiano Ronaldo.

How Ferguson must covet Milan’s record, which now reads three Champions League finals in five seasons, and the trophy must have felt farther from his grasp than ever during a desperate first half at the San Siro.

He could hardly fail to acknowledge how bad his team were in the first 45 minutes in the face of Milan’s attacking brilliance.

His candour gave more weight to his argument that, just as Liverpool had benefited from being able to rest players to prepare for their clashes with Chelsea, Milan had also been greatly helped by being able to prioritise the Champions League.

“We’ve been using the same players without respite,” the United manager said, although he was not pleading for pity.

Somehow United had got away in recent weeks with the absence of injured stalwarts such as Gary Neville and Rio Ferdinand, but not last night. United did not only look edgy but panic-stricken every time Kaka came running at them, which was frequently.

Ferguson had instructed “the nearest player” to pick up the Brazilian but that simply meant that no one took responsibility for trying to shackle him.

Nemanja Vidic’s return from injury was meant to bring security to the back line but Kaká had burst past him with ease within two minutes. Playing instead of the suspended Patrice Evra, Gabriel Heinze endured an even more torrid evening With thunder and lightning providing a dramatic backdrop to one of world football’s great stages, United were a dinghy caught in a storm. Even before Kaká’s eleventh-minute strike, Edwin van der Sar had made a fine tip-over save from Seedorf.

Milan were exposing United’s failings with some inspired football and both first-half goals were superbly taken. To his two brilliant finishes in the first leg at Old Trafford, Kaká added another as, from Seedorf’s clever knockdown, he picked out the bottom corner with his left foot from 18 yards. The Brazilian has usurped Ronaldinho as the attacking fulcrum of his national team since the World Cup finals. These two games against United have shown why.

The second goal after 30 minutes was, typifying the first half, a combination of woeful play from United and excellence from their opponents. Forced dangerously deep, Heinze and Vidic contrived to lose the ball with some suicidal passing. Andrea Pirlo crossed and Vidic could only clear as far as Seedorf, who juggled the ball on the edge of the box before volleying it into the same bottom corner as Kaká.

United’s only notable response had been a long-range shot from Ryan Giggs and for their attacking players there had been only frustration. Ronaldo began with an overambitious flick and things never looked like improving.

Free kicks went straight into the wall, backheels went straight to the opposition. “He’s had a disappointing night,” Ferguson said of the Por-tugal winger. “He knows that.”

Back at the other end, Van der Sar and Wes Brown were leaping for the same ball in another moment of defensive shambles. They got away with that but United were fortunate not to fall further behind when, at the start of the second half, Kaká again burst past Vidic.

Ferguson cannot have said much to his players at the interval other than imploring them at least to go down fighting.

What they needed was an early goal to unsettle the Italian side and it might have come when Wayne Rooney, isolated in his role as central striker, slipped the ball to Fletcher on the overlap. The midfield player advanced but sliced his shot wide.

United had at last gathered some momentum but, with less than quarter of an hour left, there was still no goal, never mind the two that they needed. On came Louis Saha for John O’Shea but, within seconds, Milan had scored on the counter-attack when Alberto Gilardino galloped through a gaping hole at the heart of the United defence and shot past Van der Sar.

Now things were really unravelling for United with Paul Scholes, previously inhibited by the knowledge that he was on a booking, involved in a bust-up with Gattuso.

And as the San Siro crowed and looked forward to the chance of revenge against Liverpool, Ronaldo was booked for a foul, ensuring that he would miss the final. Not that it mattered.

United had fallen short yet again, to leave Ferguson – not for the first time – talking rather hopefully of it being a learning experience.

Final

Liverpool v AC Milan

Wednesday, May 23,7.45pm, Olympic Stadium, Athens

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