Sunday, April 15, 2007

Onward

UNITED'S treble quest is still on track after they beat Watford to reach the FA Cup final.

Wayne Rooney (two), Cristiano Ronaldo and Kieran Richardson all scored and United always looked the stronger side. However, booking a place at the new Wembley Stadium on May 19th to face either Chelsea or Blackburn came with a hefty price tag. Amid the celebrations of an eighth final appearance under Sir Alex Ferguson the concerns in the United camp were obvious following the loss of Rio Ferdinand to a groin injury.

At such a crucial stage of their treble bid, and with so many opponents to face of far superior quality than Championship-bound Watford, United are facing the biggest test of their season.

The Red Devils still managed a thrill or two, and in Rooney had a stand-out star who looks set to be a major influence on United’s bid for honours over the coming weeks. The spellbinding movement of Rooney, Ronaldo and Ryan Giggs had already caused Watford a few headaches before they were opened up in startlingly simple fashion. Gabriel Heinze started the move with an inside pass to Michael Carrick, who quickly fed Rooney, who stepped inside Adrian Mariappa and promptly smashed the ball into the roof of Richard Lee’s net.

Charging to the touchline, Rooney first won possession with a robust aerial challenge on Jordan Stewart. He then totally outpaced the Watford full-back as he strode onto Smith’s return pass before delaying his cross long enough for Ronaldo to steal between two defenders and tap home one of the easier goals of the 21 he has scored this term.

Yet again, United were dominant, some of their play mesmerising. Alan Smith led he way, providing Rooney with a tap-in, Smith then fed Richardson, who completed a win which looked much more comfortable than it was.

Abridged story from Manchester online

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