UNITED SEE OFF MARSEILLES

 

(Image taken from Manutd.com)

Well the first leg of our tie vs Marseilles hadn't got as well as it could have done, but a 0-0 draw at the Stade Velodrome meant that it could certainly have gone a lot worse. It meant that the tie was very much up for grabs. In the last few weeks United's Premiership form had been a bit iffy but coming into this Champions League 1st knockout round 2nd leg match at Old Trafford that counted for nothing. The thinking was that United should surely be able to deal with the Ligue 1 side. Brown and Smalling central defence, Evra captain, Nani right mid, Scholes and Carrick centre mid, Giggsy left mid. We've been here before, we know what to do surely.

We certainly did. In the 5th minute Giggsy found Rooney who played the ball to Hernandez who tapped it in. Marseilles were in no mood to lie down and came close to getting an early equaliser but scoring against us is less than straightforward. Overall though this was United's show and realistically we could have gone in two up before half time, or at least had a shout for a penalty. Marseille had some late chances but nothing they could take advantage of. Half time came and I had nothing to complain about. Early goal, on course for the quarter finals, we just needed to make sure we didn't do anything stupid. Steady as she goes basically though that's not the United way.

The Reds certainly were not hanging around though and put the ball in the net early on but it was ruled out for offside. Marseille though knew that they had to grab an equaliser and the result was some very nervy moments while the Reds had to batten down the hatches. Finally though, we seemingly put the tie to bed in the 75th minute when Giggsy found sub Valencia who crossed to Hernandez like he'd never been away and the Mexican assasin got his second. The visitors weren't done though. In the 82nd minute Brown headed a Marseille corner into his own net under pressure from former teammate Gabriel Heinze. It was a nervy end of the match, but United held out. Bring on the quarter finals!

Elsewhere, Chelsea faced Copenhagen at Stamford Bridge. The Premiership side pretty much ran the show from the start but could not find the net to save their lives and the visitors were occasionally having potshots as well. Nicolas Anelka was the one who blew the most opportunities and the second half proved to be more of the same. Carlo Ancelotti tried brining on fresh legs but all in all, this proved to be an embarrassing display. Luckilly for the Blues, it doesn't matter. Chelsea won the tie 2-0 on aggregate thanks to their win in the first leg. They surely can not repeat such wastefulness against future opponents in this competition though.

Arsenal faced Barcelona at the Nou Camp. Of course the Gunners were going to have a rough ride on Barca's turf and the fact is, they were outclassed from the start but the Premiership side did manage to hold out till Lionel Messi opened the scoring just before half time. The Gunners got a reprieve early in the second half thanks to an own goal from Barca defender Sergio Busquets but when they went down to ten men after a rediculous decision by the referee and then Xavi retook the lead for Barca and Messi got his second, well, Arsene Wenger's crew had their work cut out and were ultimately helpless. Back to the drawing board Arsene.

Spurs faced AC Milan at White Hart Lane. The first half? Well...it was the Serie A side who needed the win and it was the Serie A side who came looking for it and Spurs had a particularly big worry when they had to clear a Robinho shot off the line. Spurs looked a fair bit smoother in the second half and certainly had the chances to win the match themselves. Ultimately they came to nothing but luckilly for them, the match still ended goalless. Harry Redknapp was more than happy with that, their first leg win meaning that Spurs won the tie 1-0 on aggregate and one of the miracle stories of this season continues. Spurs fans must be pinching themselves.

So, the quarter final draw has been made and United will face Chelsea with the first leg at Stamford Bridge. Well...what can I say? All-Premiership European ties are always wierd. The obvious thing about this tie is that it'll be a rematch of the '08 Champions League final. Generally though, the reigning Premiership champions don't need much introduction. They are not having the greatest of seasons and their record in Europe is very iffy. Yet they could still cause trouble, having already beaten us in the Premiership this season. We cannot take them for granted. Yet we should have the edge against them in a two legged tie. United to make the semis.

Going down a level, the Europa League 2nd knockout round ties took place. Man City were beaten 2-1 on aggregate by Dynamo Kiev with the first leg at the Valeri Lobanovski Stadium. Liverpool were beat 1-0 on aggregate by Braga with the first leg at the Estadio AXA with the Scousers, like City, unable to turn round a first leg deficit. Rangers were beaten 1-0 by aggregate by PSV Eindhoven with the first leg at the Philips Stadion. Bottom line, it was an absolute disaster for British clubs and it means that there is no Premiership presence in the Europa League any more this season and no SPL presence in European football at all.

The quarter final draw has been made though. Porto face Spartak Moscow with the first leg at the Estadio Dragao. Porto should have more of an idea what they're doing. Benefica will face PSV Eindhoven with the 1st leg at the Estadio de Luz - I'd say Benefica will make it through from here. Villarreal face FC Twente with the 1st leg at the El Madrigal. The Yellow Submarine are known for being a stubborn bunch and I can't see them not making the semis. Braga face Dynamo Kiev with the first leg at the Estadio AXA. Dynamo with Andriy Shevchenko turning back the clock for them, look to be the safe bets to go through from that encounter.

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