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Motm vs Derby?

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PL MD29: Derby County v Manchester United

7K views 99 replies 50 participants last post by  reddwarf 
#1 ·
vs


Barclays English Premier League
Pride Park Stadium
Saturday 15th March 2008
KO - 15:00 GMT
 
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#85 ·
shld have killed off the game in the first half.
we made life very difficult for ourselves. if we have not won the game, we could only blame ourselves.
rooney is my MOTM, he hardly put a foot wrong during the match, and also an assist.
job done in the end, but we did it the hard way
 
#88 ·
this was really disappointing, nothing was working ,everything was sloppy but im glad to see that foster can use both feet and he can get down quick. embarassing, but we'll take the win. rooney's passing was pretty sharp.Giggs is one of the legends but sometimes stories must pass on and become myth!
 
#89 ·
Match Review: Ronaldo Rams Home As United Go Top

http://goal.com/en/articolo.aspx?contenutoid=622983

Derby County 0-1 Manchester United

A Manchester United side lacking killer instinct were put to the test by a resilient yet rock-bottom Derby County, before a late goal from the relentless Cristiano Ronaldo put any potential upset off the cards, and put the Red Devils temporarily top of the table...

United no doubt dominated proceedings by and large over the 90 minutes, but Derby definitely had opportunities to win the game and looked dominant either side of half time.

The Premier League title holders were proving sluggish in their passing game — veterans Ryan Giggs and Paul Scholes being chief offenders — but the likes of Ronaldo and Rooney's non-stop running and pressure ended up being decisive, with the two combining for a winner with about 15 minutes remaining.

Many had expected a goal-fest from Sir Alex Ferguson's men at Pride Park, but Derby gave a good account of themselves while United looked shaky on occasion. Nevertheless, United perhaps deservedly got the result in the end, and are a now a point clear of Arsenal at the top of the table with the two sides having played the same number of fixtures.

First-Half

As was very much expected, United came out the stronger side and looked to impose themselves on the game.

Cristiano Ronaldo had the first chance of the game, shooting over after a good one-two between Patrice Evra and Wayne Rooney.

As Derby were struggling to keep up with United — and in particular, Ronaldo — the Portuguese struck the post from around 12 yards from a John O'Shea cut-back.

With Rooney running wide to cover for an aging Ryan Giggs, the young fed in the old through the middle but Giggs — who had already spurned one chance minutes earlier — will be disappointed with his effort, having been left with just goalkeeper Roy Carroll to beat.

Derby somewhat stemmed the flow of United attacks around the 20 minute mark but failed to make any inroads of their own to get the home crowd going.

United themselves were beginning to waste the chances that were coming their way, with Ryan Giggs the chief offender, particularly from set-pieces. Ji-Sung Park and Ronaldo both did well to win free-kicks out on the right hand side, but the Welshman's deliveries into the box were disasterously over-hit.

Arguably Man United's best move of the half came on 33 minutes, after Wayne Rooney's palmary perseverence saw him dispossess Marc Edworthy before then cutting inside from the left and feeding it to Ronaldo on the right hand side of the area. The winger — today playing as a forward — did exceptionally well to fashion a chance from the position he was in, guiding the ball into the far corner with the outside of his right foot, only for an astute Roy Carroll to produce a good save to keep it out.

With the half drawing to a close, it was Derby who looked to shock their visitors, who of course today are looking to reclaim top spot, if only for a couple of hours, with Arsenal playing Middlesbrough straight after in the evening game.

American Eddie Lewis did well on the left hand side to best John O'Shea then cut in a well-timed cross for the onrushing Mile Sterjovski, whose snap-shot produced a magnificent save from Man United debutant and England prospect Ben Foster.

Seconds later, Kenny Miller was fed through and forced Nemanja Vidic to go to ground, rounding the Serbian before opening his body up attempting to slot it in the far corner, but Foster was again equal to the effort with another fantastic stop.

This had the crowd in raptures — you'd have thought this point was guaranteeing them Premier League safety such was their enthusiasm — but before the break, United had one more chance to regain their composure and cause a scare.

It began with a delightful through ball over the top from an otherwise disappointing Giggs, Wayne Rooney ran onto it and did brilliantly in a Gascoigne-esque moment to dink the ball over the top of Darren Moore, but his effort from a wide angle clattered into the side-netting, ending any brief optimism travelling fans had of witnessing a wonder-goal.

Second-Half

The second half began with United once again unable to find their stride, with John O'Shea somewhat culpable some stray passing, as well as a poor free-kick from Ronaldo.

Derby were only too willing to capitalise, pushing forward in numbers and showing a real will to win through the likes of Lewis and Earnshaw, but lacking the finesse in the final third to really work Ben Foster as they had at the back-end of the first period.

United soon proceeded to once again dominate their humble hosts. Two Ronaldo free-kicks from a distance either side of a header from the Portuguese had Derby slightly more worried than they'd have liked, with Roy Carroll busy and the defence in a degree of disarray, but they hung in there and kept out the Red Devils.

A double-change was made just after the hour mark, with Sir Alex Ferguson sensing a disastrous upset on the cards, took off the anonymous Paul Scholes and hard-working but ultimately ineffective Ji-Sung Park for Louis Saha and Michael Carrick, allowing Ronaldo to revert to a role on the wing, with Saha going up front alongside Rooney.

Despite the double change the next time came to Derby, as United were caught slightly short at the back, but a hesitant Sterjovski took a little too long to capitalise, and in the end his deflected effort was kept out by Ben Foster.

As United continued to be frustrated by their own stray passing, Derby continued to attempt to push forward each time, former United prospect David Jones perhaps coming the closest to creating a genuine opening for the Rams, but a last-minute block denied the midfield a dream goal.

Louis Saha was visibly rusty and slowing down play, much like Ryan Giggs, but despite their overplaying, it was a ball in from Giggs knocked on well by Rooney that found Ronaldo at the far post, who saw another agonising near-miss, as his near-post effort hit the side-netting.

That was to be the last of the winger's misery, as he broke the deadlock soon after following great play from Wayne Rooney. The England international chased down a lost cause on the left hand side and, on his weaker foot, knocked in a great ball into the middle. Ronaldo, running in, showed great composure to adjust his body and poke an effort past Roy Carroll.

There was a hold-up in play soon after, as referee Phil Dowd pulled up with a hamstring problem and was eventually replaced by fourth official Trevor Kettle.

The final minutes saw both sets of fans in good spirits and the game opening up. Ronaldo produced yet another good effort from a free-kick, as well as testing Roy Carroll with a close-range effort, the ex-United man doing brilliantly once again to keep it out.

With a corner kick in the final minutes, Roy Carroll then attempted to rescue a heroic point for his side, coming forward and indeed receiving the ball on the edge of the area, but his effort was blocked off as the final whistle blew moments after.

Line-Ups

Derby County (4-4-2): Carroll — Edworthy (Todd, 55), Lea****, Moore, McEveley — Sterjovski (Robert, 83), Savage, Jones, Lewis — Miller, Earnshaw (Villa, 76)

Unused substitutes: Price, Villa, Ghaly

Manchester United (4-4-2): Foster — O'Shea, Brown, Vidic, Evra — Park (Saha, 62), Scholes (Carrick, 62), Anderson (Fletcher, 73), Giggs — Ronaldo, Rooney

Unused substitutes: Heaton, Hargreaves

Bookings

(Derby) Darren Moore, 6
(Derby) David Jones, 22
(Derby) Robbie Savage, 70
(Man Utd) Michael Carrick, 71
(Derby) James McEvely, 89

Goals

0-1 (Man Utd) Ronaldo, 76

Referee: Phil Dowd (Trevor Kettle, 84)

Attendance: 33,092
 
#90 ·
For starters you have to credit Derby, who put on their best performance
of the season. Only against United eh?:rolleyes:
I thought we should have killed the game off in the 1st half and once
the hour mark came I began wondering if this was another Pompey game.
Ronaldo scored his 31st of the season and proved our biggest threat all day.
Carroll denying him time and time again.

Overall it was not a great performance. A lot of below par performances
but I wont mention names as we know who they were :rolleyes:

Foster made a great debut in goal. Most people would have thought a clean
sheet would have been a formality here but he made some world class saves.

I thought Vidic, Ronnie and Foster were the only 3 that could be happy with
their performances.

Overall, not the best but who cares? 3 points in the bag was the aim, whether
it was 7-0 or 1-0......Top of the League right now :)

Poll attached-Make your vote please.
 
#91 ·
Player Ratings: Derby County 0-1 Manchester United

http://goal.com/en/Articolo.aspx?ContenutoId=623090

Manchester United clinched a narrow 1-0 win over strugglers Derby County, thanks to a late goal from Cristiano Ronaldo. Goal.com's Joel Morrison rates the players on show at Pride Park on Saturday afternoon...

Derby County

Roy Carroll - 7.5: The former Manchester United keeper performed well against his old club today, denying Cristiano Ronaldo on several occassions today. There was little he could do about Ronaldo's goal in the 76th minute because the Derby defence was sliced opened by Wayne Rooney's pinpoint pass.

Marc Edworthy - 4.5: Edworthy had a nightmare afternoon attempting to stifle veteran player Ryan Giggs. His lack of pace and reading of the match show he lacks Premiership quality. One reckons, at 35, a step down to the lower divisions might be better career move for Edworthy.

Dean Lea**** - 6: Not your most classy centre-back. But, a decent display from the youngster as he did well in defence, blocking shots from Wayne Rooney and Cristiano Ronaldo.

Darren Moore - 7: A really solid display from the central defender. Moore showed true grit and determination in attempting to close down the likes of Ryan Giggs, Wayne Rooney and Cristiano Ronaldo. An assured display this afternoon.

James McEverly - 5.5: The Scottish youngster, to be honest, appeared out of depth against Cristiano Ronaldo. Earned only a yellow card for his efforts this afternoon.

Mile Sterjovski - 6.5: The Aussie midfielder showed a couple of neat passes and good ability on the ball. Nearly put Derby ahead with his effort on 38 minutes, where his powerful left-footed shot called Manchester United Ben Foster into action. But, his lack of match fitness showed in the second half.

Robbie Savage - 7.5: Derby fans are likely to vote the midfield hard-man as their man-of-the-match. Made several crucial tackles to foil United's attacking moves. A real steel in midfield for the Rams today.

David Jones - 5: The ex-United trainee showed plenty motivation to do well against his former employers. But was largely anonymous throughout the match, which gives us a clear indication why he was not retained at Old Trafford.

Eddie Lewis - 5.5: The American winger delivered a couple of dangerous corners and crosses. That was pretty much his contribution for the afternoon.

Kenny Miller - 5.5: Except for his effort in the first half which saw United custodian Ben Foster deny him, Miller was largely ineffective upfront.

Robert Earnshaw - 4: Where was Earnshaw? Derby paid a premium for his services. Sadly for the Rams, another lackluster display for the former Cardiff striker.

Substitutes:

55th min - Andy Todd - 5: An ageing defender replacing another ageing player. Need we say more?

77th min - Emanuel Villa - 5: Signed for his South American flair. But Villa has done little to show it against the Red Devils.

83rd min - Laurent Robert - 4.5: Appears disinterested for the couple minutes of action he saw. Robert delivered two decent corners, and that's about it for the Frenchman.

Manchester United

Ben Foster - 8: Handed his Manchester United start by Sir Alex Ferguson. And, Foster did extremely well to show why the United boss should keep faith with him. The former Watford player made several good saves to deny Derby. A great start for the youngster.

John O'Shea - 6.5: O'Shea contributed with several runs down the right channel and combined well with Park Ji-sung.

Wes Brown - 5: Brown appeared shaky in the first half, as he was caught out twice by Derby players Mile Sterjovski and Kenny Miller. Appeared equally disinterested in the second half, certainly a disturbing sight for Sir Alex Ferguson.

Nemanja Vidic - 5.5: An atypical average performance from the Serbian defender. Together with Brown, the duo were responsible for Derby's spell of dominance in attack late in the first half.

Patrice Evra - 6: The Frenchman displayed a couple of good touches on the ball and tried to launch an attacking move on the left. Not the best performance from Evra though.

Paul Scholes - 5: The former England international had little to contribute in the United midfield today, except for the odd pass and tackle. Sir Alex realised his ineffectiveness and replaced him with Michael Carrick.

Anderson - 6.5: Performed better than Scholes. The Brazilian youngster, however, will do well to stamp his authority with more accurate passing than fading out later in the match.

Ryan Giggs - 6.5: Giggs showed United fans why he's still one of their best players on the pitch with a solid showing on the left wing. He had a bright start in the first half, threatening the Derby defence with his efforts at goal. Despite failing to find the net, it was assured performance from the United skipper. However, there were also some hints that age is catching up.

Cristiano Ronaldo - 8: The Portuguese international was repeatedly frustrated by a stubborn Derby defence that tried to mark him out of the game. Rams keeper Roy Carroll successfully thwarted all his efforts until the 76th minute. But you can just look at the relief and joy on his face when he scored the winning goal for United.

Park Ji-sung - 6.5: Park had a decent display in the first half, where he made several good runs down the right. Was a key figure in United's early spell of dominance in the opening 35 minutes.

Wayne Rooney - 7: A solid performance from Rooney, even though he didn't score a goal. He had several chances to put the ball into back of the net. But, like Ronaldo, he was frustrated by a determined Derby defence. However, his pinpoint pass led to Ronaldo's goal.

Substitutes:

62nd min - Michael Carrick - 6: Had little to do in the centre of midfield as much of the play was concentrated on the wings.

62nd min - Louis Saha - 5: Saha did not make much impact in the game except for a couple of touches on the ball.

73rd min - Darren Fletcher - 6 A late introduction into the match but it was Ronaldo's late 76th min goal that stole the headlines. The Scotland international had little contribute after that.
 
#92 ·
tbh i expected this type of play before the match. i see it everytime, "derby? 4 - 0 at the most". rarely happens.

for some reason, gathering the pressure to win to reclaim top spot we STILL and have done for a long time, laid back against bottom teams expecting an easy win. we have to rememeber derby didnt get promoted into the best league in the world for bein a poor team.

obviously they cudnt cope against the majority but today they showed if u play about with them like we tryed to do, they WILL bite back.

its time to treat every team like a cup final, especially at this time in the season.
 
#93 ·
We Kept Fighting - Queiroz

http://goal.com/en/Articolo.aspx?ContenutoId=623108

Manchester United assistant manager Carlos Queiroz was happy with his side's perseverence following their narrow victory over rock-bottom Derby County...

The win takes the Red Devils to the top of the table, a point ahead of Arsenal with an equal amount of games played.

Arsenal then play Middlesbrough, and a win would see them regain their lead, but United would, crucially, have a game in hand.

Today's win was therefore essential — and thought to be routine — but proved to be anything but, as Derby hassled a slightly lackadaiscal United and indeed had a few chances of their own either side of half time that could have well and truly stunned the visitors.

However, with the Rams spurning their few chances — and Ronaldo having several near-misses for United — fifth time lucky he had a shot hit the back of the net, following great work from Wayne Rooney down the left hand side.

Difficult

Speaking after the game, Queiroz commended Derby's spirit to recover from their disastrous 6-1 hammering at Stamford Bridge against Chelsea midweek, and admitted he hadn't expected such a performance from the midlands minnows.

Ultimately, the Portuguese assistant hailed his side's non-stop pressure that eventually yielded the result everybody had predicted, but it was nowhere near as comfortable as they would have liked.

"It was very difficult after we missed so many chances at the beginning" Queiroz told BBC Sport. "We didn't score and step by step, Derby started to believe.

"But we kept fighting in the second half and got the result we expected."

"To tell you the truth, with their two chances, I believe Ben [Foster] deserves a lot of credit because he kept our team in the game."

Big Decisions

To that end, Queiroz addressed the selection headache that may now face Sir Alex Ferguson and himself between the sticks at Old Trafford.

Edwin van der Sar is of course first choice despite getting on in years, while Tomasz Kuszczak has been his deputy over the past couple of seasons, with Foster being United's heir-apparent in goal, but very much third choice and loan candidate in recent years.

With injuries forcing Foster to the fore, there will now be debate as to where he stands in the pecking order amongst three quality goalkeepers.

"Yeah big decisions," said Queiroz of the keeper dilemma. "But it is good for us because it means that we have a lot of good players. When they make the job hard for us that means the team can become stronger.

We Deserved It

The Manchester United assistant held firm his belief that his side were good value for the victory, though he had many kind words to say for Derby's resilience and as well as their spirit, as the rock-bottom Rams weren't afraid to attack themselves and try and win the game.

"After their 6-1 defeat against Chelsea they regrouped very well," Queiroz said. "To tell the truth we didn't expect they could be so strong.

"At the end of the day we probably deserve [the victory] because we created more chances than Derby.

"The goal came at the right moment for us, because it's always difficult to play in the last five or ten minutes."

Our Best Scorer

There was also — as there often is — room for praise of Cristiano Ronaldo's incredible form in front of goal, with this being his 31st goal in all competitions this season.

"At the moment he is the player who is our best scorer, and we hope that from now until the end of the season he can keep going," hailed Queiroz.

Nothing Easy

The Portuguese also admitted the psychological advantage of going top of the leage prior to Arsenal's clash with Middlesbrough was crucial going into the game.

"It is very important," he insisted. "The last few weeks have shownb there is nothing easy in front of us.

"We need to fight in these games as if they were a cup final. From now until the end there is no room for mistakes."

Manchester United now top the table, with 67 points from 29 games.
 
#95 ·
This game was like the beginning of the season when we were dragging 1-0 scorelines out, we were lucky today, it could of ended in a distasterous draw but I thought Ben Foster was excellent, he lived up to the expectation and he even enjoyed being back in goal after his knee op.

Ronaldo saved our butts yet again! Boro did us a favour and we are back ontop on goal difference and that will play a major part in the title race.
 
#98 ·
The Way We Lost Is Acceptable - Jewell

http://goal.com/en/Articolo.aspx?ContenutoId=623118

Derby County boss Paul Jewell took defeat well after his side's resilient showing against Manchester United, declaring his side produced an exceptional performance and did everything they could to grind out a result, despite eventually losing 1-0...

The relegation-bound Rams fought all the way against United, capitalising on as many stray balls as they could to cause a few problems and give the vociferous home support a result to remember from this year's campaign.

They couldn't quite manage it, as Cristiano Ronaldo — who had been United's only genuine threat all afternoon, though mis-firing — eventually found the back of the net, combining well with Wayne Rooney with just a quarter of an hour remaining.

Jewell was honest in his assessment of the game. He insisted that should his side play like this more often — as opposed to how they capitulated midweek in their 6-1 loss to Chelsea — their fortunes could well turn around in terms of results, even if it is too little too late at this stage in this season.

"No one likes losing games but the way we lost is acceptable," Jewell told BBC Sport. "I want that sort of performance to be the norm rather than the exception.

"I'm pleased the players put in a shift for the supporters.

"We were never going to be able to out-football them but we matched them for workrate and endeavour."

Derby are rock-bottom of the Premier League, with a dismal 10 points from 30 games.
 
#99 ·
I was at the game in the Derby crowd though i am a UTD fan since birth but i can't get over to Old Trafford every home game so i am a Derby season ticket holder well this season any way as it allowed me to see UTD at Old Trafford and this Saturday. I actually got on tele in stoppage time which was quite good lol. I was watchin MUTV and was like WTF thats me :D.

The game itself wasn't too great and we got lucky in places but Foster was great wit the two vital saves he made. I went to the match looking forward to goals galors but came out happy to get the 1-0 and the three points. Its looking good for us now as Arsenal are panicking and Chelsea will drop vital points to one of the big teams.
 
#100 ·
I told you we'd win easily :rolleyes:

I ended up watching it in a pub in Manchester because I got an invite from one of my mates in Didsbury. I told him about drinking a pint of Fosters for every goal we scored so he thought it was quite amusing that we only won 1-0!

I can't believe some of the chances we missed or that we needed 2 outstanding saves from Foster at 0-0. Football - it's a funny old game :D
 
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