Manchester Utd 1 Middlesbrough
0
Cristiano Ronaldo returned to mere mortal mode on Monday night, but
the charismatic winger was still Manchester Uniteds match-winner
in a tense FA Cup quarter-final replay at Old Trafford. Almost
inevitably, too, there was a strong whiff of controversy as the
Portugal winger won the 76thminute penalty that he himself
converted past Middlesbrough goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer to see
United through to a semi-final against Watford.
Jonathan Woodgate, outstanding at the back as Middlesbrough pushed
United all the way, was as convinced as his outraged teammates that
his tackle had not sent Ronaldo tumbling. Television replays
appeared to show that referee Mike Dean had made the right call,
with Woodgate just catching Ronaldos trailing leg before the
United player hit the deck.
But Boros frustration as they saw their FA Cup dream
disintegrating in the fraught final minutes boiled over when
substitute James Morrison was sent off for a foul on Ronaldo near
the corner flag. As referee Dean brandished a straight red card at
Morrison, who had been on the pitch less than half an hour, Wayne
Rooney went charging in to give the England Under 21 midfielder a
piece of his mind.
Woodgate was the peacemaker there as Old Trafford pondered the
irony of Rooney diving in on Ronaldos behalf after the World Cup
controversy that threatened to wreck the wingers United career.
But Morrisons dismissal did nothing to take the heat out of the
situation, and United assistant manager Carlos Queiroz was pulled
away from the Middlesbrough bench following an audible cry of
"cheat" towards Uniteds dug-out.
Boro assistant boss Malcolm Crosby and kit man Alex Smith appeared
to be the men getting a glare from Queiroz, who has been a mentor
to fellow countryman Ronaldo during his time at Old Trafford.
Middlesbrough manager Gareth Southgate was clearly one not
convinced of the validity of Ronaldos 18th goal of the season for
the club, when he sent Schwarzer the wrong way from the penalty
spot.
It probably didnt help his demeanour either when Ronaldo, having
finished celebrating with most of his team-mates, ran past and
seemed to gesture to Boros manager that he talked too much.
Southgate said: "Im not sure about the penalty, Ive seen it three
times. But the referee has given it, so its end of story.
Cristiano Ronaldo is a fantastic player and is really good at what
he does."
When he does what he does really well, as he did when putting
Bolton to the sword just 48 hours earlier, Ronaldo is without a
match. He wasnt quite in that scintillating form on Monday night,
however. Even so, he was more than a handful for Boro, well as they
played in defence, with Woodgate showing the poise and ability that
should make him an essential member of the England squad.
United always had one or two things up their sleeve, such as
Ji-Sung Parks introduction from the bench when Alan Smith had run
himself almost to a standstill and been booked in the
process.
In the end, it took Gaby Heinzes astute pass, Ronaldos homing
instinct for goal, and Woodgates only imperfect tackle of the
night to keep Uniteds Treble bid alive and condemn Boros
season.
Southgate said: "There were some fantastic performances from my
players, and Im not going to knock them. We came here and took the
best team in the country all the way. "We did lose our discipline
in the last five minutes and thats not acceptable. Youve got to
be mature but James is a young player."
MANCHESTER UNITED (4-4-2): Kuszczak; Brown, Ferdinand, Vidic, Evra;
Ronaldo, Carrick, Giggs, Richardson (Park 60); Smith (OShea 71),
Rooney.
Booked: Smith, Rooney.
Scorer: Ronaldo 76 (pen).
MIDDLESBROUGH (4-4-2): Schwarzer; Xavier, Woodgate, Pogatetz,
Taylor (Huth 8
; Cattermole
(Morrison 62), Boateng, Arca (Rochemback 69), Downing; Yakubu,
Viduka.
Booked: Xavier, Woodgate, Pogatetz, Rochemback, Boateng.
Sent off: Morrison.
Man of the match: Jonathan Woodgate.
Referee: Mike Dean.
