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West
Bromwich Albion v Manchester United
The Hawthorns,
West Bromwich. 3rd December 2003, 8.00pm. |
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There may have been
some inexperienced players in the Manchester United team, but bad
players don't play for Man Utd and they still had several full internationals
including a World Cup winner. This was a great performance and a
great result - the players were excellent right through the team
and the victory was well deserved - and thankfully, it didn't go
to extra time.
The only change to the starting line up from the Forest game was
to bring Clement in to the side to replace the cup-tied Robinson.
The visitors, on the other hand, made ten changes from the team
that lost to Chelsea and, perhaps more surprisingly, had no experience
on the bench. I expected to see the Neville brothers, Fortune and
Forlan somewhere in the sixteen, but the team still included Carroll,
O'Shea, Butt, Kleberson, Bellion and Ronaldo - all of whom have
played in the Premiership on numerous occasions.
Albion were on top from the start and the game was only six minutes
old. Clement, a thorn in the Man Utd side all evening, made his
first meaningful foray down the left and his cross flicked off Rob
Hulse's head and fell invitingly for Bernt HAAS who struck a blistering
volley into the corner from 15 yards. Shame he didn't find one of
those against Reading last week.
Dichio and Hulse were combining well up front and Deech put Hulse
through on goal after 12 minutes, but the former Crewe man just
lacked the pace to make the most of the opportunity.
Dichio's height was also proving useful at the other end as Man
Utd had their first dangerous moment from a free kick from Ronaldo
- it was Dichio that was well placed to divert the ball over the
bar.
Ronaldo was a disappointment all evening as he enjoyed the step
overs in front of the defender but rarely did it actually beat the
player - his naivety was in evidence with the number of times he
was caught offside, particularly in the second half, and there was
little end product. He is young, I suppose, but he has a lot to
learn.
It was Albion who should've increased their lead half way through
the first half. A little Koumas trickery just inside the box invited
the challenge from Danny Pugh, and referee Jeff Winter had no doubts
in awarding the penalty.
The Welshman took the spot kick himself, but his placed kick was
not close enough to the post of firm enough to beat an excellent
dive by Carroll.
The penalty miss seemed to take the wind out of the Albion sails
as the visitors dominated possession for the remainder of the half.
However, other than a couple of efforts from Nicky Butt that Hoult
dealt with comfortably, the Albion goal was not threatened as the
defence stood solid and restricted United to passing the ball square
across the midfield with little penetration.
The Baggies had another great chance before the break when Dichio
got on the end of a delightful ball from Koumas, but he will have
hoped to have done better with the header which was comfortably
gathered by Carroll.
Albion were once again on top at the beginning of the second half.
In the first few minutes, some neat football from AJ and O'Connor
released Haas down the right. The Swiss international, who played
against Man Utd in the Champions League last season, put in a great
cross which was met with a looping header from Dichio. The ball
beat Carroll but hit the underside of the crossbar and was cleared.
Kleberson produced United's most dangerous moment to date with a
fierce short from the edge of the box that Hoult saved well, but
it was Albion that produced the decisive second goal.
Hulse made way for Dobie in the 55th minute, and the Scottish international
made an immediate impact. Clement fed O'Connor who burst down the
left hand side of the penalty area before sliding the ball back
out the Clement. The former Chelsea man curled in a great ball that
was met with a diving header by DOBIE, who managed to flick the
ball into the far corner for a great goal. It was his first touch
of the ball a mere 46 seconds after coming on. Talk about an inspired
substitution.
Minutes later, Dobie was running on goal once more but with three
defenders around him, he went for the early shot which flew just
over the bar.
From then on, United may have controlled possession but Albion rarely
looked like conceding. Hoult had to be alert to save long range
efforts from Ronaldo and Kleberson, but I can't remember United
getting behind the Albion defence once.
The three G's at the back were taking advantage of the inexperience
of Ronaldo and Bellion by playing a high line which saw the Manchester
off-side count reach double figures. At the other end, Dichio was
holding the ball up well and Dobie was working tirelessly to chase
down seemingly lost causes, often to some effect as his pace gave
him an advantage over O'Shea.
Adam Chambers made his first appearance of the summer (even though
the announcer confused him with his twin brother who was also on
the bench) replacing Koumas not only on the pitch, but also, surprisingly,
as a corner taker.
Dichio made way for Sakiri late on as Albion held out comfortably
for the victory.
It was the first time that I've seen Albion beat Manchester United
in the flesh and it was a great night. The reward is a home tie
against Arsenal, whose "youth team" demolished the Dingles on Tuesday
evening. It will be an interesting comparison.
RESULT - WEST BROMWICH ALBION 2 MANCHESTER
UNITED 0
Marks
Hoult - 7 - Had a few saves to make, which he did well.
Gregan - 7 - Another solid unspectacular performance.
Gaardsoe - 8 - Excellent once more, often leaving the back line
to break up the United midfield.
Gilchrist - 7 - Still needs to work on his distribution, but a solid
game.
Haas - 9 - MOM. Great going forward, often appearing as a centre
forward, but never caught out in defence.
Koumas - 6 - One or two moments, but never really shone after the
penalty miss.
Johnson - 8 - Typical AJ performance.
O'Connor - 7 - Seems to have largely recovered his form, but still
gives the ball away.
Clement - 8 - Excellent going forward, generally solid with the
odd misplaced pass.
Dichio - 8 - Getting back to his best, superb ball retention, dominant
in the air.
Hulse - 7 - Good performance without really sparkling.
Dobie - 8 - Superb goal, looked lively and dangerous.
A Chambers - 6 - Did Ok but looked a bit rusty; good to see him
back.
Sakiri - 6 - On too late to make an impact.
The Manager - 8 - Obviously an inspired substitution to bring Dobie
on, good change of tactics to play the offside trap and the right
decision to rest Koumas.
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West
Bromwich Albion (3-5-2):
Hoult; Gregan, Gaardsoe, Gilchrist; Haas, Koumas (A Chambers 65),
Johnson, O'Connor, Clement; Dichio (Sakiri 86), Hulse (Dobie 55).
Subs not used: Murphy (GK), J Chambers.
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Manchester
United (4-4-2):
Carroll; Bardsley, O'Shea, Tierney, Pugh; Ronaldo (Eagles 77), Fletcher,
Butt, Kleberson (Nardiello 77); Bellion, Richardson. Subs not used:
Williams (GK), Wood, Jones.
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Scoring: Haas (6) 1-0,
Dobie (56) 2-0.
Bookings: Manchester United - Bardsley (foul 82).
Referee: J Winter (Stockton-on-Tees).
Attendance: 25,282. |
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