© EuroFootball.com
On Sunday, in the English Premier League, there were the 26th round matches. The league leaders Manchester United crushed Tottenham 4-0 away, increasing their lead over closest pursuers Chelsea to 6 points.
0 – 4
45’ [0 – 1] Cristiano Ronaldo (11-meter penalty)
48‘ [0 – 2] Nemanja Vidic
54‘ [0 – 3] Paul Scholes
77‘ [0 – 4] Ryan Giggs
The teams started the fiercely fought match with a lot of intensity and did not waste much time in sizing each other up. However, in the beginning, the players lacked precision, and the first real opportunity to score came in the 25th minute when the goalkeeper Paul Robinson deflected a header from Michael Carrick, and the ball bounced right to Cristiano Ronaldo's feet, but the Portuguese striker missed the goal from a few meters away.
In the 33rd minute, the hosts' forward Dimitar Berbatov attacked the opponent's goal dangerously, but his weak shot from the right angle was parried with fingertips by experienced goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar.
Although it seemed that the teams would leave all the work for the second half, the climax of the first half occurred in the penultimate minute – Cristiano Ronaldo penetrated the penalty area and fell as if tripped after slight contact with Steed Malbranque. Even though it was clear that the Frenchman did not trip his opponent, the referee pointed to the spot and awarded a penalty, which the Portuguese himself converted to make it 1-0.
The psychological blow suffered by the hosts did not help them recover, and just after the start of the second half with the referee’s whistle, Manchester United pressed them in their own half. Initially, C. Ronaldo, N. Vidic, and M. Carrick lacked some accuracy in their shots until eventually from a corner kick, Nemanja Vidic headed powerfully to leave no chance for P. Robinson.
It wasn't over yet – in the 54th minute, the deficit for the hosts increased to 3 goals – C. Ronaldo broke through on the right wing and passed the ball into the center of the penalty area where Paul Scholes, completely unmarked, redirected it into the goal from a few centimeters away, practically securing the victory for the league leaders.
A few moments later, W. Rooney was close to scoring, but his shot flew past the goal.
In the 64th minute, for the second time, the Tottenham's Bulgarian legionnaire D. Berbatov missed a great opportunity – stopping the ball with difficulties, the player rushed to shoot, but once again, E. van der Sar defended his goal excellently. The Dutch goalkeeper also won their third duel, deflecting a dangerous opponent's header in the 76th minute.
Shortly after that, Ryan Giggs struck the final blow into the host's goal, leaping in front of the goalkeeper after a superb pass from Louis Saha and sending the ball into the net.
By securing another impressive victory, the Manchester players restored their 6-point lead over Chelsea. Meanwhile, Tottenham remained in 11th place.
Top scorers:
1-2. Didier Drogba (Chelsea) – 15 goals
Cristiano Ronaldo (Man Utd) – 15 goals
3-4. Yakubu Aiygbeni (Middlesbrough) – 11 goals
Robin van Persie (Arsenal) – 11 goals
