It may not be a Champion's League Trophy but at least it is something.
Russian club Zenit based in St. Petersburg won there first UEFA Cup in Manchester after a 2-0 win against Scotland's more well known Glasgow Rangers. Zenit is also the second club to win this competition in the last four years after CSKA Moscow won it in 2005. Moscow's win was the first time a Russian club has ever won a European title. Zenit eliminated big clubs from Germany's Bundesliga such as Bayern Munich and Bayer Leverkusen in order to make it to the final. Former Russian prime minister Viktor Zubkov was at the match and celebrated the win with the players in the locker room, and Vladimir Putin called the coach to offer his congratulations.
The first goal was scored late in the match during the second half (at the 72nd minute). However, Zenit "scontrolled the game from the very beginning," according to Arshavin, a player on the team. "We attacked more. When we were were successful against our opponent's goal, I knew we would win," he added through a translator.
The second goal was scored in the final minutes of stoppage time leaving no time for a Rangers comeback.
Swedish referee Peter Frojdfedt started some controversy after not calling a handball against Rangers defener Kirk Broadfoot late in the first half, but another non-call against Zenit player Denisov evened things up. This seems to be a common practice among referees in soccer and it has to stop. Referees should call and give penalty kicks to all players who commit such actions. The same type of thing occurred in the Croatia-Australia match in the first round of the 2006 World Cup in which several handballs and some questionable off side goals were allowed.
The Rangers have not won a European Title since the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup in 1972 when they defeated another Russian club--Dynamo Moscow.
Since the match was played in the home of English club Manchester City, attendance was mostly made of Scottish fans. In addition, more than 100,000 fans watched the game on giant screens in downtown Manchester.
Despite the loss, the Rangers were still hopeful. "We've had a terrific tournament," said the club's coach. "It doesn't take away the disappointment, but in the end I can have no complaints."
This match was not without fan violence which, sadly, had become all too common European matches. In one incident, a Russian fan was stabbed outside the stadium, according to police. His injuries were not severe, however, and six men were arrested. In addition, there were also "isolated pockets of disorder" which Manchester police blamed on excessive alcohol consumption. In another incident in downtown Manchester where fans were watching the match on giant screens, eight fans were arrested before the match even started. Violence also broke out when one screen broke down 15 minutes before kickoff. Most supporters were well-behaved before this, but when the screen broke down, they starts throwing beer bottles at it due to frustration. Council workers were not able to fix the screens which caused more fan frustrations. Despite arrangements to transport fans to a screening at a velodrome next to the stadium, a "significant minority" decided to stay and confronted police. Several police officers and fan were injured during the incident.
Watch this video which contains highlights of the match:
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment