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| The Champion of BPL 2008/2009 |
2000-2009
United started the new decade, century and millennium in
typical pioneering fashion. They entered a brand new competition – the
FIFA Club World Championship in Brazil – but at the expense of their
participation in the FA Cup, of which they were the holders.
The
January jaunt to South America didn't result in any silverware but it
gave the Reds valuable relaxation time in the sun. Rejuvenated by this,
they raced ahead of their rivals in the title race when they returned to
England. They achieved their sixth Premiership title early, in April,
and still without a convincing replacement for Peter Schmeichel.
Several goalkeepers including Mark Bosnich tried
and failed to establish themselves during the 1999/2000 season. So it
was hardly surprising when World Cup and European Championship winner Fabien Barthez joined United in July 2000.
The
eccentric but brilliant French goalkeeper helped United to win their
third successive title in 2000/01, a feat that had previously been
achieved by only a handful of clubs in England. Liverpool had been the
last team to do it, in 1982, 1983 and 1984, but this was under the
supervision of two different managers - Bob Paisley and Joe Fagan.
Sir Alex Ferguson
had been at the helm for all three of United's back-to-back titles, and
was the first manager in English football to achieve the hat-trick. On
the back of this latest trophy, he announced his impending retirement,
only to backtrack and decide to stay.
Ferguson's major signing in the summer of 2002 was Rio Ferdinand,
one of England's best performers at the World Cup Finals in Japan and
Korea. The £30m acquisition from Leeds added the steel that had arguably
been missing from United's defence since the departure of Jaap Stam to Lazio.
Ferdinand
helped the Reds to recapture their Premiership title in May 2003 but
the calendar year ended on a low note for the defender - he was punished
by the FA for failing to attend a mandatory drugs test at Carrington
and was suspended for eight months.
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| Wayne Rooney |
In the period without Rio, the
Reds lost their title - to Arsenal again - but won the FA Cup for a
record eleventh time, beating Millwall 3-0 in the 2004 final at
Cardiff's Millennium Stadium. A year later United were back in Wales to
face Arsenal for the trophy. Chelsea had taken the Premiership and
Carling Cup, and it was the Gunners who triumphed on penalties despite a
dominant display from United - for whom Wayne Rooney and Cristiano Ronaldo
were outstanding. The following season brought maiden silverware for
the pair as the Reds beat Wigan Athletic in the Carling Cup final.
For
Sir Alex and his players, the main aim remained Premiership glory,
which was duly snared the following season as United notched a 16th
league title, finishing six points clear of former incumbents Chelsea.
While the whole squad performed admirably to snatch the title back from
Stamford Bridge, the man who took most of the plaudits was Ronaldo, who collected 13 personal honours during the campaign - including the PFA Player and Young Player of the Year award.
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| Cristiano Ronaldo |
While
it seemed improbable that the winger could top his 2006/07 heroics, he
did just that the following season. Ronaldo played a major part -
scoring 42 goals - as the Reds saw off the challenge of Chelsea to notch
the Double. Strengthened by the summer signings of Owen Hargreaves, Carlos Tevez, Anderson and Nani,
United recovered from a slow start to the season to head the table for
almost the entire campaign. Despite a late charge from Chelsea, a
final-day victory at Wigan (in which Ryan Giggs scored the clinching goal on the day he equalled United's all-time appearances record) secured a 17th league title for United.
Ten
days later, in Moscow, the Reds and Blues duked it out for silverware
again. Ronaldo's opener was cancelled out by Frank Lampard and, after
120 excruciating minutes, the match went to penalties. Ronaldo's miss
gave John Terry the chance to take the trophy, but the Chelsea skipper
slipped and smacked his effort against the post. Reprieved, United went
on to win the shootout when Edwin van der Sar saved
Nicolas Anelka's effort, ensuring that Europe's biggest competition had
been won by the men from Manchester for a third time.
How do you
top a season like 2007/08? Well, Sir Alex's men did their very best and
only defeat at the very last hurdle - against Barcelona in the Champions
League final - prevented the Reds from a historic trophy haul.
Despite ultimate disappointment in Europe, United dominated almost every
other competition. In December, the Reds flew to Japan to compete in
the FIFA Club World Cup and a solitary Wayne Rooney goal against
Ecuador's Liga de Quito in the final was enough to crown United world
champions.
But what sort of effect would a gruelling mid-season
trip to the Far East have on the Reds' domestic aspirations? As it
turned out, it only made United stronger: Sir Alex's men reeled in
Liverpool (seven points clear when the Reds returned from Japan) before
going on to win a record-equalling 18th league title. But even before Gary Neville lifted
the Barclays Premier League trophy the Reds had tasted success against
Tottenhan Hotspur in the Carling Cup. On that occason, goalkeeper Ben Foster was the penalty shootout hero after scores remained level after 120 minutes.
Foster wasn't the only youngster who impressed that day, or indeed over the course of the season. Federico Macheda burst onto the scene with a stunning debut goal (an injury-time winner, no less) against Aston Villa, while Danny Welbeck and Darron Gibson also
announced their arrivals on the biggest stage with spectacular strikes.
So even though Cristiano Ronaldo and Carlos Tevez left Old Trafford in
the summer, the future appears to be in very good hands...
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