FOOTBALL Live

Saturday March 1, 2008 Finished Craven Cottage

Logo 0 - Manchester United 3

Fulham

Manchester United

  • Hargreaves 15’
  • Park 45’
  • Davies 72’ (o.g.)
  1. United win cranks up pressure

    United win cranks up pressure

    Manchester United took advantage of Arsenal's slip-up against Aston Villa with a routine 3-0 away win over relegation-threatened Fulham to move within a point of the Gunners at the summit of the Premier League. More

  • Live Commentary

    Time:90'
    • Fulham
    • Manchester United
    • 90'+4 And there goes the final whistle! All over at Craven Cottage and United move to within a point of Arsenal at the top of the table!
    • 90'+3 Chance for Davies at the death following a Van der Sar flap! Wide of the post though...
    • 90'+1 Fulham make a late change, albeit a sentimental one... on comes former United 'ace' Erik Nevland, and off goes Johnson...
    • 90' Three minutes of added time to be played...
    • 85' Bullard tests Van der Sar from distance, but the Dutchman is equal to it!
    • 80' Time ticking on now, and there's really no hope left for Fulham...
    • 75' Alex Ferguson makes a final change... Anderson comes on for Nani...
    • 73' Decent finish from Davies, that one! Niemi didn't stand a chance... if only Fulham were as deadly at the other end...
    • 72' GOAL! It's a terrible own goal from Davies which puts United three up! Park slips on O'Shea, and it's his cross that is planted past his own keeper by the unfortunate Welshman!
    • 71' Park bursts through and lets fly! But that's a decent stop from Niemi!
    • 69' Here comes that change... the two Rs on, Tevez and Saha off...
    • 67' This must be quite demoralising for Fulham... 2-0 down and Wayne Rooney and Cristiano Ronaldo look like they're about to come on...
    • 65' Here come the first change of the day... on comes Smertin for Fulham, at the expense of Murphy...
    • 63' Johnson tries his luck with a volley on the edge of the United box... it looks good, but it's wide of the mark...
    • 58' Oooh! That's closer for Fulham! This time it's Volz who lets fly with a decent low effort from distance! Ecra gets a touch on it to divert it just wide of the post!
    • 57' Bullard lets fly at the other end! But his left foot curler from the edge of the box flies into the sea of United fans behind Van der Sar's goal.
    • 55' Nani stings Niemi's fingers with a crisp strike! But you wouldn't expect the Finn to be beaten from that kind of range...
    • 53' Scholes gets a final warning from the ref for a late challenge on Bullard... classic Scholes timing there!
    • 50' Nani takes a tumble following a challenge from Konchesky... but it's a dive according to the ref and play goes on. Good decision...
    • 48' 25,314 - no not Paul Konchesky's weekly wage, but the attendance for today's game...
    • 46' No changes to tell you about after the break....
    • 46' Back underway at Craven Cottage!
    • 45'+1 And there goes the half time whistle... United go in two up, and it's a well deserved lead, although Fulham have have a couple of chances of their own... surely no way back for them now against the champions though...
    • 45' GOAL! Nani feeds Scholes on the left hand side of the box... he crosses and Park gets up well to nod in off the underside of the bar to put United two goals to the good!
    • 43' Tevez nods just wide of the post! Van der Sar kicked that move off with a long punt upfield which Saha got on the end of before crossing for his strike partner! Fulham's defence is porous, to say the least...
    • 42' Word from the Emirates is that Arsenal are under the cosh, and a goal down...
    • 40' Evra is pulled up for a foul throw... his foot was over the line! How often do you see that?!
    • 37' Saha spins on a sixpence twice down by the goal line, but twice his attempted crosses are blocked...
    • 35' Oooh! Scholes again with his third chance of the day! Lovely play from Nani on the left once again presents him with a chance but he's not really expecting the ball to reach him and he ends up stomaching (if that's a word) the ball just wide of the post!
    • 33' MURPHY! Oh dear, he should really score there! Bullard's free kick finds him all alone at the back stick, but he can only direct his header straight at a rather grateful Van der Sar! Where was United's marking there? Non-existent!
    • 32' Brown hacks down Johnson near the corner flag and that'll be a Fulham free kick...
    • 30' Some (Arsene Wenger included) would claim that was showboating from Nani, but to most, that was just pure skill to get round his man... brilliant.
    • 29' Nani does well to get past Stalteri down by the corner flag... and then he does it again before crossing to the far post... Park can't get there...
    • 28' Bullard now trying to grab the game by the scruff of its neck... but his effort bounces wide of Van der Sar's upright...
    • 27' The good news for United fans is that Arsenal are behind against Villa... so if things stay like this, United will go back to the top of the table tonight.
    • 26' SCHOLES! Oooh! What a save from Niemi to deny the United midfielder a headed goal from the corner! The Fulham keeper gets a hand to Scholes' bullett header to turn the ball around the post! But Fulham will be concerned with the lack of marking there... that was a free header.
    • 26' Straight away, Tevez wins a corner at the other end, prompting chants of 'Argentina' from the United fans!
    • 25' Konchesky takes it, but that's easy for former Cottager Van der Sar... the Dutchman claims and United can again launch a foray into the Fulham half...
    • 24' Corner now to Fulham as Brown heads behind under pressure from McBride...
    • 24' Oooh! The United fans massed behind Niemi's goal think Nani's scored, but actually his effort from outside the box flies just wide of the post, and rebounds back onto the back of the net off the advertising hoardings!
    • 22' United are looking comfortable today - that Murphy effort aside, Fulham haven't threatened at all...
    • 20' Looking at the replay of Hangeland's challenge on Tevez that resulted in the free kick, it may have been a little harsh... Tevez appears to have made the most of it...
    • 18' Nani breezes past Stalteri down the right hand side... he makes that look easy... Fulham will have to deal with that or they could be ripped apart today.
    • 16' That's Hargreaves first goal in United colours! And what a great strike it was... Hangeland will have to look at his challenge on Tevez in the first place though... there was really no need for it...
    • 15' GOAL! Hargreaves fires home from the free kick with nothing more than a dink over the wall and into the left hand corner! Niemi is rooted to the spot and United take the lead!
    • 14' Tevez now wins a free kick, right on the edge of the Fulham box... it's Hangeland who piles into the back of the Argentinian... real chance now, but where's Ronaldo?
    • 13' Brown leaps to meet Nani's corner... the ball is half cleared, but only as far as Scholes! Oooh! He connects beautifully, but it's well blocked by Murphy and the ball squirts clear.
    • 12' Corner now to United - their first of the game - as Volz heads a cross behind...
    • 12' Wes Brown does well to get the ball back to Van der Sar under pressure from McBride... good defending from the contract rebel...
    • 10' Chances at both ends so far! It's proving to be quite an open game... good news for us!
    • 9' Oooh! Fulham hit back straight away! It's Murphy who forces Van der Sar into a full stretch diving save with a lovely volley from the edge of the box! What an effort!
    • 7' Oooh! Tevez lets fly with a bullett from 25 yards! Niemi finds it too hot to handle! But he recovers well enough to snaffle the ball at the second attempt! All United so far.
    • 5' United applying some early pressure here...
    • 4' Saha's through here! Must be! No! He slices wide of the mark after Scholes finds him with a quickly taken free kick! He really should have found the target there, especially since his first touch was so good...
    • 1' Here we go! Underway at Craven Cottage!
    • - All three points are imperative for both sides today, if for vastly differing reasons - United could go back to the top with a win should Arsenal slip up against Villa, while victory for Fulham would do their hopes of survival a world of good.
    • - For Fulham, former United man Erik Nevland has to make do with a place on the bench as Brian McBride leads the line on his own.
    • - So, no Rooney or Ronaldo in United's starting XI... but still, not a bad side to send out. Louis Saha gets the nod to face up against his former club while Park Ji-Sung gets a rare start.
    • - Referee: Mike Dean (Wirral)
    • - Man Utd: Van der Sar, Evra, Ferdinand, Brown, O'Shea, Nani, Scholes, Hargreaves, Park, Tevez, Saha - Subs: Kuszczak, Ronaldo, Anderson, Rooney, Pique
    • - Fulham: Niemi, Stalteri, Hangeland, Hughes, Konchesky, Volz, Johnson, Bullard, Murphy, Davies, McBride - Subs: Keller, Bocanegra, Smertin, Kamara, Nevland
    • - Hello and welcome to eurosport.yahoo.com's LIVE coverage of today's big game at Craven Cottage!

  • Team Stats

    Fulham Stats Manchester United
    51% Possession 48%
    12 Shots 21
    4 Shots on target 8
    2 Saves 2
    3 Corners 6
    13 Fouls 6
    1 Offsides 0
    0 Yellow cards 0
    0 Red cards 0
    18 Tackles 31
    319 Accurate passes 290
    32 Bad passes 52

  • Player Stats

    G =
    Goals
    S =
    Shots
    SoT =
    Shot on Target
    F =
    Fouls
    FW =
    Fouls Won
    O =
    Offsides
    A =
    Assists
    AP =
    Accurate Passes
    BP =
    Bad Passes
    T =
    Tackles
    • Fulham
      G S SoT F FW O A AP BP T
      29 Antti Niemi 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 12 2 0
      32 Brede Hangeland 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 32 3 3
      4 Paul Konchesky 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 29 9 1
      2 Moritz Volz 0 2 0 1 3 0 0 20 0 4
      17 Paul Stalteri 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 33 1 4
      18 Aaron Hughes 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 16 0 0
      21 Jimmy Bullard 0 3 1 1 2 0 0 58 2 2
      27 Danny Murphy 0 2 2 0 1 0 0 38 4 0
      25 Simon Davies 0 2 0 1 1 0 0 28 5 1
      14 Eddie Johnson 0 2 1 1 3 0 0 22 2 3
      20 Brian McBride 0 0 0 0 2 1 0 13 1 0
      8 Alexei Smertin 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 15 3 0
      3 Carlos Bocanegra 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
      1 Kasey Keller 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
      15 Erik Nevland 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0
      11 Diomansy Kamara 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0
    • Manchester United
      G S SoT F FW O A AP BP T
      1 Edwin Van der Sar 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 16 1 0
      22 John O'Shea 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 24 0 1
      3 Patrice Evra 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 30 14 5
      6 Wes Brown 0 0 0 4 0 0 0 21 0 5
      5 Rio Ferdinand 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 31 1 0
      4 Owen Hargreaves 1 2 1 0 2 0 0 22 3 4
      17 Luís Almeida da Cunha 0 3 2 1 1 0 0 22 8 3
      13 Ji-sung Park 1 4 2 0 1 0 0 21 3 6
      18 Paul Scholes 0 4 1 3 0 0 1 57 12 4
      32 Carlos Tevez 0 3 1 2 1 0 0 22 4 2
      9 Louis Saha 0 2 0 1 0 0 0 13 5 1
      10 Wayne Rooney 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 3 0 0
      8 Anderson Oliveira 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 3 0 0
      7 Cristiano Ronaldo 0 2 1 0 0 0 0 5 1 0
      29 Tomasz Kuszczak 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
      19 Gerard Pique 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

  • Summary

    • 90'+3 Chance for Davies at the death following a Van der Sar flap! Wide of the post though...
    • 85' Bullard tests Van der Sar from distance, but the Dutchman is equal to it!
    • 72' GOAL! It's a terrible own goal from Davies which puts United three up! Park slips on O'Shea, and it's his cross that is planted past his own keeper by the unfortunate Welshman!
    • 71' Park bursts through and lets fly! But that's a decent stop from Niemi!
    • 58' Oooh! That's closer for Fulham! This time it's Volz who lets fly with a decent low effort from distance! Ecra gets a touch on it to divert it just wide of the post!
    • 55' Nani stings Niemi's fingers with a crisp strike! But you wouldn't expect the Finn to be beaten from that kind of range...
    • 45' GOAL! Nani feeds Scholes on the left hand side of the box... he crosses and Park gets up well to nod in off the underside of the bar to put United two goals to the good!
    • 43' Tevez nods just wide of the post! Van der Sar kicked that move off with a long punt upfield which Saha got on the end of before crossing for his strike partner! Fulham's defence is porous, to say the least...
    • 35' Oooh! Scholes again with his third chance of the day! Lovely play from Nani on the left once again presents him with a chance but he's not really expecting the ball to reach him and he ends up stomaching (if that's a word) the ball just wide of the post!
    • 33' MURPHY! Oh dear, he should really score there! Bullard's free kick finds him all alone at the back stick, but he can only direct his header straight at a rather grateful Van der Sar! Where was United's marking there? Non-existent!
    • 26' SCHOLES! Oooh! What a save from Niemi to deny the United midfielder a headed goal from the corner! The Fulham keeper gets a hand to Scholes' bullett header to turn the ball around the post! But Fulham will be concerned with the lack of marking there... that was a free header.
    • 24' Oooh! The United fans massed behind Niemi's goal think Nani's scored, but actually his effort from outside the box flies just wide of the post, and rebounds back onto the back of the net off the advertising hoardings!
    • 15' GOAL! Hargreaves fires home from the free kick with nothing more than a dink over the wall and into the left hand corner! Niemi is rooted to the spot and United take the lead!
    • 9' Oooh! Fulham hit back straight away! It's Murphy who forces Van der Sar into a full stretch diving save with a lovely volley from the edge of the box! What an effort!
    • 7' Oooh! Tevez lets fly with a bullett from 25 yards! Niemi finds it too hot to handle! But he recovers well enough to snaffle the ball at the second attempt! All United so far.
    • 4' Saha's through here! Must be! No! He slices wide of the mark after Scholes finds him with a quickly taken free kick! He really should have found the target there, especially since his first touch was so good...

Live Team Line-Up

  • Referee: Mike Dean

  • Fulham

    Manager: Roy Hodgson

    Captain: Brian McBride

    On the Field

    • Niemi
    • Stalteri
    • Hughes
    • Hangeland
    • Konchesky
    • Volz Substitution Out (90′)
    • Bullard
    • Murphy Substitution Out (65′)
    • Johnson Substitution Out (90′)
    • Davies Own Goal
    • McBride

    Subs

    • Smertin Substitution In (65′)
    • Keller
    • Nevland Substitution In (90′)
    • Kamara Substitution In (90′)
    • Bocanegra

    Injured

    • Litmanen
    • Omozusi

    Suspended

    • Andreasen

  • Manchester United

    Manager: Alex Ferguson

    Captain: Rio Ferdinand

    On the Field

    • van der Sar
    • O'Shea
    • Ferdinand
    • Brown
    • Evra
    • Park Goal
    • Scholes
    • Hargreaves Goal
    • Nani Substitution Out (75′)
    • Saha Substitution Out (69′)
    • Tevez Substitution Out (69′)

    Subs

    • Kuszczak
    • Rooney Substitution In (69′)
    • Ronaldo Substitution In (69′)
    • Pique
    • Anderson Substitution In (75′)

    Injured

    • Neville
    • Silvestre

    Suspended

    None