Manchester United Rocked by Ronaldo

4-3: Ronaldo puts Madrid into semifinals to face Juventus, but that match is only future. Now we have just enjoyed one of the best games in recent years. A one-to-one duel was staged tonight with two giants on the spotlight. Above all that, tonight the most outstanding figure on the pitch earned all the glory and worship of the Real Madrid family. Ronaldo’s three goals turned the showdown all white (maybe black on this occasion). It was a showdown full of passion, intensity and good football thanks to the great footballers on the field and, of course, the goals. Old Trafford began to shout “We want six!!! That finally was one goal short because we saw seven targets tonight. And Ronaldo’s three had more weight than Manchester’s four. Hello, Juve!

THE MATCH:
2 - MANCHESTER UNITED: Barthez; Silvestre (Phil Neville, 78’), Ferdinand, Brown, O’Shea; Butt, Keane (Fortune, 81’), Verón (Beckham, 62’); Solskjaer, Giggs and Van Nistelrooy.
3 - REAL MADRID: Casillas; Míchel Salgado, Hierro, Helguera, Roberto Carlos; Makelele, McManaman (Portillo, 68’); Figo (Pavón, 87’), Zidane, Guti; Ronaldo (Solari, 66’).
GOALS:
0-1 (11’): Ronaldo rounds off an excellent long-range assist from Guti.
1-1 (42’): Van Nistelrooy shoots near the goal line from a pass by Solskjaer.
1-2 (51’): Ronaldo scores without much difficulty following an interplay by Zidane and Roberto Carlos.
2-2 (52’): Helguera kicks the ball but Casillas mistook it following a bad shot by Verón.
2-3 (59’): Ronaldo, fantastic right-footed missile from 25 metres off.
3-3 (70’): Beckham from a free kick.
4-3 (85’): Beckham shoots, hits Hierro, and the ball slips into Casillas’ goal.
REFEREE: Pierluigi Collina (ITA). Yellow cards to Verón (17’), Figo (71’) and Fortune (+93’).
OTHER FACTS: 2002/03 Champions League quarterfinals, second leg. Old Trafford, 72.000 spectators. Real Madrid will play Juventus at the semifinals.