FaC: Middlesbrough 2- 2 United
Boro 2 - 2 United
Cattermole (45) / Boateng (46) / Rooney (22) Ronaldo (67)
This was a match in which United’s effortless superiority was undermined by two calamitous goalkeeping errors.
Tomasz Kuszczak, a late replacement for first choice keeper Edwin Van Der Sar, who injured a calf during the warm-up, made basic mistakes that forced United to seek out an equaliser when they should have been celebrating an easy victory. Kuszczak, on loan from West Brom, with a view to a £2.5 million transfer next July, will have nightmares about this match for years.
It seems harsh to single out the second string sticksman for costing United the game but Sir Alex’s men were cruising until his untimely interventions. The team’s performance was so much better than the sterile displays against Fulham, Lille and Liverpool and yet unlike those games, United did not win.
Sir Alex must now contemplate two games in 72 hours with United due to play the replay on 19 March after next weekend’s fixture at home to Bolton. The manager will take the fixture pile up if his team can maintain its interest in the Treble hunt.
Sir Alex signalled his commitment to the treble trophy chase by naming his strongest available side for the match at the Riverside. His reward was almost immediate. Middlesbrough began enterprisingly with Kuszczak saving athletically from Downing on seven minutes.
Thereafter, United increasingly stamped their authority on the proceedings with a demonstration of crisp short passing and movement. Ronaldo and Rooney went close in the opening stages and United finally made their class tell on 22 minutes with Rooney’s well-taken goal.
Giggs received the ball a little way into Middlesbrough’s half and quickly found Rooney. The striker was just outside the box but squeezed an exquisite shot past the diving Schwarzer and into the bottom left corner.
The lead was all United deserved and for long periods of the half they mesmerised the home side. During this purple patch, Giggs hit the post from a left wing shot in the 35th minute when he ought to have scored.
Suddenly, the mood of the match changed when United conceded a goal. Kuszczak erred in deciding to come off his line and punch away Downing’s cross. He succeeded in his first ambition but at the cost of disorienting Ferdinand who was poised to head the ball away. The centre half was grounded in the collision and United were slow to respond when Arca headed the ball towards Cattermole, who swivelled and volleyed home.
The goal was the last significant act of the first half and rallied Middlesbrough for the second 45 minutes. With Kuszczak nervous and infecting the United defence with indecision, the home side were encouraged to go the direct route in search of victory.
Success was almost instant. One minute into the second half, Kuszczak flapped at a Downing cross and conceded a corner. United’s defence was guilty of amateurish ball-watching, leaving Boateng to ghost towards the far post and head home unmarked.
The setback forced United to step up their pressure. As Teddy Sheringham once remarked there is no finer sight in football than United chasing a game and the team all but encamped in the opposition’s half in search of an equaliser.
Without Scholes, to add range and guile to the passing, United looked to Rooney and increasingly to Ronaldo for a moment of individual brilliance.
As it was, a simple Carrick corner which Boateng handled on 67 minutes gave United its breakthrough. Ronaldo converted the penalty superbly to leave the two teams with it all to do again.
TEAM
United: Kuszczak; Heinze; Vidic; Ferdinand; Neville; Giggs, Ronaldo O’Shea; Carrick; Rooney; Larsson
Subs: Brown, Park, Smith, Richardson, Eagles
POST SCRIPT
Sir Alex: It was one of our best performances of recent weeks. The rhythm was back, the speed was back and it was good to see the way we played. We were in total control until Middlesbrough got a goal back just before half-time. Then it was down to pure bad marking on our part when we conceded early in the second half too.
“The name of the game is to keep on winning and we can handle that.We are still in the cup and so are Middlesbrough and we’ll just have to deal with it and use the squad system and change the team for Saturday and then probably again for the replay. We are still alive on three fronts.”
Gareth Southgate: “We pushed them all the way and we are still in there fighting. We have got to remember they put their strongest side out, that is a mark of the respect they have for us as a team.
“United caused us some problems in the first half when they produced some outstanding play. It was a bonus for us to get a goal just before half-time. We now have to go and win at Old Trafford and that is something we have done twice in the last five years.
I cannot praise my players enough. United were outstanding in the first half and we were not at our best. But we did not sit back in the second half. Most people wrote us off, but we came close to turning United over.”
