| 1 - 3 |
| ||||||
| Robin van Persie(pen) 76 | Park Ji-Sung 8 | |||||||
| Cristiano Ronaldo 11 | ||||||||
| Cristiano Ronaldo 60 |
Manchester United ensured their place in Rome with the chance to become the first team to retain the Champions League crown after a 3-1 victory over Arsenal at Emirates Stadium.
The triumph means United could now become the first team since AC Milan in 1989 and 1990 to earn the title of European champion for two straight years.
It took just eight minutes for the visiting side to open the scoring as Kieran Gibbs slipped on the turf to give Park Ji-Sung the chance to run around him and slide a close-range shot over the helpless Manuel Almunia.
Robin van Persie immediately put an arm around the 19-year-old Gibbs, who looked distraught over the mistake and was substituted at halftime.
And by the 11th minute the hosts' task had become impossible. Cristiano Ronaldo hit a swerving free kick from 35 yards that beat Almunia at his near post.
Ronaldo made it 3-0 on the hour mark when he started and finished a lightning-quick counter-attack, racing 70 yards to crash a shot into the roof of the net.
There was some disappointment for United when Darren Fletcher was shown a straight red card on 75 minutes despite appearing to have won the ball from Cesc Fàbregas with a fair tackle.
A penalty was awarded and van Persie converted his chance emphatically, but it was little consolation for Arsenal.
Arsenal v Man United goal & highlights
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The triumph means United could now become the first team since AC Milan in 1989 and 1990 to earn the title of European champion for two straight years.
It took just eight minutes for the visiting side to open the scoring as Kieran Gibbs slipped on the turf to give Park Ji-Sung the chance to run around him and slide a close-range shot over the helpless Manuel Almunia.
Robin van Persie immediately put an arm around the 19-year-old Gibbs, who looked distraught over the mistake and was substituted at halftime.
And by the 11th minute the hosts' task had become impossible. Cristiano Ronaldo hit a swerving free kick from 35 yards that beat Almunia at his near post.
Ronaldo made it 3-0 on the hour mark when he started and finished a lightning-quick counter-attack, racing 70 yards to crash a shot into the roof of the net.
There was some disappointment for United when Darren Fletcher was shown a straight red card on 75 minutes despite appearing to have won the ball from Cesc Fàbregas with a fair tackle.
A penalty was awarded and van Persie converted his chance emphatically, but it was little consolation for Arsenal.
Arsenal v Man United goal & highlights
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