Man United Wins Champions League on PKs

Blame it on the rain. Or the pitch. Don't blame John Terry.

The Chelsea defender played brilliantly for 120 minutes in this Champions League Final, clearing balls away from his goal and keeping Manchester United from having more than one goal all night. His header away against Ryan Giggs' shot in extra time may have been the only thing that kept the score tied. That set up a penalty shootout, and Petr Cech's save of Cristiano Ronaldo's penalty set up John Terry with the dream scenario of every kid who plays soccer -- put one past Edwin van der Sar, and lift the European Cup.

Only the rain had been pouring down in Moscow for a half-hour, making the uneven new pitch in Luzhniki Stadium even more slippery than it should have been. And when Terry stepped forward to make his kick, the grass refused to give him a solid place to put his foot. He slipped. The ball bounced off the post. Chance gone. Two kicks later, Nicolas Anelka put his penalty right into Edwin van der Sar's chest. Cue the Dramatics.


It was as heartbreaking a finish as there could ever be for the stalwart Chelsea defender, one of the few players who gave everything he had to that club. Half these Blues seem to have one foot out the door, save for Didier Drogba, who'll have a foot in his backside as he's kicked out the door following an embarrassing red card in the 116th minute. He had no reason to reach out and slap Nemanja Vidic in the face, save a complete lack of self-control. Drogba never got closer than a shot off the post the whole game. He won't be remembered fondly in Stamford Bridge.

Full credit goes to Manchester United, though, who dominated the first half and probably should have had more than the one goal, a Wes Brown cross that found Cristiano Ronaldo, who shook off Michael Essien and headed the ball into the net in the 26th minute.

19 minutes later, though, disaster would strike for the Red Devils, as Rio Ferdinand misplayed a ball in front of his own goal and left it for Frank Lampard to kick into the net. Edwin van der Sar never had a prayer. Luckily, in the second half, he didn't need a prayer, as Chelsea's relentless attack produced zero shots on goal. The Blues' finishing all but disappeared on the sloppy, slippery pitch.


Manchester United's dominance of possession in the first half, though, disappeared just as quickly. They continued a patient, deliberate attack in the second half and extra time, but their few opportunities went begging, which set up the shootout. When Cristiano Ronaldo's increasingly lame stop-and-start routine led to a Petr Cech save, though, it seemed Terry would have his storybook ending.

Alas, it was not to be. The one trophy that Roman Abramovich, Chelsea's Russian billionaire owner, wants the most was lost in a moment of bad footing in Moscow. In one moment, it all slipped away. We stopped mocking the arrogant Ronaldo, and we felt little but sympathy for the stalwart Terry. That's how quickly everything can change.

Manchester United has its double for the year. Sir Alex Ferguson has his second European Cup, and with that, his legacy as one of the great football managers in history. John Terry, meanwhile, has his wife and his twins who just turned two, and they might be the only thing to help him through a three-month offseason that will seem like an eternity and bring a thousand changes to Stamford Bridge. Still, Chelsea will be back in the Champions League next year. That counts for something, right?

If you missed the FanHouse Champions League Final Liveblog, click here.