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UEFA Champions League Final Prediction: Manchester United vs Chelsea |
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Written by Scott Burgess
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Tuesday, 20 May 2008
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 Manchester United FC and Chelsea FC do battle for the right to be named UEFA Champion League Champions. Wednesdays, May 21st, match takes place in Moscow at Luzhniki Stadium. This is the first UEFA Champions all-English Final. These two power houses just finished battling it out for the Barclays Premier League Title, as both teams were tied at the top with one game each remaining. Man United ended up winning the Title after beating Wigan. Oddsmakers at Betway.com have Man United as 1.75 favorite over Chelsea who are listed as 2.00 underdogs. Get your UEFA Final Prediction in now at Betway.com
Man United are poised and ready after winning the Premier League Title and now they want to inflict more heartache on Chelsea by winning the UEFA Champion League Cup. Their last UEFA Title win was in 1968, when they defeated SL Benifica 4-1, and in 1999 they beat Bayern Munich 2-1. They went 9-3-0 SU during CL play where they outscored their opponents 19-5. In domestic play they are 6-3-1 SU in their last ten matches where they’ve outscored their opponents 16-7. Man United look to the counter attacking skills of Cristiano Ronaldo along with Carlos Tavez and Wayne Rooney by his side. United have never scored a goal on Russian soil, firing blanks on their two previous visits there – with costly consequences on both occasions.
Top scorers for Man United in CL play
1 Ronaldo, Cristiano - 7
2 Rooney, Wayne - 4
3 Tevez, Carlos - 4
4 Pique, Gerard - 2
5 Ferdinand, Rio - 1
Chelsea is determined not to let their Premier League Title defeat get them down. Instead they will try to make up for it with a UEFA Champion League Cup. Apart from two triumphs in the now defunct Winners Cup, the Blues have never made it to the final of the premier competition despite reaching four semifinals in five seasons. This season they are 6-5-1 SU in CL play where they’ve outscored their opponents 19-7. In domestic play they are 7-3-0 SU where they’ve outscored their opponents 16-8. Chelsea lost their first match against Man United 2-0 at Old Trafford in September, Coach Grant’s first game in charge after he replaced Jose Mourinho, and then Chelsea won 2-1 at Stamford Bridge last month. Chelsea hopes that Drogba can dominate the Red Devils defence and that Michael Ballack and Frank Lampard will control the midfield. Chelsea's record against English teams in Europe is 5-5-2 SU.
Top scorers for Chelsea in CL play 1 Drogba, Didier - 6
2 Lampard, Frank - 3
3 Ballack, Michael - 2
4 Alex - 1
5 Cole, Ashley - 1
The head-to-head record between United and Chelsea in all competitions is: 65 wins for United, 41 for Chelsea and 44 draws.
Head to Head since 2004-05
- Chelsea leads 10-8 SU
- Teams tied 4-4 SU at home
- Chelsea leads 6-4 SU on the road
- 12 games have ended in a draw
Manchester United FC vs Chelsea FC
When: Wed, May 21, 2008 2:45 PM ET
Line: Betway.com
Pick: Man United 1.75
The Bottom Line: Man United have enough talent on offense and a great defense to getter done. Chelsea has the best goalie in soccer so don’t be surprised if it goes to extra time or even a penalty shootout. Get your UEFA Final Prediction in now at Betway.com
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