It was a victory for Manchester United last night in a game that had it all. Crowd problems, missiles and even a potential walk off by the Lille players ensure that the return leg at Old Trafford will be a fiery encounter.
Both sides had chances in a game that really didn’t get going for the first 45 minutes. The only notable action appeared off the pitch when there appeared to be an altercation between the United fans and French riot police. It was suggested at the time that there were too many fans in the away end, and as a result some spectators were getting crushed!
Riot fans appeared to respond by using tear gas, with reports after the game suggesting Van Der Sar suffered double vision as a result.
Read the BBC article here
The second half brought yet more drama when Lille had a goal disallowed for an appeared push on Nemanja Vidic. Ronaldo was then substituted after an indifferent performance. He often tried one trick too many and ended up giving the ball away on too many occasions. Saha was his replacement, but he was not much better.
The game descended into chaos on 83 minutes. Giggs scored a quickly taken free kick and as a result the Lille coach ordered his players off the pitch in what appeared to be a walk off. The game eventually continued but it had done nothing to quell an already tense atmosphere. The crowd appeared restless and hostile and responded by launching missiles at the Man Utd players.
The game ended 1-0 but sadly the talking points were not the football. Ferguson clearly wasn’t happy as can be judged by his response in this interview
All in all it sets things up for a seriously exciting return leg! Welcome to Old Trafford Lille!!!
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