Epic brings out best in English rivals

One day was never going to be enough to find a winner between Manchester United FC and Chelsea FC. It took ten months before United were able to fight off Chelsea's challenge in the Premier League, and the first all-English UEFA Champions League final was stretched to the maximum as well.

Tight contest
The game kicked off on Wednesday but it was in the early hours of Thursday that an epic contest was finally decided in United's favour when Edwin van der Sar – a loser in these circumstances with AFC Ajax in 1996 – dived to his right to keep out Nicolas Anelka's penalty and win the European Champion Clubs' Cup for United for a third time. 

Night for heroes
It was a night made for heroes and none bigger ultimately than the Dutch goalkeeper who had the last word in a match that took two hours and 45 minutes – a 1-1 draw giving way to extra time before Van der Sar's crucial intervention from the 14th attempt of the shoot-out. With Cristiano Ronaldo's effort denied by Petr Čech, John Terry had had the chance to clinch it for Chelsea but slipped on the rain-soaked turf and sent his spot-kick wide. Fifty years on from the Munich air crash, it seemed nothing was going to stop this being United's final.

Ronaldo rises to occasion
There were heroes on both sides. Having missed the 1999 final through suspension, Paul Scholes was determined to make his mark and his passing set the tone for United. His neat one-two with Wes Brown led to the defender crossing for Ronaldo to head in the opening goal. Ronaldo also rose to the occasion. Clattered in the first minute by Michael Essien and later by Ricardo Carvalho, United's No7 kept his composure, maturely choosing when to run at the defence and when to play the ball short. His headed goal on 26 minutes – his 42nd of an incredible season – was further evidence this man does not shirk the big stage.

Lampard delivers 
For Chelsea, Frank Lampard again delivered when it mattered most. Having scored a vital penalty in the semi-final against Liverpool FC, on an emotional evening following the death of his mother, he pounced on a lucky break to hit the equaliser shortly before half-time. Then there was Čech. United had opportunities to kill the game in the opening period, but the Chelsea keeper made one double save from Carlos Tévez and Michael Carrick that was almost as brilliant as his orange strip. Rio Ferdinand and Terry too, were immense, the latter clearing off the line when substitute Ryan Giggs looked set to mark his record 759th appearance for United with the winning goal in extra time.

Quintessentially English
For all the epic grandeur of Moscow – the wide expanses of Red Square and vast boulevards bisecting the city provided a backdrop of suitable magnitude for a domestic rivalry now given a European dimension – this match was quintessentially English. The cavernous bowl of the Luzhniki Stadium even had the feel of the old Wembley as the rain poured and the two teams went at each other with the ferocity of a Sunday league, never mind Premier League, game. Claude Makelele's raised arm on Scholes left his opponent with a bloody nose, Michael Ballack reacted angrily to Tévez's tackle from behind and Essien clattered into Ronaldo again. Then there was Didier Drogba's slap on Nemanja Vidić that earned a red card.

Timed to perfection
Having come this far in a campaign lasting nearly 60 matches for either side, no ounce of energy was spared. This was the heavyweight bout expected of England's top two as they produced a final to remember. United edged the first half but as ever this term, Chelsea clung on doggedly before then dominating the second. There is a special tenacity about Avram Grant's men: against the odds they took the Premier League title race to the last day, and they fought back to assume control here only for the woodwork to frustrate both Drogba and Lampard. Watching from the stands, Roman Abramovich was so close to seeing his unprecedented investment pay off when John Terry lined up to take his penalty, only to slip and fire wide with the cup there for the taking. On a night of heroes the game still lacked that one man to step forward and make the difference. That was until 1.39am local time when Van der Sar timed his dive to perfection.