Wayne Rooney leads Manchester United over AC Milan
David Beckham had warned his AC Milan teammates that if they allowed Wayne Rooney the freedom to operate, the Manchester United striker would punish them.
Rooney did just that on Tuesday night in Italy.
Playing in his 50th European Champions League game, Rooney headed in two goals to propel Manchester United to a 3-2 victory that leaves the English champions with a distinct upper hand in the two-game, round-of-16 series.
A tie when the teams meet again in the return leg in Manchester on March 10 will be enough to put three-time champion United into the quarterfinals and seven-time champion Milan out of the competition.
In Tuesday’s other Champions League match, Olympique Lyon battled high-priced and high-powered Real Madrid to a standstill in France and won, 1-0, on a spectacular 25-yard goal by Jean Makoun.
But it was Milan that was the focus of fans’ attention, what with Beckham playing against his former club for the first time since leaving Manchester United in 2003.
The on-loan Galaxy player admitted beforehand to having mixed emotions about the game.
“As an AC Milan player, I want to beat Manchester United, and to say that as a Manchester United fan is quite difficult,” Beckham said. “I am a Milan player and I want us to play well in the game and progress to the next stage.”
The chance of that happening now appears slim.
In the days leading up to the match, Beckham had pointed out the danger presented by Rooney, whose two goals Tuesday brought his season total to a personal-best 25. He went so far as to say Rooney was as good as AC Milan’s Ronaldinho.
But it was Ronaldinho who drew first blood on Tuesday, collecting a free kick from Beckham in the third minute and firing in a shot that was deflected past Manchester United goalkeeper Edwin van der Saar.
Paul Scholes tied it up for United in the 36th minute, whiffing a shot attempt with his right foot only to see the ball ricochet off his left leg and into the AC Milan net.
Headed goals by Rooney off crosses by Antonio Valencia in the 66th minute and Darren Fletcher in the 74th put Manchester in command, although a goal by Clarence Seedorf, who replaced Beckham in the 72nd minute, made for a dramatic finish.
In fact, AC Milan might have tied it, but Filippo Inzaghi’s shot screamed over the crossbar and Thiago Silva’s header flashed wide.
Rooney got praise from Manchester United Coach Alex Ferguson and, in turn, praised Beckham’s contribution.
“[Rooney] was fantastic tonight,” Ferguson told Sky Sports. Earlier in the week, Ferguson had compared Rooney with Beckham.
“Manchester United builds up heroes very quickly,” Ferguson said at a pre-match press conference. “We are peculiar because the players like Beckham who come through the ranks are always viewed as better than those you buy, but Rooney is also regarded as that kind of player.
“World-class is a misused term but, with Rooney, you have to say he is getting to the point where he is now one of the best players in the world.”
That’s the status Beckham once enjoyed, but Rooney said his England teammate still ranks highly.
“You can see the quality he’s got,” Rooney said. “The experience, the set pieces, he’s a great player.”
England Coach Fabio Capello was at the game assessing not only Rooney, but Beckham, 34, who has a good shot of making England’s World Cup team.
Beckham, for whom the return to Manchester on March 10 will be even more emotional than Tuesday’s game, said that squandered scoring opportunities early on cost AC Milan the chance of winning.
He could hardly suggest that he was happy with the loss, but said the experience was positive.
“It’s great to play in front of a full stadium. But it’s not over. We’ll go to Manchester and it’s going to be a tough game,” Beckham said.
The Champions League continues Wednesday when Arsenal travels to Portugal to play FC Porto and Fiorentina takes on Bayern Munich in Germany.
Jones reported from Los Angeles
