Cris ban not on the cards

Cristiano Ronaldo's caution in the Carling Cup final may have been ill-deserved - but at least it was well-timed in terms of the FA's disciplinary calendar.

The Portuguese winger's fourth yellow card in domestic competitions fell on 1 March - the day after the cut-off point for the five-bookings rule. A fifth caution for Ronaldo at this stage of the season would only earn him a warning now, instead of a ban.

That will surely be good news for Sir Alex Ferguson, who initially feared Ronaldo would be "near to missing a game" when referee Chris Foy booked the Portuguese winger after first rejecting his claim for a penalty against Tottenham's Ledley King.

"It's disappointing, not so much because he didn't give the penalty but because he booked Cristiano," Sir Alex told MUTV.

"You can't appeal against a yellow card so that has been added to Cristiano's record now. That's twice it's happened this season (for 'simulation'). It's too easy an option for these referees. He (Foy) should be challenged on why he gave the yellow card."

Ronaldo's other domestic bookings this season have all come in the league, against Chelsea home and away and last month's 2-1 win over Blackburn at Old Trafford.

The FA's Disciplinary Procedures document states: "If a player accumulates five recorded cautions in First Team Competitive Matches between the opening day of the Playing Season and the last day in February in the same season, he will be suspended automatically for a period covering One First Team Match."

Carling Cup Final : MU 0-0 Spurs 0 (4-1 on pens)

United edged a tense Carling Cup final against Tottenham Hotspur, winning a second major trophy of the season after a penalty shootout at Wembley.

Ben Foster saved superbly from Jamie O'Hara and David Bentley missed the target altogether, allowing Anderson to score the winning penalty after Ryan Giggs, Carlos Tevez and Cristiano Ronaldo had all successfully converted.

It was no more than United deserved for bossing much of the match itself. Ronaldo came closest to winning the cup in normal time, but his powerful effort was denied by the post in the dying seconds of a close-fought final.

True to his word, Sir Alex kept faith with the players who had taken the Reds to Wembley. With the exception of Patrice Evra and Rio Ferdinand, every member of the starting XI had started at least one match earlier in the competition.

Ronaldo had Heurelho Gomes worried twice inside the opening six minutes, firstly with a 25-yard free-kick which fizzed over, then with a half-hit shot on target after good build-up play from Nani and Tevez.....More

MU 4:2 Derby, booking the Carling Cup final place

United can add a third League Cup to the honours board on 1 March after booking a place in the Wembley final with a thrilling 4-2 win at Old Trafford.

Trailing 1-0 from the away leg, the Reds wasted little time in taking control of this tie with first-half goals from Nani, John O’Shea and Carlos Tevez. But the world champions needed a penalty from Cristiano Ronaldo to make absolutely sure of victory in the second half when substitute Giles Barnes claimed a memorable brace for brave Derby County.....More

Cris 1st goal this season; MU 3:1 Middlesbrough(Carling Cup)

Cristiano Ronaldo scored on his first start of the season in Manchester United's 3-1 League Cup victory over Middlesbrough and Mexican star Carlos Vela hit three as Arsenal's youngsters overwhelmed Sheffield United 6-0 on Tuesday.

Liverpool edged League One Crewe 2-1 but West Ham and Fulham were the victims of third-round upsets. The Hammers lost 1-0 at Watford and Fulham went down 1-0 at Burnley.
With the Premier and Champions Leagues to think about, the top clubs fielded many of their young stars in the race for the third most important title in English football.

But Ronaldo had been sidelined for three months because of an ankle injury and, after two appearances as a substitute, marked his first start by heading home a corner by Ryan Giggs in the 25th minute against Middlesbrough at Old Trafford.

After Adam Johnson's 56th-minute deflected shot levelled for Boro, teammate and defender Emmanuel Pogatetz was sent off for a foul that led to lengthy treatment for United forward Rodrigo Possebon. Ryan Giggs then punished a blunder by Chris Riggott to put United back in front in the 70th, and Nani added the third in injury time.

Flahavan hails Ronaldo rockets

UNITED'S Carling Cup nemesis Darryl Flahavan admitted Cristiano Ronaldo has an "incredible" shot - even though the Southend stopper managed to deal with everything the Reds winger could throw at him.

The Shrimpers goalkeeper was the inspiration behind his side's amazing win at Roots Hall, producing a hat-trick of fine saves to deny Ronaldo as Southend recorded the greatest single triumph of their 100-year history.

Although he came out on top in his own personal duel with Ronaldo, Flahavan has sympathy for Portsmouth's David James who described some shots as unstoppable following a rather less successful encounter with the Portugal winger at Old Trafford on Saturday.

"I would go along with what David said," Flahavan said. "The way Ronaldo hits a ball is incredible. It bends; it dips. To be honest there were a couple of times when I just stuck a hand up - and thankfully the ball hit it. On another day, it could easily go into the net - but I guess it was just my night."

Man Utd dumped out of Carling Cup

Sir Alex Ferguson insists United will respond in the right manner after their shock Carling Cup exit at Southend.

Not for the first time in his 20 years at Old Trafford, the manager will have to keep his head while all those around him - in the press, at least - lose theirs. He will shun the inevitable calls for players to be axed, even exiled, and concentrate on preparing his Premiership leaders for the pursuit of a sixth consecutive league win.

"We are disappointed because our club can’t accept being beaten in any kind of competition, even a friendly, because of the expectation level," conceded Sir Alex at Southend. "But I know that tomorrow we can get our togs on and start working again because that’s the name of the game at this club. Not to look back but look forward.

"We’ve had a disappointment but there’ll be no knee-jerk reaction, no mass sackings or suicides I hope, but a lot of recriminations. We’ll get panned in the press but by doing that you’re taking away from the performance that Southend gave. I think we started a bit slack and they got some impetus from that. The goal they scored was incredible, it was fantastic. I don’t think the boy (Fredy Eastwood) will score another one like it in his lifetime. If you’re going to be beaten, it’s better to be beaten by something special. I think it was something special."

Cristiano Ronaldo - described by Sir Alex as "our one player who really did play well tonight" - made several attempts to score a special goal himself, only to be denied by the acrobatics of Southend shot-stopper Darryl Flahavan. "He’s had four or five fantastic strikes at goal and the goalkeeper’s been magnificent. I thought he was the star man, I must say," praised Sir Alex.
"The longer it went on, the more frustrated we became. But towards the last fifteen or twenty minutes, they were just parked at the edge of their box and we found that difficult.

"The result is another great reminder of what football is all about and how it can smack you in the face. There’ll be a few players who are a bit embarrassed and our supporters will be disappointed. But defeat doesn’t do anyone any harm, as long as they can improve from it and learn by it. We’ve had three defeats this season, all one-nils, so there’s not a lot wrong and we’ll be ready for Saturday."