Darron Gibson was Andres Iniesta with his superb pass to Antonio Valencia which got Utd started. Gibson came up with the second goal helped hugely by Manuel Neuer when his lashed shot was muffed by the Schalke goalie.
Jose Manuel Jurado took advantage of a Man Utd pile up at the back to slam the ball past Van Der Sar. Schalke had a pulse for a brief moment.
The game was truly put away by Anderson with a great piece of hustle which saw him fall, bounce back up, and round the ball away from the nonplussed Neuer. Minutes later the Brazilian was left with the simple act of tapping the ball into an open goal after Berbatov’s flawless cross found him. Am I saying Neuer had an off day? Yes, he did. And Schalke’s defense or lack of defense was exposed through both semi-final legs.
But the biggest talking point was Sir Alex’s decision to rest as many as nine starters from the first leg and give his second string a crack at this game. No doubt the Chelsea match this weekend with the Premiership title hanging in balance was uppermost in his mind.
Man Utd move to Champions League finals where the face Barca in a repeat of their 2009 encounter which Barca won easily, 2-0 (apart from a great opening spell with CR7 looking unstoppable).
Wembley is where Man Utd won their first CL title in 1967-68 beating Benfica, 4-1 in extra time with goals scored by Bobby Charlton (2), George Best, and Brian Kidd. Benfica’s only goal was scored by Jaime Graça. Sir Alex hopes Wembley will prove luckier against a Barca team that will be considered the favourite.