Manchester United gave manager Sir Alex Ferguson the perfect gift to mark his 1Â 000th game with the club on Tuesday, a 2-1 win against Lyon at Old Trafford which sends them into the second round of the Champions League.
Dutch marksman Ruud van Nistelrooy was yet again Ferguson’s saviour, heading home from Wayne Rooney’s cross in the 53rd minute after Mahamadou Diarra struck late in the first half, cancelling out Gary Neville’s opening goal.
Lyon threatened throughout, and van Nistelrooy’s goal, adding to a pair in the away leg in Lyon and four against Sparta Prague in United’s last European game, settled nerves after a string of near misses for the home side.
Van Nistelrooy also spared the blushes of United goalkeeper Roy Carroll, who had erred badly to let Diarra’s long distance shot squirm out of his hands and into the net.
But despite a series of scares from the quick and well-organised Lyon side, Old Trafford’s 66 000-plus crowd was in the mood for a party, giving a beaming Ferguson a standing ovation at a pre-match ceremony to mark game 1 000.
In the 18 years since Ferguson arrived from Aberdeen, the Scotsman has guided his side to an extraordinary eight Premier League titles, five FA Cups, a European Cup Winners Cup and one Champions League trophy.
Ferguson is open about his desperation to win another Champions League title to match that of 1999, and will be delighted with a win that leaves United topping Group D and guaranteed a place in the next stage with a game to spare.
Lyon made it plain from the start that they were out to poop Ferguson’s party, winning a pair of corners in the first few minutes, while Brazilian midfielder Juninho had an early shot turned away.
But United looked the more likely scorers, with Alan Smith — deputising in the midfield in the absence of the injured Ryan Giggs — teeing himself up for a fourth minute shot from the edge of the area, which rose too high.
England teenage striker Rooney, playing just behind van Nistelrooy in the attack until the Dutchman was substituted on 71 minutes, came closer 10 minutes later, shooting hard against the left post.
The first goal, on 20 minutes, came from the unlikeliest of sources — defender Neville, scoring his second Champions League goal in his 89th appearance in the competition.
Neville and winger Cristiano Ronaldo combined well to release Smith on the right wing, and his cross caused chaos in the Lyon penalty area. The ball popped free and Neville shot home hard and low.
However, despite a string of chances later in the first half and a hatful of trickery from Ronaldo — at one point he appeared to dance a tango around half the Lyon defence — United were unable to increase their lead.
On 25 minutes, Rooney nearly sent van Nistelrooy through on goal with a pass, while minutes later Rooney himself should have scored but fired wide.
But amid the United pressure, Lyon held firm, with the multinational central midield trio of Brazilian international Juninho, Ghana’s Mickael Essien and Diarra, from Mali, controlling play well and starting a series of breaks.
Shortly after Essien narrowly missed with a header from Juninho’s free kick, Diarra gave Lyon the breakthrough.
The midfielder shot from the edge of the United penalty area, and while fiecely struck, it was aimed straight at Carroll.
But Carroll — Ferguson’s first choice after Tim Howard made a series of errors earlier in the season — somehow let the ball squirm from his grasp and into the net.
Van Nistelrooy’s goal restored the lead, which United looked less and less likely to increase as the game wore on.
Lyon placed them under stiff pressure, with former Arsenal striker Sylvain Wiltord brought on as a substitute after an hour to lead the attack, curbing some of the celebratory atmosphere.
However the home side clung on to make Ferguson’s night. – Sapa-AFP