- Jose Mourinho -- "The Special One."
Alex Ferguson -- "The Hairdryer."
Cristiano Ronaldo -- "The Prodigal Son."
The Oscars aren't until February 24 -- but the latest Champions League blockbuster and its all-star cast didn't disappoint.
The intrigue, the subplots, the glitz and glamor of two European giants steeped in glorious history.
This had everything. The master and the apprentice ably played by Ferguson and Mourinho.
The love affair between
the two, the cozy drinks and the bottles of red wine, the terrible
children cast as Ronaldo and Wayne Rooney
The best of "frenemies"
is how the pair are described. If only Ferguson hadn't admitted to
leaving his finest claret on the airplane.
Enter stage left, Real
Madrid -- the nine-time winner of the European Cup led by the man who
once wore the red of United with such distinction.
to former club Manchester United
Ronaldo -- all $124
million of him -- is the man who lives a movie star existence, scoring
goals for fun, 183 in 180 appearances since his move from Manchester in
2009.
Real, the first club to
ever break the $650.5 million revenue barrier in a single year and the
most successful club side in the history of European football.
Then of course there's Mourinho, the man constantly linked with a move to Manchester when Ferguson eventually retires.
Suave and sophisticated
with his film star looks, Mourinho's departure from England in September
2007 is still mourned to this day. A natural on camera, a wonderful way
with words and his ability to charm, made him a favorite with the
country's football aficionados.
With Real 16 points
behind Barcelona in the Spanish league and Mourinho already stating that
his next club will be in England, perhaps this duel with Ferguson could
be considered an audition.
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If so, then perhaps it is the elder statesman who holds the aces.
Ferguson has always claimed that United's three European titles are not enough for a club of its magnitude.
Whether his team will
add to that collection this year remains open to question, but after
securing a 1-1 draw at the Bernabeu, United will retain lofty ambitions.
This contest had everything.
There were goals -- Ronaldo scoring against his former club -- moments of controversy, world-class saves.
Ronaldo admits Real's Champions League 'anxiety'
It was pulsating,
breathless, two heavyweights of the beautiful game slugging it out at
the very highest level amid one of the most dramatic settings in world
football.
A cauldron of noise and
expectation greeted the players and yet, in one single movement of Danny
Welbeck's head, the Bernabeu was silenced.
Rooney, on the periphery
of the action for much of the night, sent in a corner and the young
England striker rose highest to plant a header into the far corner --
only his second goal in 28 games.
First blood to United
So many had predicted
Real would use their attacking prowess to blow holes in a United side
deprived of warrior-like defender Nemanja Vidic.
But this is Manchester
United -- this is a club which knows how to fight, to survive when the
odds are stacked heavily against it.
It may not be able to
match the nine European titles of Real, but this is a club which has
made the final in 2008, 2009 and 2011 on top of its three successes.
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Real's history and appeal worldwide is well known, but United are catching up both on the pitch and off it.
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When Real rained on United's parade
Finacially, United
continue to reach new audiences and according to Austin Houlihan, Senior
Manager in the Sports Business Group at Deloitte, the club is on track
to overhaul the Spaniards.
"Manchester United
continue to successfully leverage their global brand," he said following
the publishing of the annual Football Money League table.
"The new world-record
seven-year shirt sponsorship deal with General Motors will double the
revenues the club receives from its shirt partner in the first season of
the new deal in 2014-15.
"This combined with new
Premier League broadcast deals from 2013-14, which will deliver
incremental distributions of between £20 million ($31.7 million) and £30
million ($47.5 million) per club, will help Manchester United push the
two Spanish clubs above them, for a top two ranking."
While money matters,
there can be no doubt that the biggest bargain was Real's decision to
throw piles of cash at United for Ronaldo.
It was his equalizer on
30 minutes which caught the eye, his ability to hang in the air and
generate an unfathomable amount of power to head the ball into the net
remains a joy to behold.
From there on it was simply wonderful to watch.
Robin van Persie hit the
crossbar and had another effort hacked off the line, while the
much-maligned David De Gea produced an astonishing performance in the
United goal, fending off every effort which came within his grasp.
How Manchester United tried to drown the stars of Real Madrid in 1957
Both teams had
opportunities, Real might have even been reduced to 10 men had the
referee not afforded Raphael Varane a huge let-off for his foul on
Patrice Evra as last man.
The sequel at Old
Trafford on March 5 cannot come quickly enough following this latest
installment in the fascinating duel between the master and his
apprentice.
Mourinho will remember
all too well how he danced down the Old Trafford touchline when Porto
shocked United back in 2004 on the way to winning the competition. This
tie is not over.
"They defended well and
the result is open," Mourinho told Sky Sports. "If you ask me
percentages, I don't change one single number -- 50/50.
"We can score more than
one goal there. They had two big chances in the second half, but chances
out of context because we were chasing the game and they were just
defending.
"This is the Champions League and there are two matches, home and away. They did their match and they did it well."
United, unbeaten in the
past 16 matches and 12 points clear at the top of the Premier League,
will now hope to make home advantage count n the second leg.
"There were a lot of incidents in the game," Ferguson told Sky Sports.
"We had lots of chances
in the match and played some good attacking football at times but we did
not get the possession we should have had.
"Real won possession without question, but it takes us back to Old Trafford with a great chance.
"It will be very open. I
think we'll score at Old Trafford. We have a big job on our hands but
it is definitely within our grasp."
Deaths reported in Ukraine plane crash
In the night's other last-16 game, Borussia Dortmund had to twice come from behind to secure a 2-2 draw at Shakhtar Donetsk.
A minute's silence was held following reports that four people died when a plane made an emergency crash-landing in Ukraine according to the Russian news outlet, state-run RIA Novosti.
The Donetsk-bound charter flight was reported to be carrying football fans from Odessa to Donetsk for the contest.
Once the game did get
under way, Shakhtar took the lead through Croatia captain Darijo Srna
before Poland striker Robert Lewandowski brought the German visitors
level.
Young Brazilian
midfielder Douglas Costa restored the home side's lead only for Germany
center-back Mats Hummels to level late on.
"It is important that we are going into the second leg level and a 0-0 would see us through," Hummels told reporters.
"Certainly there were a few dangerous moments in defense, but against such an attack-minded team you can never avoid this."
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