| Match of the Year |
21 April 2003
|
Manchester United 2 -- Arsenal 2
Every season, every sport has one game that stands out, where everything is on the line, where the competitors put in the effort that proves their love of the game. Wednesday's match at Highbury was it for the English Premier League, with Arsenal hosting Manchester United. The 2-2 draw was the right result, but oddly, it also means Manchester wins.
Arsenal have been leading the league all year, or so it seems, and have won a berth in the FA Cup Final as well (some have taken to calling it the F-ing Arsenal Cup, since the Gunners won it last year as well). Meanwhile, ever popular Manchester United have been on a tear, going undefeated in 13 matches, winning 11 of those, and sneaking into first place. The two finest sides in English soccer, separated by a single win in the table, and it was broadcast live in the US as well as the UK.
United scored first with a lovely shot in the 23rd minute from Ruud van Nistlerooy on a ball from Giggs, and Arsenal didn't equalize until the 50th minute, when Thierry Henry deflected Ashley Coles shot past Fabien Barthez. Twelve minutes later, a clearly off-side Henry scored again, but the lead lasted less than a minute. An unmarked Giggs put his head on one from Solskjaer to tie it up.
United won, though, when Sol Campbell (arguably one of the finest midfielders in the game anywhere on the planet) threw an elbow into Solskjaer's face. The announcers thought the red card and three-game suspension was excessive, but deliberate it was. Losing Campbell for three games, though, will cost Arsenal points in the league standing.
Now, if only Chelsea could find a way to hold onto a Champion's League spot for next year -- after all, it is the Royal Borough of Kensington & Chelsea.