The Dutch stopper was United's match-winner, saving penalty kicks from Claudio Pizarro, Frank Lampard and Shaun Wright-Philips."It's a great feeling," van der Sar told Sky Sports amid the Reds' celebrations."It's a little revenge for the cup final and also gives us a boost before the start of the league. I've never saved three penalties in a row."Despite his heroics at Wembley, Van der Sar admits his record in shootouts is not the best."I was 5-2 down on penalty shootouts during my career, so this makes it 5-3," the 36-year-old said."I think we deserved the win – we played the better football and created more chances than them. Chelsea only had the one chance at the end of the first half."
"Edwin was absolutely marvellous in the shoot-out. He used his experience very well and that paid dividends for us."
- Sir Alex Ferguson -
The last time these sides met in the season's curtain-raiser was in 2000 when goals from Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink and Mario Melchiot handed Chelsea a 2-0 victory. Five current United players were present in Sir Alex's team that day, including Ryan Giggs, who scored today in his 17th Wembley appearance . The match, played in blazing London sunshine, began at a decent tempo, although neither side created any chances in the opening 10 minutes. The Blues enjoyed the lion's share of possession in the opening exchanges but found United in determined mood. Patrice Evra, Mikael Silvestre and Wayne Rooney were all penalised for using too much force in the tackle before John O'Shea got his timing just right when he nicked the ball from Joe Cole inside the area. It took 21 minutes before United forced Chelsea stopper Petr Cech into action. Cristiano Ronaldo roared down the left wing before cutting inside with a view to shoot. He was halted by two Blues defenders but the ball squirmed across the area into Giggs' path, whose shot was bravely blocked by the Chelsea custodian.Wayne Rooney wasted a chance from the resulting corner before Michael Carrick curled a shot wide a minute later. United survived a scare on 27 minutes – John Obi Mikel was inches away from making contact with Michael Essien's flick-on – before taking the lead 10 minutes before the break
Nemanja Vidic pinged a cross-field pass to Patrice Evra on the left flank, who played a smart one-two with Ronaldo that sent the Frenchman deep into Chelsea territory. Once at the byeline, Evra cut the ball back to Giggs, who fired the ball high into the net first time, despite close attention from Ricardo Carvalho and Mikel. It was the Welshman's 142nd goal of his United career.The strike looked to have given the Reds a one-goal advantage heading into the break, but a defensive lapse let in new Blues signing Florent Malouda, who out-muscled Rio Ferdinand for a bouncing ball before poking past the onrushing van der Sar and into the far corner. From Chelsea's point of view, it was the perfect response, but Sir Alex would have been disappointed at the goal's eerie similarity to Didier Drogba's FA Cup winner 78 days ago. United emerged stronger after the break, with Evra again causing havoc down the left wing. In what was almost a carbon copy of the Reds' first-half goal, Evra reached the byeline before cutting the ball back towards the penalty spot. This time it was Ronaldo who was on the end of the cross but, after taking a touch, saw his shot well saved by Petr Cech. Still the danger hadn't passed. Rooney collected Cech's parry and laid the ball back to Giggs, whose shot looked destined for the net before a Blue defender intervened. Chelsea looked rattled and Jose Mourinho was forced into the game's first substitution, bringing on Peruvian striker Claudio Pizarro for goalscorer Florent Malouda.Pizarro fired a long-range shot just wide of van der Sar's post but not before Glen Johnson had done well to head clear with Wayne Rooney lurking menacingly and a Ronaldo free-kick fizzed straight into Cech's midriff.Summer signing Nani was introduced into the game on 68 minutes, coming on for Silvestre in a move that saw Patrice Evra slot back into his usual position on the left side of defence. Reds fans showed their appreciation, applauding every touch from the young Portuguese inter national.
Nemanja Vidic had a penalty appeal turned down by referee Mark Halsey on 75 minutes. There were few protests, despite TV replays indicating Tal Ben Haim clearly shoved the Serbian in the back. Ben Haim did well on 84 minutes, however, when he forced Ronaldo wide enough to make things easy for Petr Cech. Neither side pressed too hard for a winner in normal time, although the Reds did win a number of late corners. In the end, the two teams who had been so evenly matched last season required penalties to settle an absorbing Community Shield.
Line-ups:
United: van der Sar; Silvestre (Nani 68), Ferdinand, Vidic, Brown; Evra, O'Shea, Carrick, Ronaldo; Giggs (Fletcher 81), Rooney
Subs not used: Kuszczak, Piqué, Bardsley, Eagles, Martin
United: van der Sar; Silvestre (Nani 68), Ferdinand, Vidic, Brown; Evra, O'Shea, Carrick, Ronaldo; Giggs (Fletcher 81), Rooney
Subs not used: Kuszczak, Piqué, Bardsley, Eagles, Martin
Chelsea: Cech; A Cole (Diarra 68), Ben Haim, Carvalho, Johnson (Sidwell, 78); Lampard, Essien, Mikel; Wright-Philips, J Cole (Sinclair 82), Malouda (Pizarro 52)
Subs not used: Cuddicini, Worley, Hilario
