Stalemate at Old Trafford

By David Hobbs
October 18 2005

An uninspired Manchester United took to the field on Tuesday night and were persistently frustrated by French visitors Lille, who managed to claim their first Champions League point.

Stalemate at Old Trafford

Manchester United 0

Lille 0

An uninspired Manchester United took to the field on Tuesday night and were persistently frustrated by French visitors Lille, who managed to claim their first Champions League point.

United lacked flair, creativity and a driving edge that could have salvaged a victory in-front of a discontent Old Trafford crowd. Paul Scholes was dismissed in the second half for a second bookable offence.

Key players including Gabriel Heinze, Roy Keane, Wayne Rooney and Gary Neville were all missing for various reasons and their absences reflected the poor game.

United had a few chances in the first half to find the net, with chances from a Ryan Giggs free-kick and a well-worked set-piece finished by a Paul Scholes volley narrowly missing the goal. Giggs also skippered United on his 100th European appearance for the Red Devils.

Lille had a strong penalty shout through the tricky Odemwingie up-front, but referee Stefano Farina dismissed Edwin van der Sar's apparent trip.

Sir Alex Ferguson expected an improved and more energetic second-half performance but his plans were through of the window when Scholes was booked again for a late tackle on Makoun.

Park Ji-Sung was the introduced but couldn't inspire a victory despite Rio Ferdinand planting a header right at Lille's Tony Silva from a corner.

Final Score: Manchester United 0 - 0 Lille
Att: 60,626

Manchester United: Van der Sar, Bardsley, Ferdinand, Silvestre, O'Shea, Fletcher, Scholes, Smith, Ronaldo, van Nistelrooy, Giggs. 
Substitutes: Howard, Park, Miller, Pique, Ebanks-Blake, Rossi, Martin.

Lille: Sylva, Vitakic, Tavlaridis, Schmitz, Tafforeau, Debuchy, Makoun, Bodmer, Chalme, Odemwingie, Acimovic. 
Substitutes: Malicki, Cabaye, Dernis, Moussilou, Gygax, Keita, Plestan.

Refereed By: Stefano Farina (Italy)