Guardian:
‘Jose Mourinho brought a £240 bottle of wine to Old Trafford but it might as well have been a glass of hemlock he handed to Sir Alex Ferguson. The Portuguese is poison to his rivals and the Manchester United manager had just seen his team beaten 2-1 on aggregate in the League Cup semi-final by Damien Duff's free-kick in the 85th minute.
‘Chelsea go on to meet Liverpool in Cardiff on February 27 but Mourinho may be even more pleased at extending a record of success over United that began in last year's European Cup. That was the true worth of a result preserved in the closing moments by Wayne Bridge's goalline clearance of a Mikaël Silvestre header and Petr Cech's superb save from a Cristiano Ronaldo drive.
‘Beforehand Ferguson had talked about the slim hope that Chelsea would waver in the Premiership if they were halted here. He now has to torment himself over the converse of that argument. What does it mean that he has again come off second best to Mourinho and seen his previously perfect record with United in domestic semi-finals destroyed?
‘Ferguson can fault the referee Rob Styles. When United were behind to a Frank Lampard goal, he ought to have awarded a penalty in the 38th minute after Bridge, chasing a loose, chested clearance by John Terry, fouled Quinton Fortune.
‘Ferguson can reproach his back four or Tim Howard over the winner. The menacing arc of Duff's inswinging free-kick from the right held them spellbound until it bounced and went into the far corner of the net. But it was his preference to pick the American ahead of Roy Carroll.
‘Almost inevitably, considering how piercing this pointed rivalry is proving for Ferguson, Mourinho was rewarded for his decision not to keep the normal League Cup goalkeeper Carlo Cudicini, whom he promises to bring back for the final. Cech's saves were precious but very infrequent.
‘The visitors, even without Duff's free-kick, would have advanced on the away goals rule if this had been a European tie. The win will matter hugely to Mourinho, on his 42nd birthday, as this was a battle for power rather than a dispute over a lesser tournament.’
Independent:
‘It is a relentless march that Chelsea have embarked upon across the landscape of English football, but if they do go on to build an empire at Stamford Bridge then Jose Mourinho will remember the night of his 42nd birthday when he toppled Old Trafford. Only the Carling Cup it might have been, but the significance of victory by a Damien Duff goal in the heart of the enemy camp was lost on no one.
‘Forget the competition because for Mourinho there were no half measures in his team selection. Sir Alex Ferguson responded with the very best players he had available and, if the competition did not carry the sense of prestige, then the occasion did. This was not just a match that broke Ferguson's record of 10 straight domestic semi-final wins and preserved Chelsea's advance in four competitions. It measured the best of United against that of Chelsea and found Mourinho to have the strongest hand.
‘The details were simply that, when both sides broke free of the first half's tactical grappling, Chelsea struck first through Frank Lampard. United equalised through a goal by Ryan Giggs that reminded us that they have the class to match any of Roman Abramovich's acquisitions. And finally Ferguson's side were buried by a late Duff goal that owed much to the pulverised confidence of the goalkeeper Tim Howard.
‘But the night that the Carling Cup finally got serious had repercussions far beyond this quaint little tournament from a forgotten era. As Mourinho pointed out after the game, their victory sent a message to the rest of the Premiership. "We will be ready to win the championship," he said.
‘He has an iron nerve to match that prediction and never was it more obvious than when the Chelsea manager appeared in the tunnel before the match to shake the hands of every United player. Ferguson had joked in his programme notes about "mind games" and the confrontation between the "sheriff" and the "young gunslinger" but here was his opposite number testing the psyche of the United players just yards from the Old Trafford home dressing room.
‘In the end it was Duff's 85th minute free-kick that drifted across the United penalty area from the right, bounced once and dropped in that earned Chelsea a Carling Cup final place against Liverpool on 27 February. Ferguson was unwilling to blame Howard who froze between the posts.’
Times:
‘Defiant to the last, Manchester United’s supporters declared last night that the arrivistes of Stamford Bridge had “sold your heart to the Russian” and even that “you’re not Chelsea anymore”. It was a taunt that summed up their frustration at the way they have been usurped, but, while it is possible to share their disapproval at the way the power base of English football has shifted away from Old Trafford, no one can seriously doubt after his latest triumph that there is a beating heart and a vibrant soul at the centre of the Roman Abramovich revolution.
‘Character was what was needed more than anything to overcome the challenge of a United team whose desire to win the tie was beyond question. In an Old Trafford arena that was brimming with passion and fervour, they survived periods of intense United pressure in each half and ultimately proved marginally the better side. There may have been a large element of fortune about the winning goal, as Damien Duff’s free kick sailed in from the touchline with five minutes remaining, but the ceaseless running of Frank Lampard and others would suggest that they earned their victory.
‘For United, the match had echoes of last season’s FA Cup semi-final against Arsenal at Villa Park, when the scalp of the opponents was arguably a greater prize than a trip to the Millennium Stadium. Sir Alex Ferguson, after all, had declared at the start of the competition that nothing would make him disband his policy of fielding youngsters and fringe players, so it was more than the mere prospect of silverware that prompted him to name something approaching his strongest available team.’
Telegraph:
‘Sir Alex Ferguson's proud 19-game record of never having lost a domestic semi-final as Manchester United manager was ended in extraordinary fashion by Damien Duff last night. When Chelsea's Irish winger bent in a free-kick from near the touchline six minutes from time, Tim Howard inexplicably froze, allowing the ball to carry into the net and Jose Mourinho's quadruple-chasers were off to the final where they meet Liverpool.
‘When Ferguson had eulogised Paul Scholes's contribution to the first leg, describing him as the best midfielder in the Premiership, Mourinho had immediately listed the gifts of Frank Lampard. Scholes had immediately impressed here, moving the ball around sweetly, making light of a knock to the knee. But it was Lampard who struck so thrillingly after 28 minutes. Not until the second half, and Ryan Giggs's brilliant equaliser, did United come to terms with Lampard's clever movement.’