THE INDIE
If Manchester United are to win the Premiership after three seasons of London domination - as now seems increasingly likely - they will look back fondly on a windy Saturday lunchtime down by the Thames and a game they could so easily have lost. The reason they won it instead was the positive thinking that has always characterised the club's approach down the years and will make them the preferred choice as champions of most neutrals.
Bringing on the former Fulham hero Louis Saha for Michael Carrick meant they had six attacking players on for the final 25 minutes and it was one of them, Cristiano Ronaldo, who silenced the inevitable booing with an individual goal fit to win any game just before the end. Collecting the ball in his own half, he pulled away from two defenders and skipped into the penalty area between two more before driving in a 16th goal of the season. Even then, Fulham felt they should have had a penalty in added time for Edwin van der Sar's challenge on Heidar Helguson.
It led to an apoplectic reaction on the touchline by their manager Chris Coleman. Fined £2,500 recently for comments after a 1-1 draw with Tottenham, he laid into the referee Peter Walton, claiming: "The referee had no excuses. He was perfectly positioned, which was the one thing he got right all afternoon. It's why the big clubs don't want video analysis, because it evens things up. In games like this you need a strong referee and we didn't get one."
Unexpectedly, it was the scoreline United had to even up after Fulham had made much the brighter start and taken a deserved lead in the 17th minute. Alexei Smertin and Simon Davies, two members of a midfield moving the ball around smartly and accurately, had already gone close before Davies played a pass to Michael Brown and chased the return into the penalty area. Either Van der Sar or the normally uncomplicated Nemanja Vidic should have cleared but the ball rolled out to Brian McBride, who scored with an angled drive off the far post despite Rio Ferdinand's desperate attempt to clear.
Ronaldo's drive across the face of goal 10 minutes later was the first hint of a threat from the leaders, who required a defensive error to force an equaliser just before the half-hour. Moritz Volz failed to deal with Vidic's punt forward, allowing Ryan Giggs to play Rooney down the left and then set off for the far post, where he met the cross by volleying past a startled Jan Lastuvka. Only then did Fulham lose their belief for a while, during which Patrice Evra and the outstanding Giggs might have finished off swift breaks.
Coleman's side swiftly recovered, fuelled perhaps by a sense of injustice that Ferdinand had not been sent off before half-time for raising both hands to Tomasz Radzinski's face. Van der Sar made two excellent saves from Davies and, in between them, Radzinski's header came back off the crossbar. Playing Wes Brown at right-back instead of Gary Neville, apparently to combat the opposition's supposed height advantage, proved a rare error on Sir Alex Ferguson's part, all the more so given that Fulham had dropped Zat Knight and Helguson.
Ferguson demonstrated a surer touch in his substitutions, employing a 4-2-4 formation during the exciting last period. Ronaldo and Giggs both had chances before the Portuguese winger, now on the left, sent his team nine points clear of Chelsea having played one game more. Being knocked out of the Carling Cup by Southend will hardly seem too unbearable a fate as United watch this afternoon's final. With another early kick-off at Liverpool on Saturday, before Chelsea go to Portsmouth, they could stretch the lead to something even more daunting.
THE OBSERVER
At the end, the Manchester United supporters left walking, as they so like to sing, in a Fergie wonderland. Now nine points ahead of Chelsea, who play in the Carling Cup final today, their team produced the kind of result that wins Premiership titles. It was cruel on Fulham, who fought all match, but as the United manager said: 'We looked for a player to dig out a performance and Cristiano Ronaldo did so. He fully deserved his goal.'
The Portugal winger's 88th-minute winner was among the best of the 18 he has scored this season. Picking up the ball near halfway on the left, he skinned Moritz Volz, left Clint Dempsey behind, swerved inside and then hit a shot that took a telling deflection off Philippe Christanval. Cue manic celebrations with the United bench - 'Gaby is my friend,' Ronaldo said of Gabriel Heinze, who was not in the squad of 16 but received the longest smooch - and a 22nd league win this season. A jovial Sir Alex Ferguson said: 'We were flat. Once they scored, it was an uphill battle. But we dug ourselves out of a hole.'
Fulham manager Chris Coleman had told the club's fans that he was sure they would be watching this season's champions - and he had no reason to change his mind after the match. 'We will not be going into the game to surrender,' he had said and was proved right by a performance by the players that 'made me very proud. We fought and made it very difficult for them.'
Fulham captain Michael Brown led the way, harrying and annoying wherever he could find action. At the opening of each half, especially, it worked. United were made to look half-asleep. And until Ryan Giggs - captaining United because Gary Neville was rested - equalised in the 29th minute, the visiting team were heading for Ferguson's industrial hairdryer. 'Lille was an emotional night that left us flat,' was the manager's take, with reference to the midweek Champions League match that had featured another, more controversial Giggs goal and the worrying crowd problems.
Ronaldo also mentioned that evening, but he was less keen to confirm that Chelsea are out of the title race. 'We must think of ourselves only,' he said. 'That is important.'
All Coleman could think of was Peter Walton. According to the manager, 'the referee lost his nerve all afternoon. Can anyone tell me that if the challenge on Heidar Helguson had been at the other end it [a penalty] would not have been given?'
The incident came a minute after Ronaldo's goal. Edwin van der Sar might have taken more of the striker than is legal and it was the type of decision that often goes to the home team's way, but, as the collected Coleman said: 'It's not United's fault, it's the referee. He lost his nerve. Will I have a word? What's the point? I'll only get fined.'
For the first time in memory, though, Walton did prove to be an official brave enough to allow a flow to the game, so the inconsequential niggles that usually bring free kicks were ignored. This meant, in particular, that Rio Ferdinand received a yellow for gripping Tomasz Radzinski's face when it might have been red and Brown and Paul Scholes could enjoy a running battle all afternoon.
Even Coleman agreed enough to contradict himself. 'To be fair, he did allow an old fashioned kind of game,' he said. 'And it was a good match for it. We certainly didn't want Ferdinand sent off for that.'
On 17 minutes, United conceded an embarrassing opener. Alexei Smertin, playing at the base of a midfield diamond, threaded the ball through. Simon Davies, who lined up to his right and might have scored with one of three good chances in the match, ran on to it. He collided with Van der Sar and Nemanja Vidic and the ball popped out to Brian McBride. From a tricky angle, his finish went in off a post.
United's second attack of venom ended in Giggs's strike and had a whiff of exhibition about it. The winger collected near halfway, fed Wayne Rooney and set off for the area. When the England striker looked up, Giggs was approaching the six-yard box. His left boot was meant for the volleyed finished, but Giggs will hardly care that his shin did the job.
Until Ronaldo's winner, a draw had looked a fair result. But the winger had the final say and the message from the United fans to Jose Mourinho - 'Keep the trophy glistening, we'll be back in May to take it away' - sounded convincing. It is their team's to lose now.
THE SUNDAY TELEGRAPH
Sir Alex Ferguson urged his Manchester United team to offer a prolonged salute to their travelling support at Craven Cottage after their last-gasp 2-1 win against Fulham yesterday that took the club nine points clear of Chelsea in the Barclays Premiership.
The celebrations mirrored those of Chelsea following their hard-fought 1-0 win at Blackburn Rovers in February two years ago that took them nine points clear of Manchester United at the top of the table. Jose Mourinho, the Chelsea manager, had ordered his players to remove their shirts and throw them to their fans on that occasion and, while Ferguson's side did not go so far yesterday, his players' body language appeared to be telling the same story: the title within touching distance.
However, with two minutes remaining on the clock at Fulham yesterday, such celebrations looked unlikely. United were being held 1-1 by an efficient Fulham side. Brian McBride had given Fulham an early lead before Ryan Giggs's equaliser. A draw seemed like a fair result before Cristiano Ronaldo scored a spectacular individual goal in the 88th minute. He ran with the ball from his own half and scored past Jan Lastuvka to take his goal tally to 16 for the season and give United an intimidating advantage with only 10 games remaining. They can extend their lead to 12 points next Saturday morning when they visit Liverpool because Chelsea are not due to play another league game until that afternoon against Portsmouth.
Today Chelsea play in the Carling Cup final against Arsenal in Cardiff and yesterday's result is likely to make Mourinho want to win even more now that the Premiership trophy appears to be heading to Old Trafford following its two years adorning the trophy cabinet at Stamford Bridge.
Mourinho may also join Fulham manager Chris Coleman in taking issue with yesterday's referee Peter Walton, who had to rule over a penalty claim for Fulham in stoppage time. Edwin van der Sar, the Manchester United goalkeeper, appeared to send Heidar Helguson sprawling but Walton was not moved.
United barely deserved to be level and after the interval they were grateful to Van der Sar. The pick of a trio of saves was the first: a product of agility and the nous to guess to which of his sides (the left) Davies would send an artfully self-made chance. He parried another Davies effort and dropped low to foil McBride, then watched with relief as Radzinski headed Michael Brown's cross against the bar.
Coleman sent on Helguson and Collins John to pursue victory, only to have it dramatically snatched by Ronaldo. However low the winner might have scored in terms of justice, it had some class, the Portuguese winger (as if you can categorise such a player) popping up on the left, skipping past Volz and Clint Dempsey and being given half a yard by Philippe Christanval, off one of whose heels the ball flew beyond Lastuvka. It is not just decisions; sometimes you wonder if the big teams get all the big luck too.
You could understand how Coleman felt, but all he is likely to have to show after this is a hole in his pocket where the FA have been, once they read his crack about the referee and the United bus.
SUNDAY TIMES
If, or more likely when, Manchester United are recrowned champions of the Premiership, Sir Alex Ferguson will think back to this scrawny Saturday down by the River Thames as a crowning moment in terms of his team's will, as well as their skill, to take the title from Chelsea.
You could see it in his body long before he opened his mouth. He is of an age that qualifies him for a state pension but he danced a jig on the touchline when the final whistle blew that would have been apposite from a child of six. When it was all over, recalling great goals by Ryan Giggs and especially Cristiano Ronaldo, who claimed his 16th goal of the season, he admitted: "After an emotional night that we had against Lille, you wait for a game that is flat, in which you do not play well but your players dig out a result. This was the most difficult game we've had all season: credit Fulham, they were aggressive, they got about us. When I made my changes, I tried to keep all the goalscorers we have on the field. Winning the way that we did is significant but Edwin Van der Sar at times saved us with fantastic courage."
Rarely does one hear from a manager so succinct and so accurate a summary, devoid of spin or speculation. The knight got this spot-on, even in a game that obliged him to change every element — defence, midfield, attack — in his team to wring out victory. Fulham had lost 5-1 in Manchester last August and capitulated 4-0 at home to Tottenham in the FA Cup last Sunday. They rebounded with the spirit of wounded, but proud warriors. They set about United with pace and tenacity, especially from Michael Brown and Simon Davies, never allowing their opponents' presumed superior talents the freedom to show, never giving up a ball let alone a cause. And they deservedly led after 17 minutes.
Van der Sar had shown himself to be brave and alert but his judgment erred when he rushed off his goal line, collided with Nemanja Vidic and was left stranded when he failed to reach the ball in confrontation with Davies. Brian McBride was so quick of eye and movement that he anticipated the lucky break. He was onto it in an instant and his shot against the inside of the far post brushed Rio Ferdinand on its way into the net.
United struggled to find the urgency or fluency for which they are renowned. Wayne Rooney was trying to referee as well as play the game and it was on his intervention that Peter Walton, a weak and easily persuaded referee, booked Brown for an innocuous foul on Paul Scholes. Walton has not issued a red card all season and he may not do so given the way that he abrogated that responsibility after 53 minutes, when he failed to show a second yellow card to Papa Bouba Diop for a blatant foul from behind on Giggs.