THE INDEPENDENT - THE LIONS THROWN TO CHRISTIANO
This time there was no fairytale. Fortunately for the Millwall players who gathered in a weary post-match huddle, neither was there a massacre of the innocents. Manchester United dominated their 16th FA Cup final from start to finish without quite managing to emulate the 4-0 victories over Brighton in 1983 and Chelsea in 1994, let alone Bury's 6-0 record from 1903, which many had feared would be in jeopardy. So the scoreline, achieved with an opening goal by the outstanding Cristiano Ronaldo and then two by Ruud van Nistelrooy, was respectable enough for both sides.
Millwall, with a squad acquired for some £830,000 as opposed to their opponents' £50m-plus, had hoped to emulate the tactics of West Ham and Wimbledon, the London underdogs who had provided upsets in the past 25 years, by crowding the midfield and relying on set pieces. But both those previous giant-killers, like Sunderland and Southampton before them in the 1970s, had players of far greater quality available to them.
If he is off to become a galactico, as rumoured, Ruud van Nistelrooy gave Manchester United a robust parting present, on top of the £35m they might make from Real Madrid.
His second-half goals at the Millennium Stadium, one a penalty struck high into the net in a fashion which brooks no argument, and certainly no hope of glory from the goalkeeper, and the second strike one of his poaching specials set the seal on his team's superiority and brought them something the supporters have become accustomed to, but seen nothing of previously this season - a trophy. The man-of-the-match award, made by the England manager, Sven Goran Eriksson, duly followed.
The quick feet and even quicker brain of a Portuguese teenager yesterday confirmed that there is more than one Ronaldo on the world stage. Cristiano Ronaldo, 19, showed he had the temperament - after a buffeting from the opposition - and the skill as he excelled in helping Manchester United win the FA Cup for the 11th time.
His performance illuminated an otherwise routine match which resulted in the widest margin of victory, 3-0, for a decade. United beat First Division Millwall and avoided what would have been the biggest upset in the 123-year history of the competition. That never looked like happening with Millwall, in their first final, depleted and over-run at times and even failing to force a save.
The man of the match award went to United striker Ruud van Nistelrooy - who struck twice, including the first penalty to be awarded in the final for 10 years, after Ronaldo opened the scoring - but the Dutchman sheepishly accepted the award, saying it should have gone to his young team-mate.
Keane, of course, had famously derided the importance of the FA Cup, dismissing it as just a day out. United have not appeared in a final since 1999 when they won the Treble. But after another otherwise barren and frustrating season Keane said: "The last one is always the nicest. But all credit to Millwall. They had nothing to lose." Keane also praised Ronaldo and midfielder Darren Fletcher saying they had performed at the highest level. For Ferguson it is his 18th trophy in his 18 years and one that sets down a marker for next season, particularly with the emergence of his young players.
THE SUNDAY TIMES - UNITED'S YOUNG LIONS BREAK MILLWALL'S SPIRIT
Manchester United may have had a poor season, but they are a class or two above anything the Nationwide League has to offer and there was never the slightest chance of them ending the season empty-handed after a Cup final that was as disappointingly one-sided as the bookmakers’ odds had suggested. Millwall, outclassed, were unable to demand even a single save from Tim Howard as United won much as they pleased, and in what could be the first substitution down to boredom, Howard gave way to Roy Carroll with 10 minutes remaining.
Cristiano Ronaldo, who brightened a mundane occasion with his clever tricks, scored the first goal just before half-time and the outcome was beyond doubt well before Ruud van Nistelrooy’s 65th-minute penalty, awarded for a foul on Ryan Giggs. Van Nistelrooy added the third, from a Giggs centre, in the 81st minute. The only surprise was Sven-Göran Eriksson’s choice of man of the match. The England coach gave the honour to Van Nistelrooy, for his two goals, when Ronaldo was much more deserving.
The bookies had expected a routine win for United, making them 10-1 on favourites — the shortest price in a Cup final on record — and they are not often wrong. Millwall had evoked the memory of Dennis Wise’s first appearance in the final, when Wimbledon’s Crazy Gang upset the form book, and the purists, by defeating Liverpool in 1988.
However, there was a significant difference. Wimbledon were in the top division that year, above the likes of Newcastle, Tottenham and Chelsea. Millwall were 10th in the First Division this season, just below Reading. They have nobody of the calibre of Beasant, Scales and Fashanu, no Vinnie Jones to put the frighteners on the opposition. And Wise is past his best, even when he is not carrying a calf injury, as he was here.
Wise, in a misguided attempt to give the Millwall fans, and his own players, something to get them going, ended another pacy incursion by Ronaldo by bringing the winger down, then stepping on him as he lay on the ground. Jeff Winter erred on the side of leniency by not booking the Millwall scrapper-cum-manager. Keane let fly from 25 yards and Andy Marshall was fully extended in tipping the ball over his crossbar.
Millwall had rare, momentary encouragement when Paul Ifill escaped John O’Shea’s attentions on the right for a shot which Howard was happy to see Mikael Silvestre block.
United might have taken the lead after 42 minutes when Ronaldo ghosted his way past Marvin Elliott on the outside to get in a shot which beat Marshall, only to be cleared off the line by Darren Ward. The reprieve lasted less than two minutes. Gary Neville stood up an inviting short cross from the right to the far post and, with Wise ball-watching, Ronaldo plunged in to beat Marshall with a firm, downward header.
Wise suffered an attack of the red mist in the seconds that remained before the break and, for the second time, he should have been booked when he wrestled Scholes to the ground.
Straight after the interval Darren Fletcher went past three defenders but, in a position that cried out for a left-footed finish, he opted to shoot with his favoured right and found Marshall’s midriff.
Mr Winter’s patience with Wise was finally exhausted by a foul on Giggs, which produced the long overdue yellow card. Scholes, well supplied by Keane, brought a notable one-handed save from Marshall, then Silvestre had a header cleared off the line.
But it was the other kid in United’s midfield who caught the eye yesterday. Fletcher did enough running for two men. If the Scot continues to progress and Keane can keep his body in one piece they could develop a formidable partnership at the centre of United’s midfield. There were signs, too, that the composed Fletcher may not be dissimilar to Keane. When Dennis Wise tried, with typical mean-spiritedness, to discourage Ronaldo, it was Fletcher who ran to help, as if to say, "that’s my mate you’re messing with".
Fletcher and Ronaldo were the best players in the semi- final victory over Arsenal and when Ferguson wanted to introduce Nicky Butt and Solskjaer, it was the youngsters he took off yesterday. The match was won and by replacing them at that point, the manager was actually complimenting them. So we got a glimpse into United’s future and it is full of promise.
THE SUNDAY TELEGRAPH - RONALDO STEERS UNITED INTO COMFORT ZONE
Cristiano Ronaldo, the Portuguese boy of war, mesmerised Millwall with the sort of sleight-of-hand football that was never much appreciated down at the old Den, let alone the new one. But after all his legerdemain had unnerved the clawless and often clueless Lions, it was the most straightforward of headers from Ronaldo that ensured the Cup would be delivered into Manchester United's grateful hands.
It was the sort of goal that Alan Shearer scores, not a player famed for endless stepovers and artistic footwork. Fitting all the same, an artisan goal befitting an artisan final, and even though this was a record fifth triumph for United's manager Sir Alex Ferguson, it offered further evidence of why this season has been one of the most disappointing of his reign.
United captain Roy Keane and Millwall's player-manager, Dennis Wise. Keane, only the second man to play in six FA Cup finals, offered us a reprise of his days of majesty by dominating midfield, while Wise, in his fifth final, did his best, or rather worst, to turn a predictable coronation into a bar-room brawl.
If it had not been the FA Cup final, which tends to see referees at their most merciful, his crude tackles and attempts to wind up opponents might well have ended in a sending-off. As it was, referee Jeff Winter, hoping to keep his cards in his pocket in his last match before retirement, was forced to show a yellow to Wise, who drew boos from every United fan when he was substituted in the final minute.
Ferguson brought off Ronaldo late in the game to enable him to take a deserved salute from supporters. And, with only a few minutes remaining, United's manager showed his caring side by sending on substitute goalkeeper Roy Carroll, having agonised for days whether he or Tim Howard should get the jersey.
THE OBSERVER - UNITED TOO MUCH FOR MILLWALL
Ferguson will step down at some point, and because of what happened last time it will not be a pre-planned parting but a surprise handover, yet the biggest surprise would be if he agreed to hand over his current work in progress to anyone else.
Not when Cristiano Ronaldo and Darren Fletcher have so clearly arrived. Not when Rio Ferdinand is available again in September. "Rio's suspension was what cost us this season, I have no doubt of that," Ferguson said. "We'll be back after summer. When you've been a manager for 30 years you learn to accept your disappointments. You have to take the good with the bad. I'm pleased we've ended up with a trophy, but I'm never fulfilled. That's my problem. At least we can do something about it next season."
Ferguson's decision to leave England squad members Nicky Butt and Phil Neville on the bench was fully justified by the performances of his new midfield fledglings. Ronaldo tormented Millwall all afternoon, Fletcher grew in stature as the game progressed, and with Roy Keane giving Dennis Wise lessons in midfield maturity the First Division side were unable to exert any influence on the game. United were too good for them in all the crucial areas. Both managers ended up proud of their kids, for vastly different reasons. Ferguson suspects no one in Europe has greater potential than Ronaldo. Wise suspects some of his kids have been pushed too far too early. "We gave it a go, we didn't get anihilated," Wise said. "But we need some new players to get anywhere near promotion."
Keane had said there was to be no crying like big babies should the result go against Manchester United, but there was never any danger of that and many of Millwall's supposedly hard-boiled supporters were blubbing before the game even kicked off. Every single Millwall fan appeared to be wearing blue, whereas the odd United supporter turned up in civvies, and the usual noisy rivalry was interrupted when the first notes of Abide With Me struck up and the giant screen caught the London contingent dabbing at their eyes with their Lions scarves.
Ian Ridley in The Observer:
There was the White Horse final, the Matthews final; this was the No-One-Likes-Us final, such is the hostility towards Manchester United and Millwall. One club provoke envy due to their size, support and history of on-field achievement, the other resentment because of the off-field history they are seeking to rectify. If you like football and not Cristiano Ronaldo, though, there has to be a hole in your soul.
Much is made in the English game of the talent and potential of Wayne Rooney, and there is no doubt the boy can play. Were he English, Ronaldo, at just eight months older than Rooney, could expect adulation and deification. He is currently in a league of his own as a young talent playing in this country.
The 19-year-old Portuguese virtuoso certainly was yesterday. Millwall were spirited and well-organised, as you would expect of underdogs contesting an FA Cup final. United were quicker, sharper but largely pedestrian, in keeping with their form of this season. Then there was Ronaldo.
It wasn't just his goal that broke open a game that was meandering, threatening to bore. It was his comfort on the ball, his dancing twinkletoes that caress and cajole a football. If you can ever feel sorry for a player lucky enough to play in a cup final, then the Millwall left-back Robbie Ryan was that man. His substitution must have felt like a relief.
When Ronaldo himself was substituted, it was to a rapturous reception from the Manchester United fans. Gary Neville walked over to congratulate him, Roy Keane, a real compliment from a grudging purveyor of them within Old Trafford these days, shook his hand and Wes Brown applauded. The announcement of Ruud van Nistelrooy as man of the match was laughable. United fans knew better. Sponsors, eh?