Manchester United defeat MLS All stars
Chicarito had a memorable debut for Manchester United as he helped his side record an emphatic 5-2 win against the All-stars of MLS.
The Mexican teen prodigy only joined the squad earlier this week and has become an instant hit with the fans as he scored his first goal for the club in the 84th minute of the match to open his account.
It was not only his first goal but a mesmerising finish as well, as he chipped the ball over the goal keeper after rushing onto a Darren Fletcher through ball.
Sir Alex fielded an inexperienced side but the result was effective nonetheless.
Federico Macheda scored a brace as Manchester United gave their US counter parts a lesson in free flowing football.
It was Macheda, who broke the seal and opened the game with only 24 seconds gone when he scored in fornt of a vociferous 70000 crowd at the Reliant Stadium.
Kiko was on the score sheet again in the 12th minute. While Manchester United’s other budding talent and Watford’s player of the seaosn last year, Tom Cleverly also got on the score sheet for the Red Devils.
It was another case of an impressive debut for Manchester City, as Yaya Toure helped Manchester City beat Club America 4-1 on spot kicks after a 1-1 stalemate in normal time.
The Ivory Coast defender was made the highest earning player in the Premier League with weekly wages of 200,000 pounds when City secured his signature from Barcelona in the summer.
The Citizens led 1-0 at half time after Emmanuel Adebayor gave them the lead from the spot when Adam Johnson was fouled in the box.City, who made six changes at the interval, were pegged back by the Mexican outfit just two minutes after the restart when Enrique Esqueda equalized. The game went to penalty shootouts as both the teams failed to add to the score line after that. Shay Given made two saves in the shootout as City went on to win 4-1 on penalties.
Both sides came close to adding to the score line with Daniel Montenegro’s 25-yard attempt just skimming past Joe Hart’s post in the first half. City also had a chance to seal the win in the 88th minute when Adebayor hit the underside of the crossbar.
On the other side of the globe, Blackburn Rovers suffered their 2nd consecutive defeat of the summer when they lost to AEK Athens 201 in the Festival of Football in Sydney.
Ignacio Scocco and Nikos Lyberopoulos scored for the Greek side in the space of three minutes in the first half to secure the win. Rovers, who also lost their last match to Rangers by the same score line, pulled one goal back in the second half when defender Phil Jones scored from close range but it was more than they deserved as AEK dominated the proceedings.
The dodgy weather conditions meant a small crowd was at the stadium to witness the proceedings but the fans were treated to some good football, mostly by the Greek side.
It was Athens’s second win in as many games in the competition as they now only need a draw against Scottish Champions Rangers on Sunday to be guaranteed of the top spot in their group.
Rangers, who drew their match 0-0 against Sydney, suffered a double injury scare in the match as the match was played on a disgracefully waterlogged pitch in Sydney.
Lee McCulloch and Kyle Lafferty limped off the field in the final stages of the game and are now very doubtful for their final game of the competition against AEK Athens.
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