UEFA Celebration Match

The UEFA Celebration Match, held on 13 March 2007, celebrated both the 50th anniversary of the signing of the Treaty of Rome, which set the backbone for a united Europe, and the 50th year of Manchester United's participation in European competitions. Representatives felt it would be most appropriate to celebrate the landmark in England using a football match rather than other celebrations like musical concerts. A Europe XI managed by World Cup-winning manager Marcello Lippi played against Manchester United at Old Trafford, Manchester. The match was televised live on BBC Three in the UK and also live-streamed via the BBC website. The £1.2 million raised went towards the Manchester United Foundation. The match was officiated by Marcus Merk.

Match details

footballbox
date= 13 March 2007
20:00 WET
team1= Manchester United flagicon|ENG
score= 4 – 3
team2= flagicon|EUR Europe XI
report= [http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/m/man_utd/6441507.stm (Report)] | goals1= Rooney goal|6 goal|43
Brown goal|9
Ronaldo goal|35
goals2= Malouda goal|23
Diouf goal|52 goal|88|pen.
stadium= Old Trafford, Manchester
attendance= 74,343 [ [http://www.manutd.com/default.sps?pagegid={B4CEE8FA-9A47-47BC-B069-3F7A2F35DB70}&newsid=410702&page=4 United 4 Europe XI 3] ]
referee= Markus Merk flagicon|GER

Injuries and withdrawals

After the initial squad was announced, some players were forced to withdraw from the Europe XI squad through injury:
*Goalkeepers: Oliver Kahn, Iker Casillas
*Defenders: Paolo Maldini, Lilian Thuram, Carles Puyol, Fabio Grosso, Miguel
*Midfielders: Juninho Pernambucano, David Beckham, Ronaldinho
*Strikers: Ronaldo
*The entire Chelsea and Arsenal teams respectively due to their commitments to the Carling Cup.

See also

*Manchester United F.C.
*UEFA
*Treaty of Rome
*European Union

References

External links

* [http://www.manutd.com Man Utd Official Website]