ISW

By Alex

FC Zenit defeated Manchester United 2-1 this week to capture Russia’s first Super Cup title.

No one should be surprised even if it was at the expense of the Red Devils. During the last UEFA campaign, it was obvious that Zenit was a world class team and now they have a chance to prove their “big-league” worth as they are now grouped with giants Real Madrid and Juventus in Champions League group play.

Something tells me they’ll do just fine. After all, last year Zenit beat German powerhouse Bayern Munich and Scottish champions Rangers to win the UEFA Cup and have now added United to that list this year. If anything, Juve and Real are the under dogs this time around.

Their victory over Man Utd. was made all the more impressive when striker Andrey Arshavin ( the most popular Russian since Trotsky) was not penciled into the starting line up.

For its part, Sir Alex Ferguson’s side was on record as saying they were going to take the Super Cup seriously by fielding a full squad for the encounter.

It wasn’t enough as a possibly rusty Man Utd. were beaten by a better squad on this night. United thought they equalized at one point only to find out that Paul Scholes had deliberately directed the ball into the net thus earning him a red card.

Man U’s loss propelled me to look at their track record in tournaments. Beyond the EPL, Manchester United are not as decorated (or at least have not had as much success) as some other European sides. Notably Real Madrid, AC Milan, Bayern Munich, Ajax, Juventus and arch rivals Liverpool.

The loss to Zenit brings United’s record in SC play at 1-2. The last time they participated in a SC final was in 1999 when Lazio defeated them 1-0. In Intercontinental Club Cup (FIFA Club World) play, they managed a 1-1 record beating Palmeiras 1-0 and losing to Estudiantes 0-1. The English Premier League as a whole have not done well against South American sides going 1-5 since the inception of the tournament in 1960.

Regardless, United does have a perfect 3-0 in Champions League and to many of its fans this is good enough.

They’ll have a shot at the FIFA Club later on this year and will look to become only the second European side (behind AC Milan) to win the tournament since being restructured in 2000. Liverpool and Barcelona each failed in their attempts.