Got it live here, across Australia, on SBS (free to air). Is it on PPV back home in the USA? Otherwise, manutd.com has free audio. Top-of-the-table duel at Old Trafford; Tim Howard starts. Will dig up the lineups from sportinglife.com.
Lineups... Howard starts in goal for Man Utd; Kirovski (FWIW) doesn't even make the bench for Birmingham City. MAN UTD 14. Tim Howard 2. Gary Neville 5. Rio Ferdinand 27. Mikael Silvestre 25. Quinton Fortune 24. Darren Fletcher 3. Phil Neville 16. Roy Keane 11. Ryan Giggs 18. Paul Scholes 10. Ruud van Nistelrooy Subs: 7. Cristiano Ronaldo 8. Nicky Butt 13. Roy Carroll (GK) 21. Diego Forlan 22. John O'Shea BIRMINGHAM CITY 12. Maik Taylor 22. Damien Johnson 25. Matthew Upson 4. Kenny Cunningham 23. Jamie Clapham 16. David Dunn 6. Aliou Cisse 32. Stephen Clemence 11. Stan Lazaridis 21. Christophe Dugarry 9. Mikael Forssell Subs: 1. Ian Bennett (GK) 14. Stern John 24. Darren Carter 19. Clinton Morrison 26. Olivier Tebily
I've got pictures here too on the American PPV broadcast. I'll try to keep you guys up-to-date but I'm also trying to follow the Man City match on audio while my 2 year old wants to play Playhouse Disney on the laptop.
Great visual. Good on the little one there... As far as our PbP efforts go, two guys working together can't be wrong. Man Utd getting some crosses into the penalty area in the early stages, as the wingers (Giggs and Fletcher) are getting down the flanks. However, the centre of the Brummies' defence is holding solid, in Upson and Cunningham.
8th min. - RVN tries a wall pass with Fortune, but the return pass to him in the box is behind him. United with a majority of the attacking play here so far; Howard has had zilch to do in the early stages.
Pretty lackluster first 12 minutes. Of course I guess I was spoiled this morning as I just got back from the pub watching the first Old Firm match of the season.
No worries, I had just returned minutes (literally!) before kickoff, getting in the front door of my house after having to attend a function for work. Game kicked off on SBS at 11:55 local time, booted up the laptop at 11:52. 15th min. - Taylor with good reflexes on a hard Scholes cross-cum-shot on the right-hand flank.
Completely and utterly out of favour, I reckon. I think he's been in Steve Bruce's first 16 for Birmingham only about two or three times this season, IIRC (could be wrong about that).
17th min. - Scholes heads sharply on goal, but right at Taylor. 18th min. - Taylor right place, right time again, after a nice three-man move around the box by the Red Devils, involving Giggs and RVN. Taylor had saved well from Scholes again.
That's why I had mentioned him in my first post of this thread. 20th min. -- United's back four playing solid, nopt allowing Birmingham to get any attacks on Howard's goal organised. The Blues, though, to their credit, are generally defending honourably as well. 22nd min. -- RVN shoots across the face of Taylor's goalmouth from Keane's perfectly-weighted through-ball. 23rd min. -- First shot by Birmingham, Dugarry shoots wide to the right of Howard's goal.
27th min. -- Forsell fails to get on the end of a through-ball, Silvestre cuts him off while Howard picks up the loose ball. Tim's first touch of any substance...
31st min. -- Howard plucks Cisse's soft, lofted free kick out of the air. RVN offside, on the attacking play in the other direction, as Birmingham spring the offside trap to perfection. 32nd min. -- United claims for a backpass call not heard, as ball ricochets off Cunningham into Taylor's hands. 33rd min. -- Penalty!! Scholes upended by Taylor... Taylor is sent off. Birmingham down to ten men. Scholes upended after RVN's perfect slide-rule pass...
Taylor off for DOGSO-F. Bennett in to replace him and he must face a RVN penalty immediately. Lazaridis makes way for the new keeper. GOAL! RVN.
35th min. -- Bennett (backup GK) on, Lazaridis sacrificed. RVN converts the spot kick with coolness. 1-0, Man Utd.