United Last Stand
Jan Justifier
Desperate for his strikers to regain their scoring touch, newly-returned Alcántara pushed
Jan Langeland out to prove himself against Croatian Division Three side Man. Utd. This he did on a wet day in Osijek, equalizing for the Grilled second team halfway through the opening period.
Man. Utd., like Grilled, had come through the previous rounds by tight margins, and appeared content to let the odd goal decide matters by squeezing five men at the back. Grilled's usual 3-5-2 did not have the muscle to breach a barrier of that magnitude, with
Jan Langeland toiling to earn a look at goal. He made a laudable go of it under the circumstances, but Anto Kesten stopped it with two hands.
Man. Utd.'s Tay Wan Pin shone with his composure in defence, blocking some runs by Riviera. The 17 year-old Singaporean fullback was every inch as good as the other four teenagers fielded by Man. Utd., and their vibrant energy daunted Grilled's forwards. Roger Loeliger penalised Hjortlind for dithering when he rolled a strong drive down the left channel, and American-born Chinese Leslie Cheng prodded it in to applause.
Jan Langeland's superior upper body strength served him well as he rode two stiff challenges in the 20th minute en route to putting Grilled back in the game. Most forwards would have gone down in the box and claimed the spot kick, but Langeland kept his feet and misdirected Kesten subtly with a short step. Vintage midfielder Paul Örnerberg was awarded a yellow card for failing to move from a free kick, which Riviera mishit a moment later.
Dani Spirig broke through from his withdrawn position five minutes before half-time, touring the outside of the box before checking in sharply and stroking one down the middle. He tried for a follow-up immediately, but was legally body-checked by Wan Pin as he advanced. His protestations were not heeded by the referee, who booked him for simulation.
Ulf Hjortlind rapidly became the third man booked, as he dragged Laurens-Jan Beerda by the scruff of his neck in an ugly go at the ball. Persistence paid off, as
Au-Yong Siu-Yue sent in a hanger from the left flank in the 56th minute, and Hjortlind this time won clear of everyone to kick the ball into an empty net.
Man. Utd.'s Elie Gergaud was less than happy as the heavy pitch finished off hopes of quick counterattacks, but the Belgian's twinkle toes undid
Nui Pakpao, who was woefully late and lucky not to be sent off. Their lone striker Mathijs van Kempen attempted his sole shot with eight minutes left, and it skimmed on the waterlogged ground only to miss the post by a foot.
