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Agony and Ecstasy as Brits Battle Brits in Moscow

by Zoe Strimpel
Thu, 22 May 2008 at 3:35 PM

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England's hearts and minds — but mostly hearts — were firmly in Moscow last night, as the most anticipated soccer match of the season went ahead with all the drama you'd expect. The two great clubs of the British Premier League, Chelsea and Manchester United, played each other in a tightly fought clash for European Championship at Luzhniki Stadium that ultimately ended in defeat for Chelsea in the penalty shoot-outs. Late into the night, the streets of London were empty — but even the leafiest residential roads (like mine) echoed with agonized screams, shouts, and finally fireworks as fans tuned in.

It was over when Nicolas Anelka missed Chelsea's seventh penalty, handing the game to Man U, just after goals by Chelsea's captain, John Terry, and Man U's Cristiano Ronaldo (known as "the winker" for his sneering expression in the World Cup quarter-final between Portugal and England) canceled each other out.

This was still the first all-English final in the history of the European cup, and was particularly closely followed by anyone interested in the fate of Chelsea's Avram Grant, the Israeli coach put in place by Roman Abramovich to replace Jose Mourinho. Will he stay or will he go? Nobody doubts he's done a great job this season, but he's not a people's favorite. Last night can't have helped.

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