At first it seemed like mission impossible, but it actually was not. The fearless Black Eagles rose up to the occasion by beating mighty Manchester United 1-0 on Matchday 5, thereby succeeding where many a European soccer heavyweight had failed.
A goal from a long-range shot by Chilean leftie Rodrigo Tello in the 20th minute was more than enough to give Beşiktaş a much-needed victory and bring the $1.8 billion Manchester United club down to earth with a stinging bump. Much of the praise should go to goalkeeper Rüştü Reçber, who made daring saves -- especially in the dying minutes.
The victory not only gave the Black Eagles their first maximum points in this season’s Champions League proper, but the Eagles also left an indelible mark on Europe’s premier soccer tournament by becoming the first team to win at Old Trafford since 2005. United had not lost on home turf since a 1-0 defeat to AC Milan in February 2005. And the win also means the Eagles brought Manchester United’s 23-match unbeaten home record to an abrupt end.
The Eagles were cheered on by a small but loud group of supporters who overshadowed the nearly 75,000 United fans at Old Trafford.
Beşiktaş now has five points from five outings and CSKA Moscow, which beat German champion VfL Wolfsburg 2-1 in Moscow, has seven and so there will be everything to play for when the Black Eagles meet CSKA in İstanbul on Dec. 8. Already qualified United now needs a point from its final away game against German Wolfsburg on the same day to finish as Group B winner.
Beşiktaş coach Mustafa Denizli, speaking through a translator, praised his team’s defensive display and particularly goalkeeper Reçber for his faultless performance between the posts. “To come to England, to come to Old Trafford and be able to win, you need to have a good defense and a very good goalkeeper, Rüştü is just such a player,” Denizli said.
United coach Alex Ferguson said the pressure of playing on the big stage may have gotten to his less experienced players. “It is understandable that the young players were a bit anxious. They had a few opportunities but they suffered from [conceding on] the counter-attack which can happen in European football,” he said.
The Scotsman added that he was “not overly concerned” with the loss. “You have to be fair in assessing who was playing, [losses] would be of concern if we were fielding our strongest defenders in all our games but these players [also] know the value of good defending,” Ferguson said.
This is not the first time Manchester United has been humiliated by a Turkish team at Old Trafford, nor will it be the last. The Fenerbahçe Canaries beat United 1-0 in a Champions Cup match on Oct. 31, 1996 to hand the English side its first home loss in European competition in 40 years -- the only goal of the match coming from Elvir Bolic.
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