CHAMPIONS LEAGUE Manchester Utd 1 AS Roma 0 (Man Utd win 3-0 on agg):MANCHESTER UNITED had, in effect, clinched a Champions League semi-final against Barcelona with their decisive victory in Rome last week.
Emotions therefore did not surge here until the introduction of Gary Neville for the last nine minutes as he reappeared following an ankle injury sustained 13 months ago.
Otherwise this was an exercise in adaptation for an altered United selection that had to wait until the 70th minute for the single goal of the night from Carlos Tevez. In view of current defensive worries, the clean sheet may have been more gratifying still. It can be a show of strength to weaken a line-up.
Mindful of the Premier League match with Arsenal here on Sunday, Alex Ferguson decided to start with Wayne Rooney, Cristiano Ronaldo and Paul Scholes all among the substitutes.
The manager might have been scolded for complacency but such a charge could only be made half-heartedly when the recent record against Roma was taken into account.
Among other results, United had won the first leg of this tie 2-0 at Stadio Olimpico and beaten Roma 7-1 at Old Trafford a year ago. Against that backdrop the assertion by the visiting defender Marco Cassetti that Ferguson's side held merely a "slight advantage" sounded like an especially shrill sort of whistling in the wind. United were in a hurry to disillusion the left-back.
The manager appeared to have removed all complacency from his side and there was a strong opening. If anything, the alterations could have been invigorating in that period.
There are people of significant ability in this squad who are conscious that a place in the starting line-up is not to be taken lightly. With that keenness at work, this was yet another night when United seemingly had the potential to do repeated damage to Roma.
Ryan Giggs, winger turned elder statesman and playmaker, set up Anderson and then Owen Hargreaves in the first 10 minutes. The Brazilian put his effort wide and the Englishman's attempt clipped the goalkeeper Doni to deflect for a corner. It was bemusing to witness a Champions League quarter-final tie at Old Trafford that had no immediate aura of importance.
Roma, to their credit, came very close to getting the agitated attention of spectators.
There had been intermittent forays by them, with Edwin van der Sar having to block a Mirko Vucinic attempt from an angle with his leg, and the visitors received an undue reward for further efforts in the 29th minute. Wes Brown's tackle on Mancini made contact with the ball first, yet the referee, Tom Henning Ovrebo, awarded a penalty. But Daniele de Rossi was overwhelmed by the opportunity and sent the kick well over the bar.
Roma, by then, were animated and had apparently recognised the vulnerabilities in the United back four, where the recovery of Rio Ferdinand from a foot injury did not stop the side from again missing Nemanja Vidic, whose knee problems will rule him out for a week or two. It was, sporadically, a tricky environment in which the left-back Mikael Silvestre had to make his comeback after ligament damage sustained in September.
Any apprehension, all the same, was moderate. Primarily, it was exasperating for the United fans that openings had been wasted so that a relieved Roma could steadily feel more at ease.
Gerard Pique, deputising for Vidic, had a greater involvement in the action than he would have anticipated.
The game had become an irritant to United, especially since they were no longer posing so regular a threat.
There were moments when the situation could have caused danger and the side was at risk when Van der Sar, after 49 minutes, let a Vucinic attempt break out of his grasp.
Roma were becoming bolder and the centre-half Juan was, for instance, first to a corner, calling upon the United goalkeeper to hold his header in the 58th minute.
Hargreaves, like Giggs, had been animated and finally doused Roma's hopes with a cross from the right that was superbly headed home by Tevez after 70 minutes.
United had confirmed the Serie A club's elimination while taking almost nothing out of themselves.
MANCHESTER UNITED:Van der Sar, Brown, Pique, Ferdinand, Silvestre, Hargreaves, Park, Carrick (O'Shea 74), Anderson (Neville 81), Giggs (Rooney 74), Tevez. Subs not used: Kuszczak, Ronaldo, Scholes, Welbeck.
ROMA:Doni, Panucci, Mexes, Juan, Cassetti (Tonetto 56), De Rossi, Pizarro (Giuly 69), Taddei (Esposito 81), Perrotta, Mancini, Vucinic. Subs not used: Curci, Cicinho, Aquilani, Brighi. Booked: Perrotta.
Referee:Tom Ovrebo (Norway).
