LONDON, 29 January 2004 — Bolton Wanderers will meet either Middlesbrough or Arsenal in the League Cup final next month after beating Aston Villa 5-4 on aggregate despite losing Tuesday’s semifinal second leg 2-0 at Villa Park.
Bolton, who crushed Villa 5-2 in the first leg last Wednesday, were rocked after nine minutes when German Under-21 midfielder Thomas Hitzlsperger floated a free-kick past Finnish goalkeeper Jussi Jaaskelainen from 25 meters.
Villa had midfielder Gavin McCann sent off after 39 minutes and Bolton seemed to be cruising until Jlloyd Samuel scored from close range in the 88th minute to set up a storming finale — which Bolton survived.
Villa’s hopes of turning the tie around probably disappeared when Gavin McCann was given a straight red card for hitting Bolton’s Brazilian defender Emerson Thome after a flare-up following McCann’s late challenge on Jaaskelainen.
Hard-working Villa had more of the ball and created several scoring chances, but Bolton, with the extra man for 50 minutes, were more than content to soak up the pressure while creating little of their own up front.
Meanwhile, the English League Cup semifinal between Middlesbrough and Arsenal was postponed yesterday due to adverse weather conditions.
The match has been rearranged for Tuesday, Feb. 3
Middlesbrough lead the tie 1-0, but Arsenal remain favorites to reach the final at Cardiff’s Millennium Stadium on Feb. 29.
Marseille Held
at Lowly Metz
In Paris, Olympique Marseille missed an opportunity of catching up with the Ligue 1 leading teams when they were held to a 1-1 draw at lowly Metz in a re-arranged match yesterday.
Marseille stay sixth in the standings on 34 points, 13 adrift of leaders Monaco and four behind fifth-placed Sochaux.
Metz, who have won only two games at home this season, scored the opening goal two minutes into the second half, courtesy of Bruno Rodriguez. The 31-year-old striker, who came back to his old club during the winter break, left Fabien Barthez stranded after being set up by Franck Signorino.
Marseille leveled in the 77th minute when Metz goalkeeper Ludovic Butelle’s attempted clearance ended in Didier Drogba’s path. The striker swivelled and slipped the ball home, bringing his season’s tally to 12 and moving to second place in the scorers’ chart.
Ferguson Signs One-Year
Rolling United Contract
Manchester United, bowing to pressure from the club’s largest shareholders, announced yesterday that manager Alex Ferguson had signed a new 12-month rolling contract.
The 62-year-old, the longest-serving premier league coach, has been at the champions since 1986 and won eight titles, turning United into the dominant force in English soccer.
John Magnier and J.P. McManus, who hold a 25 percent stake in United through their investment vehicle Cubic Expression, had demanded a 12-month rolling contract rather than a longer deal so compensation, if Ferguson left, would be limited.
Whether that contract started from the day Ferguson signed or from the end of his existing deal was seen as crucial to the Irish tycoons’ position. The deal will start from June 30, 2005, when Ferguson’s previous three-year contract runs out.
Hungary Bid Farewell
to Striker Feher
In Gyor, Hungarian international striker Miklos Feher was buried near his home town yesterday after collapsing during a Portuguese league match on Sunday.
He was 24.
Feher, a former Hungarian youth player of the year, died from an apparent heart attack in the closing stages of his club Benfica’s televised game against Vitoria Guimaraes.
At an emotional farewell in Gyor, close to Hungary’s western border with Austria, Feher’s Benfica teammates were among several thousand mourners who braved freezing temperatures to pay their last respects.
They were joined by senior officials from the Portuguese and Hungarian football associations, including Lothar Matthaeus, Hungary’s new national coach.
