Manchester United added the Community Shield to their trophy cabinet after beating Portsmouth 3-1 on penalties following a goalless draw at Wembley.
The Premier League and Champions League winners had the best chances throughout, with Darren Fletcher scuffing a glaring opportunity in the first half while Sylvain Distin cleared from Nani under his own crossbar.
United remained in charge after the restart and the excellent David James tipped a Fletcher shot onto his crossbar in the 49th minute.
Man-of-the-match Carlos Tevez forced a fine full-stretch save by James with 20 minutes left before being denied a clear penalty after tangling with Herman Hreidarsson just inside the Pompey box.
United then claimed a richly-deserved victory in the shoot-out after Lassana Diarra, Arnold Mvuemba and Glen Johnson missing for Pompey, while Tevez, Ryan Giggs and Michael Carrick converted for the Red Devils.
It was 26 minutes before either side forced a save, James beating away Giggs’ near-post piledriver.
Tevez had seen his shot blocked, while Diarra volleyed wildly over at the other end but it was United who looked most likely to create a clear opening, which duly arrived at Fletcher’s feet just past the half hour.
Purple patch
With Fabio Capello watching from the stands, Johnson would have been mildly embarrassed to be robbed so easily by Nani.
The winger’s cross caught the Portsmouth defence flat-footed. But instead of sliding the opener into an unguarded goal, Fletcher somehow managed to get the ball stuck under his body. The scoring chance gone, Fletcher attempted to scoop a pass to Tevez, only to meet with failure there as well.
It was the start of a purple patch for United. Nani was heavily involved, coming close himself on a couple of occasions and setting up Paul Scholes with an accurate corner to the edge of the area which his team-mate screwed wide.
As Cristiano Ronaldo – who watched from the stands alongside Wayne Rooney – is sidelined until the end of September following his ankle operation, Nani is going to be a major figure for United in the coming weeks.
It does not help that the Portugal international is suspended for two games following his dismissal against West Ham in May but his speed, skill and movement make him an opponent to be feared.
He even remonstrates in the same way as good friend Ronaldo, although it was Distin and Nemanja Vidic who showed scant regard for the FA’s laudable ‘Respect’ the referee campaign, both booked for dissent as they questioned officials’ decisions.
Superb
After spurning the earlier golden opportunity, Fletcher came agonisingly close to giving United the lead they deserved with a superb chip that was heading in until James touched it onto the bar.
The rebound came at Tevez pretty quickly, leaving him no time to do anything other than nod it straight to the Portsmouth keeper.
Neville signalled his well-being on his first domestic appearance since March 2007, thundering into John Utaka to earn a booking after enjoying a relatively quiet hour.
The chances started to mount for United as James denied both Giggs and Nani before producing a full-length fingertip save to touch round a Tevez effort that was heading for the corner.
Both sides had good penalty appeals turned down, Hreidarsson pulling Tevez down with a firm grip of the ankle, before prospective England skipper Rio Ferdinand smashed a shot into the side-netting.
It was the prelude to a niggly last few minutes as Fraizer Campbell was buffeted around and Paul Scholes caught Papa Bouba Diop. Amid the fraying tempers, Tevez’s shot flew over after flicking off Distin.
But in the end, it went down to penalties, with United holding their nerve and Pompey off target.
| Manchester United | Team Statistics | Portsmouth |
| 0 | Goals | 0 |
| 0 | 1st Half Goals | 0 |
| 6 | Shots on Target | 1 |
| 7 | Shots off Target | 7 |
| 4 | Blocked Shots | 2 |
| 10 | Corners | 1 |
| 15 | Fouls | 9 |
| 2 | Offsides | 1 |
| 2 | Yellow Cards | 1 |
| 0 | Red Cards | 0 |
| 82.2 | Passing Success | 71.9 |
| 27 | Tackles | 27 |
| 66.7 | Tackles Success | 81.5 |
| 60 | Possession | 40 |
| 48.5 | Territorial Advantage | 51.5 |
Source : Skysport
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