Manchester United defeated Inter on penalties at FedEx Field in Washington on Tuesday night after a 0-0 draw in the International Champions Cup.
A fairly tepid game saw Darren Fletcher score the winning penalty in the shootout after Marco Andreolli missed for the Nerazzurri to give the English the 5-3 victory.
The first half saw the best chance come in the 11th minute. A United corner found Phil Jones, whose diving header looked like it was heading into the back of the net but Samir Handanovic got down low to his right to make a terrific save and keep the ball out.
Inter looked well-organised defensively and were happy to let United have possession but didn’t really test goalkeeper Anders Lindergaard in the first half.
Former United man Nemanja Vidic sent a header over the bar in the 13th minute and made contact yet again with the same result two minutes later as Inter looked most dangerous from set pieces.
United started to up the tempo towards the end of the half and a terrific one touch move involving the front three of Rooney, Juan Mata and Danny Welbeck almost opened up Inter’s back three but broke down in the box.
Mata struck a venomous shot from 20 yards out in the 41st minute that went just wide of Handanovic’s post as the half played out to the score of 0-0.
The second half was similar to the first with both defences very much on top. However, it was United that were the much more threatening side once again with Inter only having one real shot in the half.
Jonny Evans got his head on an Ashley Young corner in the 51st minute but couldn’t direct his header goalwards as it went over the bar.
In the 61st minute a neat one two between Shinji Kagawa and Nani saw the Portuguese international with a chance from just inside the box but he pushed it wide with the outside of his foot.
Substitute keeper Juan Pablo Carrizo was forced into action in the 74th minute when he made a good save from a well-struck shot from Nani inside the box.
Inter’s only real chance of the half came in the 84th minute when a well-struck Fredy Guarin free-kick from twenty yards out forced an acrobatic tip over the bar from David De Gea.
There were few chances after that and the game went all the way to penalties.
It was a high quality shootout with Guarin, M’Vila and Taider scoring for Inter and Young, Chicharito, Cleverley and Kagawa all scoring for United before Andreolli hit the bar with his effort. Fletcher then calmly stepped up to slot the ball home and win the match for United.
Inter will now play Serie A rivals Roma on Saturday afternoon in Philadelphia.
