It was a bitterly disappointing evening. United fans were outnumbered in the stadium. There is a large Russian contingent in Monaco whilst hundreds of Zenit fans were paying astonishing prices for tickets outside the stadium.

This game meant a great deal for Dick Advocaat's men who were desperate to deliver a message of intent to their Champions League rivals. United, in contrast, were lacklustre and were never at full throttle until they were two goals behind.

Zenit looked sharper and more ambitious throughout the opening period. United wasted long periods of possession with clueless lunges forward and were restricted to long pot shots by the Russian champions.

The deadlock was broken moments before half-time. Igor Denisov was unmarked from a corner and was allowed to flick the ball onto Pavel Pogrebnyak who headed home from close-range.

United were no better after half-time and the result looked beyond doubt when Zenit doubled their advantage. Danny scored a superb goal, teasing United's retreating defenders with a superb run before drilling a great effort passed Edwin van der Sar. United's defending was slack - they couldn't compete with Zenit's slick, counter-attacking approach.

Vidic gave United hope has he poked home from only yards out in a crowded penalty area after some great work from Wayne Rooney and Carlos Tevez - but there was to be no dramatic equaliser.

United did have the ball in the net once more - in bizarre fashion. Scholes met a cross with his hand and punched the ball into the back of the net. He was swiftly shown a second yellow card. It was a petulant and unnecessary act and Scholes clearly didn't realise that his actions will land him a Champions League ban. Oh dear.

Zenit and their fans celebrated another piece of silverware but it was misery for United. ManUtdWeb's dream of the "Magnificent Seven" of trophies is over. If the Reds want to win more than the Community Shield this season, they'll have to improve on this performance.

Full Time - Manchester United 1-2 Zenit St Petersburg
Attendance - 18,500

Manchester United: Van der Sar, Neville (Brown 76), Ferdinand, Vidic, Evra, Anderson (O'Shea 60), Nani, Scholes, Fletcher (Park 60), Rooney, Tevez.

Zenit St Petersburg: Malafeev, Anyukov, Krizanac (Radimov 71), Puygrenier (Shirokov 62), Sirl, Denisov, Tymoschuk, Zyrianov, Dominguez (Arshavin 46), Pogrebnyak, Danny.

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