Dong makes United debut

Repeatedly beaten in the air by Chelsea's England captain John Terry, Dong rarely worried the Blues¹ defense². When he had a chance from just outside the area midway through the first half he shot well wide of the near post.

He was eventually replaced by Rooney in the 73rd minute having made little impact alongside veteran striker Ole Gunnar Solksjaer and young winger Chris Eagles.

Manager Alex Ferguson, whose team clinched³ the Premier⁴ League title on Sunday, rested Cristiano Ronaldo and kept Rooney on the bench until late in the game.

"Some of the performance was good at times but we tired in the last 15 minutes," Ferguson said. "Players like Kieran Lee, Chris Eagles and Dong were spent forces by the end."

Dong joined the Red Devils in January 2004 but was loaned to Belgian side Royal Antwerp while he waited for a work permit to play in England. At Antwerp, the striker scored 35 goals in 61 games.

Dong also played on United's last two preseason tours, scoring in a 1-0 win over the Kaizer Chiefs in South Africa and was included in a lineup that played a Europe XI in a charity game at Old Trafford in March.

Jose Mourinho was ordered from the bench 10 minutes from the end and then discovered he had misunderstood the referee⁵.

Manchester United's Dong Fangzhuo (right) competes for the ball with Chelsea defender6 Paulo Ferreira during their English Premier League match at Stamford Bridge in London on Wednesday. The game ended 0-0 draw.

After being taunted⁷ by Red Devils fans over their league title, Mourinho watched the last few minutes from among the Chelsea supporters. Referee Graham Poll appeared to have ordered him from the bench for overreacting to the official's decision over a United foul⁸.

"I thought I was (sent off) but I wasn't," he said. "I walked to the stands but then my assistants were saying 'you can stay in your position."'

So frustrated⁹ by the game, Mourinho couldn't recall what angered him most.

"I cannot remember," he said. "With Mr. Poll in Chelsea matches there are so many incidents. I cannot choose one."

From his seat behind the bench, he watched Chelsea waste late chances while United's Tomasz Kuszczak almost handed Chelsea three points with some comical goalkeeping.

Both Mourinho and Ferguson fielded several reserve players to rest regulars with the FA Cup final looming¹⁰ between their two teams.

Mourinho said that of his injured players, defender Ricardo Carvalho had a one percent chance of playing in the May 19 final while there was no possibility for Michael Ballack. Didier Drogba had a good chance of facing United.

Ferguson said it obviously would help United's chances if fewer of Chelsea's top players didn't make it.

"In these games, you hope (John) Terry's not playing, you hope (Petr) Cech's not playing, you hope Drogba's not playing," he said. "That's the nature of football at the end of the day. I am hoping I can get there with a good strong squad¹¹ myself."

Before kickoff, Chelsea players stood in two lines to applaud the United lineup onto the field to salute¹² the Red Devils' league title triumph.