Champions League Final: Live Blogging

Random thoughts while watching today's Champions League final between Manchester United and Chelsea, the first between two English teams.

• Too bad this isn't being played at Wembley.
• Ashley Cole does indeed start; Makelele on the take trying to put Cole out of action in training?
• Lots of chippy fouls early, hopefully this isn't a trend for the whole afternoon.
  
• United defense doing a poor job clearing the ball from trouble in the first 5 minutes.
• My God, Clarence Seedorf is the third man in the booth with Derek Rae and Tommy Onion Bags on the ESPN telecast. Why? 5 minutes in, and he's forgetting names and repeating himself that it's significant Ronaldo is playing on the left side. We get it already.
• Two quality crosses from Owen Hargreaves already.
  
• Surprised really that so much of Chelsea's game is going through Malouda.
• Park Ji-Sung? Calling Park Ji-Sung!
• Early analysis: Cole changes his boots--is the pitch as bad as they said? And, Ronaldo relatively quiet--Essien early man of the match candidate?
• Hmm, check that, Ronaldo just leaves Essien behind and gets off a great cross that Hargreaves missed.
• If it's not Ronaldo, it's Evra down the left side. What does United see there? Whatever it is, it's working
• First corner for Man U: Nada
• First blood: Paul Scholes split open in a collision with Makelele. Looks like the bridge of the nose. Ouch. Yellow for Makelele. And Scholes???? Why either? It was during the run of play, nothing malicious. Wow.
  
• Vidic clears to corner on Lampard center. Wes Brown gave it away to Frank. Corner. Thing is, Van der Sar had it. Nothing from the corner.
  
• 23 minutes, 0-0