Manchester United tops Gamba Osaka, makes FIFA Club World Cup final

Manchester United beat Japan's Gamba Osaka 5-3 Thursday to reach the final of the FIFA Club World Cup in a match that came alive in a six-goal second half.

Wayne Rooney scored twice for United in front of 67,618 fans in Yokohama, Japan, as the European champion set up a final against Ecuador's Liga de Quito. Cristiano Ronaldo, Nemanja Vidic and Darren Fletcher got the other goals for United.

"There were times when I was nervous," United coach Alex Ferguson said at a press conference. "What we've seen tonight is an indication that Japanese football is really improving."

United is aiming to become the second European team to win the global club championship after AC Milan last year. Sao Paulo and Internacional, both from Brazil, are the two other champions. The winner will get $5 million prize money.

Gamba's Tomokazu Myojin and Ryuji Bando forced sharp saves from Edwin van der Sar early in the match before United took control with goals from Vidic and Ronaldo, both headed from corners.

The second-half began with few chances, before four goals were scored in five minutes after the United manager substituted Paul Scholes, Vidic and striker Carlos Tevez.

Gamba striker Masako Yamazaki scored with a clean finish in between two long-range strikes from Yasuhito Endo that had Van der Sar at full stretch. United responded with three goals from substitutes Rooney and Fletcher to make it 5-1.

Endo, a Japan national team regular often compared by the Japanese media with Celtic's Shunsuke Nakamura, then scored from the penalty spot before Gamba striker Hideo Hashimoto ended the scoring with a goal in stoppage time.

"It was a very tough game but there were times when we controlled it and played our way," Gamba coach Akira Nishino told reporters after the match. "The timing of their goals, especially Rooney's first, was unfortunate for us."

The Club World Cup is contested by continental soccer champions. It was formed in 2005 from a merger between the FIFA Club World Championship, played once in Brazil in 2000, and the Intercontinental Cup, which was played annually between the South American and European champions.

Gamba Osaka, which changed its name from Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. Soccer Club when the J-League was formed in 1992, is the second Japanese team to win the Asian Champions League after Urawa Red Diamonds. The team finished in 8th place in this year's domestic competition below champions Kashima Antlers.

Quito, which won Ecuador's first Copa Libertadores title in July, beat Mexico's Pachuca 2-0 yesterday in the other semifinal in Tokyo. The final will be played Dec. 21 in Yokohama.

"It's going to be a massive game, a difficult game and we have to prepare for it," Ronaldo said after the game.