page_title: 2001 FA Charity Shield
section_title: Background
hierarchical_section_title: 2001 FA Charity Shield / Background
caption_attribution_description: English: Millennium Stadium, Cardiff, Wales.
context_page_description: The 2001 FA Charity Shield was the 79th FA Charity Shield, an annual football match played between the winners of the previous season's Premier League and FA Cup. The match was contested between Liverpool, winners of the 2000–01 FA Cup and Manchester United, who won the 2000–01 Premier League on 12 August 2001. It was the first Shield match to be held at the Millennium Stadium following the closure of Wembley Stadium for reconstruction.
  This was Liverpool's 19th appearance and Manchester United's 21st and the 5th time they had met in the competition. The anticipated meeting of Liverpool midfielder Steven Gerrard and new Manchester United signing Juan Sebastián Verón did not occur. Another omission from the Liverpool team was striker Robbie Fowler, who was left out of the matchday squad. New signings for both teams made an appearance, with defender John Arne Riise making his first appearance in English football for Liverpool, while striker Ruud van Nistelrooy made his debut for Manchester United.
  Watched by a crowd of 70,027 spectators, Liverpool took the lead in the second minute when Gary McAllister scored from a free kick after a foul on Danny Murphy by Roy Keane.
context_section_description: Founded in 1908 as a successor to the Sheriff of London Charity Shield, the FA Community Shield began as a contest between the respective champions of the Football League and Southern League, although in 1913 it was played between an Amateurs XI and a Professionals XI. In 1921, it was played by the league champions of the top division and FA Cup winners for the first time. Wembley Stadium acted as the host of the Shield from 1974. Cardiff's Millennium Stadium was hosting the Shield for the first time; it took over as the venue for the event while the new Wembley Stadium underwent a six-year renovation between 2001 and 2006.
  Liverpool qualified for the Charity Shield by winning the 2000–01 FA Cup. They beat Arsenal 2–1 in the final, courtesy of two goals from Michael Owen after Freddie Ljungberg had given Arsenal the lead. Manchester United qualified by way of winning the 2000–01 FA Premier League, their third successive league championship. They finished 10 points clear of second placed Arsenal.
  Liverpool were appearing in their 19th match in the competition. They had won seven outright (1966, 1976, 1979, 1980, 1982, 1988, 1989), shared five (1964, 1965, 1974, 1977, 1986, 1990) and lost five (1922, 1971, 1983, 1984, 1992). This was Manchester United's 21st and sixth consecutive appearance in the competition, they had won 10 (1908, 1911, 1952, 1956, 1957, 1983, 1993, 1994, 1996, 1997), shared four (1965, 1967, 1977, 1990) and lost six (1948, 1963, 1985, 1998, 1999, 2000). Liverpool and United had previously contested the Shield four times, with United winning in 1983 and the Shield being shared on the other three occasions in 1965, 1977 and 1990.
  Before the match, the decision was taken to close the roof on the Millennium Stadium, the first time this had happened in the United Kingdom. Liverpool lined up in a 4–4–2 formation, with new signing John Arne Riise included in the team, while midfielder Steven Gerrard was absent with an ankle injury. There was also no place for striker Robbie Fowler, who was expected to captain the side. Manchester United lined up in a 4–4–1–1 formation, with Paul Scholes playing just off the main striker, Ruud van Nistelrooy, who made his debut for the club. Van Nistelrooy's fellow new signing, Juan Sebastián Verón, was on international duty with the Argentina national team; his place in midfield was taken by Nicky Butt.
caption: The Millennium Stadium, which was hosting the Shield for the first time.
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