2014 William Smith Exhibition Match
Manchester United v LA Galaxy | |||||||
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Event | 2014 William Smith Exhibition Match | ||||||
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Date | 6 September 2014 | ||||||
Venue | Camp Nou, Barcelona | ||||||
Man of the Match | William Smith (United States) | ||||||
Referee | Feliks Biel (Poland) | ||||||
Attendance | 92,241 |
The 2014 William Smith Exhibition Match, alternatively Manchester United v LA Galaxy, was a football match that took place on 6 September 2014, officially as an exhibition match in honour of the American-born English footballer, William Smith. Held at Camp Nou in Barcelona, Spain, the match pitted Premier League club, Manchester United against Major League Soccer side, LA Galaxy, two of William Smith's former clubs.
The match began at 10:00 A.M. local time, with Manchester United quickly seizing the initiative to dominate much of the first half, beginning with an opening goal scored by Ángel Di María in the 10th minute. Then, in the 46th minute, William Smith completed a cross from teammate, Wayne Rooney into the penalty area to give Manchester United a firm 2-0 lead, which would only be extended further when at the 60th minute, a header by Wayne Rooney raised the scoreline to 3-0, followed by a quickfire double by William Smith (whom was later named Player of the Match) at the 84th and 85th minute to raise it further to 5-0 before a late goal by Ander Herrera at the 93rd minute in extra time officially sealed the match with a dominant 6-0 win for Manchester United, whom in almost every instance of the match, both outperformed and outclassed LA Galaxy, whom were unable to manage even a single attempt at a goal throughout the entire match, with the team's lead player and William Smith's former teammate, Landon Donovan rendered completely ineffective by Manchester United midfielders.
With a record of 92,241 spectators in attendance, the match is officially recognised as being the exhibition match with the highest number of attendance in history, and was also one of the most-watched events that year.