A stunner and a starter!

The duck is broken: Ando is mobbed by fellow Devils

In what seemed to be the ‘never to happen’ conundrum, Anderson finally got his name on the score sheet against Boca Juniors in the Audi Cup friendly tournament at the Allianz Arena, Germany. A stunning curling freekick to break his duck.

Brilliant.

Though having a perfect record in converting penalties (none more important than the one against Chelsea in Moscow ), I think quite a number of us fans had been on the verge of thinking that maybe, just maybe, Ando does a better job at braiding his hair than scoring goals in open play. Don’t get me wrong, though; he is our midfield asset and has almost everything we need in a combative midfielder except for putting the ball in the net. Well, Wednesday’s game could signal the arrival of a new Anderson that includes scoring in his repertoire of tricks, hopefully.

On another note, Valencia had a dream debut that most footballers would dream of by banging in the other goal. I reckon Sir Alex will start Valencia in the final against a seemingly strong Bayern Munich team that saw off AC Milan 4-1 in another match. We will have to be extra cautious throughout the match given Bayern’s 3 goals against Milan were at the last 10 minutes of the game.

The final will be played on:
Date: 30 July 2009
Time: 20:45

*Updates: Bayern Munich won 7-6 on penalties after it ended 0-0

*It was also great to note that John O'Shea was given the captain's armband, possibly in recognition to Mr. Versatililty's all-round contribution over the years. Good one, Sheasy!

Someday, Jose`

The Master and his would-be apprentice?

“I would consider going to Manchester United but United have to consider if they want me to succeed Sir Alex Ferguson or not. If they do, then of course.”
Source: The Daily Mirror

The ‘Special’ and controversial one is keen on United, hmmm…Would you welcome him to United, or would you want him to be at any other club but United?

On Sir Alex Ferguson:

While the idea has been bandied around recently, we United fans have to face the ultimate truth: Sir Alexander Chapman Ferguson will not be here forever. In fact, we would have ‘lost’ him early on when it was announced that the 2001/2002 season was to have been Sir Alex’s last as Manchester United manager. However, in February 2002, he agreed to stay in charge for at least another three years and thank God, the three years continued on until today.

I was born in the eighties and like people of my generation, we only know one United manager in our growing up years and early adult life. At almost 23 years of bringing United to unparallel heights, Sir Alex has been the driving force (despite the early hiccups) and instrumental during United’s nascent years in the early 90s. Of all the player and management signings that the United boardroom has been involved in, the appointment of Sir Alex on 6 November 1986 has been an utter masterstroke. He is where and what we are today, as a club and institution.

On Jose Mourinho and how the ‘Special One’ was born:

In a press conference upon joining the English side, Mourinho said,
"Please don't call me arrogant, but I'm European champion and I think I'm a special one", which resulted in the media dubbing him "The Special One".
Source: "What Mourinho said". BBC Sport. 2004-06-02. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/c/chelsea/3769431.stm.

During his time with Chelsea , I believe most of us found him irritatingly charismatic (like a certain Portuguese countryman who has defected to Los Blancos) and mind-bogglingly cocky. Mourinho delivered, say what you want and will, for the boys in Stamford Bridge . He also has a way of getting on people’s nerves and I admit, he gives a good read to the sometimes mundane news in the Premiership. One thing’s for sure though, should the gung-ho Mourinho succeed Sir Alex, he would definitely have Rafa ruffled and Wenger whining, and renew his attack on Ancelotti (if Carlo would stay or last that long). Most importantly, United would still be lifting silverwares at the end of each season.

So, Mr. Mourinho, you would be welcomed at United (for me), but let’s hope it is somewhere in the distant future. For now, our ‘hair-dryer’ is still working great despite the age. Oh well, it’s on a lifetime warranty.

O que sera` (Que Sera Sera..whatever will be, will be..)

Going Great Greens!

Michael Owen

Zoran Tosic

A brief geographical background:

* The capital of Zhejiang province, Hangzhou is a sub-provincial city located in the Yangtze River Delta in the People’s Republic of China.
It is renowned for its historic relics and natural beauty and had been ranked as one of the ten most scenic cities in China.

*Source: Wikipedia

Green:
I’m not sure about you but one of the first few things that caught my attention was the ‘green-ness’ of the Dragon Stadium’s pitch. It was as though the pitch had its green saturation level ‘turned up a few notches’ from the normal colour. Or it could be that Astro (satellite TV) did some visual experiment or enhancement, or it could be that the Plasma TV I was watching had its dispersion levels bumped up. It could be a little bit of everything listed above, for all we know.

Whatever it was, the United team that trooped onto the field against Hangzhou Greentown FC, turned up the heat and bumped up the goals ratio with an 8-2 rout of the mid-table Chinese club in the Chinese Super League (CSL). This was United’s biggest win in the Asia Tour ’09 and a clear reminder of the gulf in class between the two teams. Just 48 hours earlier, United had been given a good work out by FC Seoul on Friday (with United prevailing 3-2) and had looked to be chasing the game in Hangzhou in the first 20 minutes. True to their name, the team in green was very lush and lively with plenty of ball possession and gave a spirited display in midfield. However, as soon as Michael Owen opened the scoring on the 23rd minute, that was the start of the hint that United would be in cruise control. The unavoidable ‘red tide’ was coming, and came it did with such critical consequences to Greentown FC.

Final score: Hangzhou Greentown FC (2) - United (8)

Reenergize, revitalize, rejuvenate:

Somehow, there is still something about ‘green’ and its connotations that occupy my thoughts at the moment. Mention ‘green’ and there would be a host of images in our mind. From the organically grown vegetables to ‘Reduce, Reuse, Recycle’ campaign– the universally accepted tagline for the preservation of Mother Earth. In United’s context, however, the ‘green effect’ somehow managed to reenergize, revitalize and rejuvenate certain players who had seen their influences on the team to be on the wane. I must say I was pleased with Berbatov and Nani’s display on the whole. They were, arguably, the Men of the Match. Nani made full use of the ball and was lively with his runs and crosses. On the other hand, Berba gave a reminder to some quarters of United fans (your truly included) of why he is worth the 30 million pounds. He dropped deep, and at times, played off his striking colleagues and linked them with his fancy flicks and footwork. Owen’s second goal was the personification of not one but two moments of genius; started by Berba and ended with aplomb by Owen.

If you had seen THAT goal, you would know why!


TOSIC-ology:
I need to mention and credit Zoran ‘Toxic’ Tosic for his all-round distributions and contributions as well. Our new number 14 played an almost flawless game with his clever runs and ability to put in decent crosses from the left wing. Like an antithesis to a clean and green environment, Mr. ‘Toxic’ had so much going for him in the game and looked as though he had been playing in United’s red shirt for years. If it meant anything, his brilliant solo goal gives us confidence that there are more potent and poisonous substances in his chemical waste tank to dissolve the challenges of the other Premiership title pretenders. I foresee that Tosic will be the player to watch for United in the new season, if he does get the craved-for minutes on the pitch.

Now, if only we still had Jonathan Greening in the ranks, it would make this article seem complete. Well, almost.

Changing Colours

From Red...

Picture sourced from www.guardian.co.uk

...to Sky Blue: With Mark Hughes as City's new signing

"In my opinion, I don't think he was worth 25 million pounds," so says Sir Alex Ferguson, as reported by Agence France-Presse (AFP), updated on Tuesday, July 21, 2009 1:30 AM

It is quite hard to know what actually transpired between Sir Alex, Carlos Tevez and his agent, Kia Joorabchian. Some reports mentioned that certain parts of Tevez’s comments have been misinterpreted and misquoted. Lost in translation, or is Tevez lost in the giddy world of City's newfound riches? Nevertheless, the writings have been on the wall with Tevez’s heart set on leaving United since the blame game was tossed around from player to management. The saga reached its tipping point as soon as Tevez claimed that our gaffer did not make any attempt to communicate with him specifically in the past few months to clear the air.

So, is Tevez worth 25 million pounds that Man. City splashed out for him? I am very tempted to say yes but his recent outburst on Fergie make me hold back. It was as though Tevez was goading Sir Alex and the United faithful when he ‘threatened’ to sign for Liverpool a few weeks ago. In my mind, he realizes the deep animosity between the two clubs and tried to squeeze the United management into offering him a permanent contract with the Red Devils at his asking price or if all other attempts fail, engineer his own move away from United.

Then the inevitable happened when City tabled a bid and was accepted, much to the chagrin of many United supporters.

I am sure the United players are well aware of getting into Fergie’s good books; he is, after all, the MAN in Manchester United. We have ‘The Holy Trinity’ comprising Sir Bobby Charlton, George Best and Denis Law, Le King in Eric Cantona and if I’m not being too dramatic, 'The God' in the red half of Manchester in the form of Sir Alex Ferguson. Many have experienced the full force of his wrath; Jaap Stam, David Beckham and Ruud van Nistelrooy would attest to that. Like a song by the late Michael Jackson, they had gone too soon, in regards to their playing days in United’s red shirt. Theoretically speaking, those who left United whether on a good note or otherwise, arguably did not achieve the same stellar success which they had had during their United days. Strange but true, unless Cristiano Ronaldo tears this theory apart in the new La Liga season.

On being the new Citizen:
Will Tevez achieve genuine cult hero success (like he did at United) across the city or will he turn out to be just one of the many attacking options to be rotated by Mark Hughes? Just looking at the wealth of talent at City’s disposal, I cannot help but think how Tevez will play week in and week out like how he longed for during his time with United. With the likes of Robinho, Roque Santa Cruz, Benjani, Craig Bellamy and the recent purchase of Emmanuel Adebayor in the pecking order, you would feel that Tevez still has much to do in order to guarantee himself a place in City’s starting line-up.

On missing Tevez:
For one, Tevez's tenacity and tireless running will be missed as the bolt in red flickers out, only to reappear as the new bolt in blue that further divides the city of Manchester. We will most probably reflect on his knack for scoring crucial goals and miss him ‘getting us out of jail’, in pure football expression. There will probably be moments in the new season that the chants would still belong to Tevez on certain sections of Old Trafford. Only time will tell if Michael Owen would be the perfect cog to fill the void. At the rate Owen is going, he appears to be on the right track with two goals in two consecutive matches against the Malaysian national side recently.

Come September ’09, a mouth-watering Manchester derby awaits all in Old Trafford. Throw in some personal scores to settle and simmer a few nerves, we will have all the ingredients for an explosive game.

Will the bolt in blue be struck down by the red lightning? We shall see.

Red Tide

Passionate Red Devils

Picture taken from http://www.thestar.com.my/

Wow! Who would have thought (or predicted) our Malaysian boys scoring two goals against the men from the red half of Manchester?
That was what happened; and Mohd. Amri Yahyah would be forgiven if he was still on cloud nine since last Saturday evening. To score against not one but two top class Premiership goalkeepers in one match does not happen often, to say the least. A dipping volley from yards out to leave Edwin van Der Sar stranded and punishing Ben Foster for his mistake were not part of the script but this has been a classic example of not being overawed by the opposition.

A great match for our 'young tigers' and I believe MU supporters watching the match on telly would be heartened by our fellow Malaysians' display and felt fuzzy at the sight of the ‘Red Tide’ blanketing the stadium. The match had started at 5.30pm Malaysian time and caught quite a number of football fans by surprise, yours truly included. If not for my mother’s phone calls to inform me of the time (yes, she’s also a passionate fan), I would have slept through the evening and would have waited for the match to start at the usual 8.45pm kick-off time for live Malaysian football matches.

So, Michael Owen had a warm reception when he came on as a second half substitute. I’m sure the ladies (and many guys?) had almost screamed their lungs out when he was introduced into the match. There is no Stretford End or Kop End in Bukit Jalil but I believe as soon as Owen scored in the last 5 minutes of the match, the end at the back of the goal unofficially became ‘Owen’s End’; well, at least momentarily. To be honest, I was happy to see him scoring his first goal in a United shirt despite my earlier thoughts on Owen. Hopefully, this is the start of many great things to come United and Owen, in particular, but as they say, these are still early days.
Let’s keep our fingers crossed.

p/s: It seems that Indonesia’s loss is Malaysia’s gain. With the cancelation of the Indonesian tour, Malaysian fans were given an added bonus when United played the Malaysian side again in the space of 3 days on Monday night. This time, United comfortably won 2-0, thanks to goals from Federico Macheda and Michael Owen (again!).

Sentimental Me

Actual training pass - July 2001

It seems that I've been more nostalgic these few days than my usual self. It could be many factors but I believe one of the reasons is due to United's impending visit to Malaysia (they will be arriving tomorrow). Over the years, I've started a mini collection of souvenirs of United; what I have are mostly jerseys and T-shirts, trading cards, mini glasses (from my buddy, Fred) and other small items. In fact, my wardrobe consists so many red coloured shirts that at times, I could just close my eyes, have a stab at my hanging T-shirts and 90% of the time I would be able to pick one with United (and in red, of course!) :O)

Well, to put it simply, I believe sometimes it's the little things in life that count most in life. I can recall during the teenage years, I would collect movie ticket stubs and have them arranged neatly in a folder. I'm sure some of you had done that as well, come on... I can almost say that we're all hopeless romantics, aren't we, in one way or the other?

Anyway, back to United. I've had this training pass since July 2001 and was glad to find it in good condition in one of my folders. Just thought of sharing the picture with you, since it would have a certain significance (well, at least to me) with us playing host to Sir Alex & Co. this weekend. To my United buddies who will be catching the training and/or match in person, my advice is to keep your training pass and/or ticket stubs with you. Bring them home and have them framed up (no, I'm just pulling your leg!) but seriously, keep them well and you will surely appreciate them. Who knows, there might be some collectors out there who might offer to buy up the stubs or other match day souvenirs from you?

Hmmm.. any takers for my training pass above, while we're on this topic? :O)

United in Malaysia '09

With previous appearances in 1981, 1995 and 2001, this would be United’s fourth visit to Malaysia. ProEvents International Sdn Bhd are the official organizers of the Manchester United Asia Tour 2009. After Kuala Lumpur, the Red Devils will play in Jakarta (July 20), Seoul (July 24) and Hangzhou (July 26).

****************************

I am proud to say I have been there and done that (catching United live at our stadium in 2001). Although it is still a far cry from the mother of my dreams (making my way to my Holy Grail, The Theatre Of Dreams, that is), I remember being very excited at the thought of knowing United would be in KL to meet the fans and play the Malaysian selection. You see, the last time United stopped by was way back in 1995 and I was only in junior secondary school then. Being a kid, I could only dream big and hoped Sir Alex and team would come to Malaysia again soon.
Well, I had to wait six years for that to happen..darn!

Fast forward to July 2001:

United’s training session:
My college mate Saravanan and I had been good buddies and staunch supporters of United. Back then, United’s training session was quite exclusive and only certain people would have the tickets to see United train in the flesh. I had the good fortune when Sara gave me his ticket since he was involved in some other function on that day, if I recalled correctly.
Looking back, I had just arrived in KL (I had lived my entire life in Penang before this) in June and did not know the roads, let alone catching the train/commuter to Bukit Jalil. My college room mate (my then senior) did not even know how to get there from our place (Petaling Jaya). To cut a long story short, with a knapsack on my back (like the song!), I took the LRT and asked around the train counters for directions to the Bukit Jalil Stadium. I did not even know that in order to reach the place, one has to interchange at another LRT station. It seemed a bit daunting and to be honest, I was afraid of stopping at the wrong station and getting lost as a consequence. Anyway, I went and trusted my gut instinct to guide me to my destination.

What’s there to see in training, you might ask? Well, seeing the team scoring sensational goals during matches on TV is always a sight but when you get to see the mechanics and the makings of the sublime skills in person, there is a deep sense of awe and admiration. One incident that always stays in my mind involves our No. 18, Mr. Paul Scholes. I had my eyes trained on Scholesy, who is famed for his thunderous shots and volleys. Having his back against the goal, he cushion-chested the ball, turned around and delivered a venomous volley into the back of the net, all in one-quick magnificent movement. Juan Seba Veron got in the act too, and each time he did something with the ball, the crowd cheered. If only he managed to translate that kind of skills consistently during matches back when he was a Devil, we would remember him for the right reasons now.

Match Day:
The crowd swelled and it seemed that 80 – 90% of the commuters on the LRT train were on their way to see United. I was there with my college buddies, Calvin Khoo and Alice and the two Calvins were decked in our United jerseys (I bought mine a day earlier…hehehe). We were so caught up taking pictures (I think I clicked and clicked until my film almost ran out) and were soaking in the atmosphere although the players had just appeared for the warm up. I can’t really recollect (or care!) what the final score was but can recall how Fabien Barthez was deployed in an outfield position at one part of the game. It was quite hilarious and strange seeing the ‘keeper without his usual gloves on, trying to convince us he was an all-round player! Good for you, Fab, but you were without doubt, much better between the sticks :O)

All in all, it was definitely an experience which I always cherish and remember fondly. For those of you who are making your way to Bkt Jalil this Friday/Saturday, you will enjoy yourself there.
That, I can guarantee you!

p/s: It was reported in ESPN SportsCenter that Michael Owen would be joining the rest of the team. Love him or loathe him, I leave it to you to decide and what better way to let him know your feelings than from the stands this Saturday.

Threesome

Latest update (as of 9.30pm, 14th July ’09):
Sir Alex Ferguson has announced that there will be no additional signings after unveiling his recent buys - Antonio Valencia, Gabriel Obertan and Michael Owen.
Surprisingly, Michael Owen has been handed the magical No. 7 shirt worn by some of the finest footballers to grace the Theatre Of Dreams (George Best, Eric Cantona, David Beckham and Cristiano Ronaldo in recent seasons).

*******************************************

It’s been almost 3 months since the title-defining moment and my fingers have been itching to get back to writing on United. The 3-month break in the Premiership season is surely one of the hardest months to pass by (for English football fanatics, I should say). No matches to catch on weekends/weekdays, no pent-up frustrations to let go and no bragging rights to win (especially when results go United’s way against our eternal enemies, the Scousers and the Gooners). It’s been cold turkey treatment and still 4 weeks away from the start of the new Premiership season. If only it was August right now..darn..

At this point in time, United have (only) signed Antonio Valencia (from Wigan Athletic), Gabriel Obertan (a surprise signing from Girondins Bordeaux, France), and of course, Michael Owen (from Newcastle United). I personally do not know much about Valencia (apart from being good on the wing) or the kid Obertan but what I do know is that Michael Owen would need to work his socks off and stay off the treatment table in order to win us over. Well, some of the fastest (and surest) ways of doing so are to (I call it the ‘3S’ technique):

1. Seriously declare he has a strong inclination towards all things Manchester United and had been a closet fan of United during his Liverpool days.
2. Stay match fit and get on the score sheet on a regular basis (if he can dislodge the pairing, or rather, mis-pairing, of Rooney and Berbatov first, of course).
3. Score the winning goal for United in front of the Kop End at Ant Field (errmm..Anfield) and kiss the United badge during the goal celebration. Not that we look much into the badge-kissing act these days, but the thought of gutting the Koppites at their own turf is simply too hard to resist! The badge-kissing ‘performance’ just rubs more salt into the wounds…hehe..

Anyway, too many hullabaloos have been splashed across the pages over the ‘who will United sign?’ issue which had been gaining momentum ever since the countdown to the new season started. To quote from one of the Manchester United blogs that I’ve been reading, we are, without doubt, light up front (the striking department). In retrospect, the selling of Cristiano Ronaldo had been in the making for some time before the eventuality happened. Honestly speaking, I was glad to see him go. Yes, he might have banged in loads of goals and conjured match-winning performances in recent seasons but there was something about Ronaldo that is both irritating and mesmerizing; I’m sure many United fans could relate to what I’m saying. The dives, and especially the whines and the moans as though Paris Hilton’s pooch was shot, were not a visual spectacle; definitely not when your team is trailing and the referee not giving a damn at all. Yet, despite his on-field prima donna antics, I must say that he was also a joy to watch. Who could forget the cheeky back-heels, the flurry of step-overs and the rocket launchers that epitomized the man? Irritatingly iconic, that’s how I would sum it up.

So, we have ‘significantly’ lost Cristiano Ronaldo to Real Madrid and Carlos Tevez to our neighbors Man. City. Two very high profile players not on United’s paychecks anymore and in my opinion, a few more should follow suit. Nani and Dimitar Berbatov easily top my list for United’s need for a summer clear-out. Nani, for sporadically showing his class but a midfield misfit most of the time; and Berbatov, for his overpriced value and his inclusion in the first eleven which is more often than not seen as a ‘liability’ and not the striking swivel United bought him initially for.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Franck Ribery, Klaas Jan Huntelaar - the speculations are endless with each player mulling over a move for United or other big clubs. For me, the solution is simple; if the heart’s not in it, don’t do it. For the Ibrahimovics, Riberys and Huntelaars, United fans take enormous pride in our club and we want (and demand) players who will fight for the cause, not mere passengers in the team. We are always on the lookout for the Eric Cantonas, the Roy Keanes, the Gary Nevilles and the Wayne Rooneys who breathe and bleed red, black and white.

Well, just thinking and ‘speaking’ aloud here. There will be more to come once the new Premiership season kicks-off. My raves and rants; you would most likely be hearing about them soon come August.

I am keeping my fingers crossed for a very successful haul in the new season for United!

A Final To Forget

Note: I had written this on the aftermath of the Champions League Final in Rome '09. Initially intended for posting, it somehow did not see the light of day and had been in my draft since then. I'm now sharing this write-up as a form of recollection and reflection for probably months or years to come.

Quizas, quizas, quizas (Perhaps, Perhaps, Perhaps)..

The better team won. That was the final verdict from the great man himself, Sir Alex Ferguson (SAF). Gracious and magnanimous even in defeat, SAF knew and realized the team was up against a very formidable opponent. Champions of Spain with an array of talents in every football department, this Barcelona team had everything going for them (apart from missing the suspended Eric Abidal and Dani Alves).

Now, back to United. What went right, and most significantly, wrong? In a nutshell, nothing much went right except for the first nine minutes of the game when Ronaldo’s freekick caused Valdes to spill his shot and onto the path of Park who was just a step too slow to react. Had that gone in, the complexion of the game would have changed; Barca would have definitely upped the tempo with Andres Iniesta and Xavi Hernandez pulling the creative strings in midfield and pegging United at our own half.

As fate would have it, one quick counter attack was all Barca needed to open the scoring. Vidic, a great centre back in my opinion, just did not react fast enough to Eto’os turn and by the time he recovered, the ball had slipped below Van Der Sar’s hand and into the goal. All in one quick motion; I felt United was reeling badly from that moment onwards and it was surely a sucker punch from the onslaught at which Barca was subjected to in the opening moments of the game. This reminded me of the similar situation when United was playing Arsenal at the Emirates about 3 weeks ago in the 2nd leg of the semi-final; Arsenal had dominated the opening ten minutes and fell to United’s swift counter attack, courtesy of Park Ji Sung. Perhaps it was some sort of retribution which I’m quite sure Arsenal (and Liverpool supporters) would agree for the way United dissected Arsenal with such proficiency and efficiency back then. Perhaps Barca had taken a leaf from United’s own book; their ‘smash and grab’ was certainly rewarded handsomely. Quizas, quizas, quizas…

In all honesty, certain United players ‘did not show up’, just to quote from the commentators/pundits (especially Shebby, Macca and Viv) of the night.
Well, here’s my player-to-player analysis for United. These are my own ratings and opinions (five stars being the highest) and in no way represent the actual or ‘official’ ratings (if there was one in the first place):

Edwin Van Der Sar (4 stars): A good match on the whole and was quick to smother some of Barca’s attacks. Could not be really faulted for Barca’s two goals and actually made great saves to deny Thierry Henry, United’s sworn enemy in his Goonie days. Nevertheless, the centre backs’ defending was uncharacteristically poor and marking was loose (especially for Messi’s goal) which further compounded United’s cause.

Rio Ferdinand & Nemanja Vidic (3.5 stars each): Rio was almost always in his usual composed self but I could sense that being out of the game for a few weeks had somewhat affected his overall game. Caught ball-watching when Messi flew across and headed the killer goal. As for Vidic, he is someone we could usually depend on 99% but was jittery for most part of the game. Had to shoulder much of the blame for Barca’s first goal. Gave away a few unnecessary corners and was not really in his element.

John O’Shea and Patrice Evra (3.5 stars each): Sheasy did what he had to do; probably played in the ‘game of his life’ but did not inject much life into the game; anyway, he was not really expected to in the first place. Evra was a bit of a letdown for me; the much-hyped up battle between Lionel Messi and himself did not fully materialize and he had a part to play, albeit a negative one, in Barca’s second goal.

Michael Carrick & Anderson (3 stars each): The fulcrum of United’s play rested heavily on their shoulders to nullify Barca’s threat but the duo were overwhelmed by Xavi and Iniesta. Carrick was full of nerves and the failure of his much touted ‘final ball’ left his play severely stranded, thus denying the likes of Rooney and Ronaldo proper opportunities to hurt Barca. I certainly missed Darren Fletcher as he would run ‘until there were no more grass to run on’ with his committed and spirited display.

Park Ji Sung (3.5 stars): ‘Three-lung Park’ pushed and ran for United’s cause but to no avail and at times his physical stature (or the lack of it) was clearly no match for Barca’s physically imposing players such as Yaya Toure and Gerard Pique.

Ryan Giggs (Captain) (3 stars): One verdict: played below expectations. We all know what good ol’ Giggsy is capable of but the night did not belong to him. Needed a captain’s performance from him but was at times a passenger in the game. Missed a glorious chance to put United back into the game just after Messi scored but shot straight at Valdes instead. Had that gone in, it would surely have been game on and I believe Barca would have caved in to United’s relentless pressure with about 20 minutes left to play.

Cristiano Ronaldo (4 stars) & Wayne Rooney (3.5 stars): Ronaldo was probably the only United player who played almost to his capabilities (apart from Van Der Sar) with his direct runs and single-mindedness for goal; too bad his rocket-launchers did not work when they mattered most. Rooney was positioned too far left upfront and most of the times he was hugging the touch-lines and trying hard to cut inside. Perhaps Sir Alex should have played Rooney at his usual role just off the shoulders of the main striker because that is where he would have been at his potent best.

The three substitutes (Carlos Tevez, Dimitar Berbatov and Paul Scholes) (3 stars each): Tried to change the face of the game but as we know, their introduction did not inspire the team much. Berbatov was guilty of missing some glorious opportunities; the clear header from a corner constantly comes to mind. Tevez was in his usual terrier-like self while Scholesy came on a tad too late to influence the game (left his boot imprint on Sergio Busquets’ leg though with his one millionth misjudgment on a tackle). Hehe.. another milestone reached! :O)

All in all, I can almost say that I’m ‘glad’ (OK, I have to hold my breath and gut myself here) it was Barca who lifted the ‘Old Big Ears’ – if it was any other team, I would have been devastated (especially any English team for that matter). You would see me moping and being in a very bad mood (yes, football, especially United, affects me deeply). The thought of Steven Gerrard, Cesc Fabregas or John Terry lifting that cup would have been unthinkable and unbearable, to say the least. Here’s hoping neither one of them would be remotely close to holding the cup; well, there goes my first ‘official’ salvo for the next football season. I’m pretty sure other Red Devils are sincerely hoping for this too, haha..

So in the end, the winged quintuple dream morphed into a treble reality. Not bad for a season which saw United playing catch-up for most part of the season in the first half in the Premier League; we had our backs against the wall most of the times but managed to reel the Scousers in, point-by-point. It has, in retrospect, been a massive season for United; FIFA Club World Cup Champions, League Cup Champions and Barclays Premier League Champions.

I’m sure Sir Matt Busby would have smiled from above as Fergie’s new brood of Fledglings has arrived in substance and style. Take a bow Federico Macheda, Jonny Evans, the Da Silva brothers (Rafael and Fabio), Darron Gibson, Rodrigo Possebon and Danny Welbeck. I would have loved to add Gerard Pique to this list but his destiny lies now in Catalunya.

Congratulations to FC Barcelona; we hope to meet you again in the final (hopefully next year) to exorcise the demons of this year.

*Glory Glory Man. United…and the Reds go marching ON, ON, ON!*

A Note From The Author

The title is ours!

*Picture source: www.soccernet.com

Background: It has been my goal to write about one of the things that is closest to my heart, apart from photography. So, these are purely my thoughts and do not represent or reflect the official 'voice' of the club at this moment in time. I welcome you to The Mancunian Connection which serves as a platform to share views between fellow Red Devils and football fanatics as a whole. This is my hope.

Previously, I had written about my beloved Manchester United when we won our 18th title in May back in my photographic blog, Shutterspeed (http://www.shutterspeed9.blogspot.com/). With a renewed passion for writing, I am able to dedicate my thoughts and love for Manchester United. I give credit to the excellent blogs and sites on Manchester United that I have been reading and following, which eventually gave rise to this blog. Among them are http://a-kick-in-the-grass.blogspot.com/, http://carlyluvsunited.blogspot.com/ and the club’s official website, http://www.manutd.com/.

Disclaimer: I understand that certain words/phrases/terms used in this blog may be deemed offensive to some other viewers, especially supporters of other football clubs. If you do feel that way, my sincere apologies. Being a passionate Manchester United supporter since my early teens, my words are very much guided by my feelings and emotions that run through my mind at the point in writing.

Happy reading!