Match Report: Manchester United 1-3 Barcelona

Red Devils Outclassed

by Teo Teng Kiat (twitter.com/tengkiat)

When Rooney had hauled us back on level terms to 1-1 during the Champions League final yesterday night, I was hoping at halftime that United would step up a gear and play much better for the second half. Instead, after Messi, and then Villa, had popped two more goals past Van der Sar, I was praying for Barcelona not to score a fourth and make the scoreline a humiliating one.

We were simply outplayed and outclassed and beaten by the better team at Wembley. As Sir Alex, who could only look on helplessly from the stands, said during the press conference later: “In my time as a manager, I would say they are the best team I’ve faced…No one has given us a hiding like that.” The players themselves knew it too; Vidic, Ferdinand and Van der Sar said pretty much the same thing as well. Indeed, apart from a promising first ten minutes for United, the rest of the game was dominated by Barcelona, with their tiki-taka passing and superb movement off the ball, which meant that they quickly regained possession after losing it, keeping United on the backfoot most of the time.

The gaffer had gone with a 4-4-2 lineup with a starting eleven that was largely expected, perhaps having the idea of “let-them-worry-about-us-too” in his head. But whatever tactical masterplan him and the coaching staff might have devised, it wasn’t enough, although I felt the players didn’t play as well as they could have too.

Our midfield, in particular, was simply overwhelmed. Valencia, in particular, had a wretched game. The Ecuadorean could, and should have been booked on multiple occasions, and he didn’t take on Abidal the whole night; we only did that when Nani came on. Giggs was on the periphery much of the time, despite setting up the goal for Rooney, while Park didn’t offer too much and faded out of the game. Carrick, totally exposed in the centre, was schooled in the art of midfield play by Xavi and Iniesta.

Rooney was our best player on the pitch, as he pretty much ran his heart out, dropping deep at times, and staying out on the flanks at other times to receive the ball, and always tried to get United going in the attack. He scored a lovely consolation goal, in a rare moment of brilliant passing play. Ferdinand and Vidic were largely excellent in the centre of defence as well, weighing in with a few crucial tackles, which meant that Barcelona had to try their luck from outside the box, and unfortunately two of such strikes went in. The game was a bit too much for Fabio, forced off with cramp in the second half, while Evra had a poor game positionally, exposed time and again, in particular for the opening goal.

We must congratulate Barcelona here, for they were well deserved winners. They played some lovely football, and although they are not unbeatable, the truth is that I don’t think anyone would have beaten them yesterday night. Xavi gave a masterclass in midfield yesterday, and Messi had us on tenterhooks everytime he was on the ball. There is no doubting that the Argentine genius is the best player on the planet now, just as the Catalan side are the best team in world football.

For United, this defeat exposed clearly the lack of strength in our central midfield. We need a flair player for creativity to unlock defences, as well as a hardman-type of player in the mould of Roy Keane. It is perhaps time for Fergie to really look at his team closely and decide whether an overhaul is required. With players like Giggs and Scholes in their twilight years, Van der Sar retiring, Berbatov, Hargreaves and maybe even Owen leaving, the manager has some major decisions to make one way or another.

Nevertheless, let’s not forget that we have done very well to make it to a third Champions League final in four seasons, in addition to being champions of England for a record 19th time. The players came up short this time, but we cannot forget the effort they have put in for the rest of the season. We couldn’t send Van der Sar off with a victory unfortunately, but still we will forever be grateful for his six years of brilliance in goal. Thank you Edwin; you will be missed.

United have to learn the lessons from this defeat, and then move on and come back stronger again next season, and hopefully have a better go. Here’s to a good pre-season, and some astute signings in the transfer market.

Manchester United 4-1 Sheffield United (6-3 on aggregate): FAYC Champions

The victorious Academy boys (Image courtesy of TriciaRKG)

article by Teo Teng Kiat at twitter.com/tengkiat

Manchester United have always had a tradition of giving youth players a chance, and bringing them through, even if they don’t necessarily make it to the first team (Fletcher is probably the last real star to have broken into the team). Just look at the amount of ex-United players in other Premier League clubs, and further down into the Championship. Take a good look at the picture above, though. There might just be a couple of faces in there which might be making the sports headlines on a daily basis in the very near future.

The players from the United Academy, comprised of Under-18 players, beat Sheffield United 4-1 at Old Trafford yesterday in the second leg of the FA Youth Cup final, after a 2-2 first leg draw, to lift the trophy for a record-extending 10th time. Sir Alex and Sir Bobby were in attendance, as the United kids demolished the opposition in front of an estimated crowd of 20000-25000 people.

Paul McGuinness, the coach, has done a superb job of managing this talented bunch of players, who have been described by many to be the best crop of youngsters emerging since the class of 1992, which comprised the likes of Beckham, Scholes, Giggs, Neville and Butt. I’ve watched them play this season, during the later rounds of the FAYC, where they had to overcome teams like Liverpool and Chelsea in their run to the final, and have been suitably impressed by the entire team.

The name that has been mentioned most by observers of the team would most likely be that of Ravel Morrison. The attacking midfielder scored twice yesterday, and is regarded by many as one of the most talented players to have come through the ranks since Paul Scholes. Morrison has this ability to seemingly glide past players effortlessly with his dazzling dribbling skills, as evidenced by his second goal, where he drifted past two defenders before finding the opposite corner of the goal with a precise strike. Highly tipped to break into the first team (he made his debut as a substitute in the League Cup this season), he needs to sort out his disciplinary problems off-field if he is to fulfil his promise. Involved in witness intimidation and assault charges, it would be a great shame if his burgeoning talent is wrecked by incidents off the pitch. United have stood by him so far, and the hope is that Sir Alex will be able to manage this boy, who has the chance to be a genuine star at the club.

Paul Pogba is another player to have his name come up regularly. The French midfielder, signed from Le Harve when he was 16 (Arsenal were reportedly interested too), has a penchant for scoring screamers, with a few cracking goals against WBA, Derby and Portsmouth this season at Academy level. He also has wonderful passing ability (he hit a stunning 50-yard ball on the half-volley from inside his own half straight onto the toes of a teammate yesterday), and looks a little like a more physical version of Iniesta. An intergral part of the central midfield, it surely won’t be long before Fergie gives him his first team debut as well.

A third midfielder that people have been raving about is Ryan Tunnicliffe, who recently won the Jimmy Murphy Academy Player of The Year at the end-of-season awards ceremony. A tenacious presence in central midfield, he provides the steel and energy in the side, playing a hardman-like role. On a couple of occasions yesterday, he lost the ball, but each time he chased back and put in recovery tackles to win it back. Not afraid to put his foot in, his crunching tackles and interceptions help to win the ball back. The box-to-box style of his play reminds me, and many others, of a certain Roy Keane. The boy looks like a potential fans’ favorite, and hopefully he’ll get his chance alongside Morrison and Pogba.

Apart from the trio mentioned so far, there are a few other good players as well. Will Keane, who also grabbed a brace last night, has been a goal-machine for the Academy this season. Those two goals made it a total of 9 in the FAYC for him, and his second goal was calmness personified. John Cofie is a natural goalscorer as well, while on the wings, Gyliano Van Velzen, Jesse Lingard and Larnell Cole are pacy and skilful, with the ability to get behind the defence, although their final ball is inconsistent. At the back, Tom Thorpe, who captained the side last night, is a good reader of the game at centreback, and is a rather promising defender as well.

There is no doubt that this team is a pretty special one. I have been impressed whenever I saw them play this season, and it shows what a good job our Academy has done with their youth programme. These players certainly have the potential to do what the class of ’92 did back then, and form the nucleus of a future United side. Talent, however, is no guarantee of a top career; they have to put in the hard work on a consistent basis from now on, and build on this triumph. Hopefully, if all goes well, we will be singing the names of these lads on the terraces in the future.

Goodbye Hargo

article by Teo Teng Kiat 

Image courtesy Super MF@Flickr

I remember watching the first goal Owen Hargreaves scored for United. We were playing against Fulham at Craven Cottage, and had just been awarded a free-kick outside the area. Nani was also over the ball as well, but Hargreaves stepped up and dispatched a beautiful curler up and over the wall, into the bottom left corner of the goal. It was brilliant technique, and he struck again with an even better effort against Arsenal a few weeks later in a pivotal win which helped United retain their league title that season.

As a new signing that season, Hargreaves arrived at Old Trafford from Bayern Munich after almost a year of negotiations. He had never played any football in the English league system before (he remains the only footballer to have played for England without having previously lived in the United Kingdom), and was initially much of a stranger to most supporters.

All the skepticism disappeared during England’s 2006 World Cup campaign, where he was easily the best player for them. I was blown away by his barnstorming performance against Portugal in the quarterfinal. He was literally everywhere on the field, sliding into tackles one moment, and then charging down the flanks in the next. He was the only successful penalty taker that night, as England crashed out on penalties in a match which people remember more for Cristiano Ronaldo’s alleged attempt at getting his United team-mate Rooney sent off.

I was all smiles when Ferguson signed him for £17million on 1st July 2007. On the last of the thirty-four appearances he made that season, he started the game and scored during the penalty shootout as United won the Champions League final against Chelsea in Moscow to add to their league crown.

Those two free-kicks would be the last goals he would ever score for United. His second season was a disaster as recurring problems on both knees surfaced, injuries he had suffered from previously during his time with Bayern. This signalled the start of what seemed like a never-ending nightmare, as Hargreaves repeatedly went under the knife to try and repair his knees. United supporters were left frustrated, as he seemed to have all but disappeared from the pitch, making only 4 brief appearances in the meantime.

This season, it seemed like he would finally return at long last. Forty-five minutes of Reserve football against Burnley led to a place on the bench against Spurs, and a 93rd minute cameo against Sunderland. But on his first start since September 2008,against Wolves, he suffered a hamstring injury and had to come off after only five minutes. All this culminated in the announcement yesterday by Sir Alex that the midfielder would not have his contract renewed by the club.

Undoubtedly one of England’s best midfielders when fit, and talented enough to have become a mainstay for both club and country, it’s a shame that injuries have been so cruel to him and wrecked his career. He served United well while it lasted, filling in superbly at rightback and right midfield when required, in addition to usual central midfield role. Although United have adapted, it’s fair to say Hargreaves lent an energy to our midfield no other player did, except for Anderson now. He was probably one of the best set-piece takers at the club, and boy, could he cross a ball as well.

At 30 years of age now, his best years as a footballer have probably been taken away from him during these wretched past three years or so. The club has stood by him all this time, but it’s hard to blame the manager for making this decision to release him. Hopefully he will recover sufficiently enough to have a shot at resurrecting what’s left of his career elsewhere.

You will be missed by United, and forever be remembered for that freekick, and the part you played in Moscow. Thank you, and goodbye, Hargo.

Match Report: Manchester United 1-1 Blackburn

Champ19ns

article by Teo Teng Kiat @ball-lust.blogspot.com

As the final whistle sounded at Ewood Park, a collective sigh could be heard from Liverpool supporters all over the world, as United clinched their 19th league title, eclipsing their Merseyside rivals’ haul of 18. And after the agony of losing by a point to Chelsea last season, we finally got back what we have always termed as “our” title.

Of course, no team has a divine right to the league title, but given United’s dominance in the league since it started, it can be forgiven if some of us think that the rightful place for the Premier League trophy every season should be at Old Trafford. It was hard to envision this happening 25 years ago when Sir Alex Ferguson arrived during a period when Liverpool were the dominant force.

They say that whoever wins at the end of 38 league games will be the best team, and undoubtedly, the Red Devils are fully deserved winners. This United side certainly does not remind us of the class of ’99, nor does it have any special standout players like the Ronaldo-led team, but they have certainly dug deep when required this season, and produced the goods when it mattered most. The stirring comeback wins at West Ham and Blackpool were added to a long list of memorable victories, and our brilliant home record of 49 points out of a possible 51 helped to make up for a rather awful away record, and ultimately win a league which was much more competitive than usual (no teams have been relegated yet despite there being only two matches left) this year.

More than ever, I believe this league win was a really tremendous team effort. The players who’ve had to step in have done well. Berbatov led the line with aplomb for the first half of the season when Rooney was injured, Hernandez had a brilliant debut season, Rooney hit form towards the latter part of the campaign. Smalling looks like a future England centreback when he slotted in, so much so that it is hard to believe that he was playing non-league football just two seasons ago. Nani really matured this term, adding a devastating end product to his bag of tricks and leading the league’s assist charts. The Da Silva brothers have shown what good prospects they are for the future, while the likes of Gibson, Evans and Anderson have also played their parts when required. Carrick recovered from an poor run of form to put in superb displays, most notably against Chelsea in the Champions League. Of course, Van der Sar and Vidic have been the ever-present stalwarts in the side, lending a consistency to the team, while the ageless Giggs and Scholes chipped in with their experience and know-how. Four titles in the last five years. What a superb achievement.

The mastermind behind this league success, and countless other honors in the past, Sir Alex Ferguson, has achieved his goal. The man is incredible; for building side after title-winning side, for his seemingly insatiable appetite for trophies, for evolving his management style with the times and yet still having a firm handle on the dressing room. As I said last week, all United supporters have to thank him more than ever for the team’s success. And the wily old fox will surely soon be plotting for title number 20 next season, after the more immediate task of attempting to beat Barcelona in the Champions League final.

You told us to come back when we had 18. Well, now we have one more than that. Liverpool, you’ve been knocked well and truly off your perch.

Manchester United 2 – 1 Chelsea: Match Report

Almost there

article by Teo Teng Kiat @ball-lust.blogspot.com

In a praying ritual which by now should be familiar to most United supporters, Javier ‘Chicharito’ Hernandez sunk to his knees in the middle of the centre circle, head upturned and fingers pointed towards the sky, as he prepared to start against Chelsea, a massive match where top spot in the Premier League was at stake.

It took all of 36 seconds for his prayers to be answered. Ryan Giggs picked up the ball from a Vidic headed clearance, spun around, and released Park Ji-Sung down the middle of the pitch with an incisive forward pass. The Korean jinked right of Ivanovic and played a through-ball for Hernandez, who accelerated away from the shoulder of the slipping David Luiz before finishing coolly into the bottom corner. Old Trafford erupted, and Sir Alex jumped off his seat. Even Dimitar Berbatov broke into a wide grin.

What followed in the next 25 minutes was a complete eviscerating of Chelsea by the men in red. Like men possessed, United showed their hunger, swarming all over the pitch, never giving Chelsea time to settle. Rooney forced a good save out of Cech with a rasping drive, Hernandez came close to a second, and Park saw his shot tipped over. From that corner, Giggs played a one-two with Park before neatly side-stepping Kalou and delivering a sumptuous cross that Vidic could only head into the back of the net. Cue pandemonium in the United stands.

Ivanovic should have been sent off for two-yellow card offences, and as it was, his header down to Lampard led to the latter pulling one back for Chelsea in the second half, but it was too late. Lampard’s handball and Terry’s trip on Valencia, both in the penalty area, as well as United’s profligacy in front of goal in the second half, where both strikers could have had hat-tricks, didn’t matter in the end. As the final whistle went, Sir Alex Ferguson jumped for joy, before giving Carlo Ancelotti a consolation hug and pat on the back of the head. Sir Bobby Charlton, watching on from the stands, clapped in approval, as The Theatre of Dreams roared, and the players celebrated on the pitch.

This was as good a performance as anything United have produced this season. The entire team flew right out of the traps, harassing and hassling Chelsea, who didn’t know what hit them in the first half. Park was absolutely magnificent; he was everywhere, popping up to win the ball so many times, fully epitomising United’s resilience and determination. On the opposite flank, Valencia tore Ashley Cole to shreds; the left-back was last seen in the Ecuadorian winger’s pocket. Giggs again defied the years in central midfield, and Carrick put in another superb shift against Chelsea’s midfield trio. The entire back-five held firm once again, never looking overly troubled.

What a terrific performance for one of the biggest games of the season. Just one more point from our last two games will seal title number 19, and see us overhaul the 18 won by Liverpool. It was 18-7, when Sir Alex arrived at Old Trafford in 1986. The gaffer paid homage to the Stretford End yesterday by bowing down twice after the game, but when the title count is made 19-18 at the end of this season, it would be United supporters all over the world bowing down to the greatest manager of his time in gratitude and respect.

Manchester United 2 – 0 Schalke: Match Report

We are privileged to announce a new contributor to the United for United Newsblog. Teo Teng Kiat is an ardent Man United supporter and an avid sports writer. His articles have been featured in publications such as The Ridge, the National University of Singapore’s oldest student publication and he has generously agreed to write for the U4U Newsblog. You can reach him via his blog at ball-lust.blogspot.com or on Twitter at twitter.com/tengkiat 

Red Devils Break German Jinx

article by Teo Teng Kiat @ball-lust.blogspot.com

United players mob Giggs after he opens the scoring (image from fuckyeahmanchesterunited)

After ten minutes in the Veltins-Arena, Gelsenkirchen, the away United supporters could be forgiven for wondering whether this was the first leg of the Champions League semi-final we were supposedly playing in, or whether it was just a training session. Manchester United were absolutely dominating Schalke at their own home, penetrating the German side’s defense at will. If not for Manuel Neuer’s one-man stopping act, the two-legged tie would have been over after the first half alone.

In the end, once Ryan Giggs had broken the deadlock by racing on to a superb Rooney reverse ball and finishing coolly through the onrushing goalkeeper’s legs, the floodgates threatened to open when Rooney added a second goal two minutes later after latching onto Hernandez’s flick and slotting the ball clinically into the bottom corner. Though that did not materialize, it still left United with a two-goal advantage to take back to Old Trafford for the second leg, where we will surely finish the job.

Sir Alex had elected to start with a 4-4-2, in essence the same XI that played at Stamford Bridge in the previous round, with Fabio coming in for O’Shea. It was quite a departure from the usual 4-5-1 in European away games that we tend to adopt, but I think Fergie has figured out what works for United over two-legs in Europe, after the goalless first-leg at Marseille in the second round.

The resulting performance vindicated the gaffer’s selection and tactics. United had 67% of possession throughout the game, and in the first half alone created 12 chances. Fabio gave a storming performance at right-back, full of verve and enthusiasm, showing why the scouts at United regarded him as the slightly better twin compared to his brother. He made one superb run in the first half, carrying the ball on the left all the way to the penalty area before just failing to release Rooney in the box. He still has a lot to learn, as evidenced by the fact that he has a tendency to dive into tackles too easily, but he and Rafael have the potential to be first-team regulars in years to come.

The midfield partnership of Giggs and Carrick seems to work perfectly at the moment. Imperious against Chelsea’s central trio in the previous round, the two United players bossed the game again this time round. Carrick gave a superb performance once again, carrying on his excellent form in the previous few matches. Composed and hardworking, he tracked back everytime Schalke came forward, and made numerous interceptions to break up the play by virtue of his keen positioning, while pinging accurate balls all the over the pitch, long or short, when we were on the attack. This is the kind of performance we know Carrick can produce, and the criticism early on in the season was that he wasn’t producing anywhere near his best on the field. The player who seemed to have suffered a damaging blow to his confidence after Xavi’s masterclass in the Champions League final two seasons ago seems to have regained his morale, judging from his recent performances. He managed a game-high 112 passes, completing 98 of them, and was the man of the match for me. Hopefully he can keep up this good work for the crucial run-in.

Rooney’s partnership with Hernandez also seems to be blossoming; the little Mexican’s energy and constant running, not to mention his superb sense of positioning, dovetails nicely with Rooney’s free-role, and affords him the space to drop deep. Maybe it hasn’t been mentioned very much, but Rooney has quite a superb range of passing, and many of his cross-field balls were delivered with pinpoint accuracy, ala Paul Scholes. He has this ability to orchestrate attacks, and combined with his ability to also get into the box and finish off moves, could possibly develop into quite the complete player we have at the club.

Raul exchanged jerseys with Giggs after the match, but he didn't get much joy otherwise. (image from fuckyeahmanchesterunited)

In truth, it was a simply fantastic performance from United. Yes, Schalke were poor, and looked a little overawed, but this was a side that managed to put seven goals past the defending European champions previously. It was impressive how United imposed themselves in the game early on, and never gave the German side a chance to settle in. In the process, United became the first ever side to keep six away clean sheets in a single Champions League season, after not conceding a single goal in all our away games, while Van der Sar collected a record 50th solo clean sheet as well. Giggs also became the oldest player to ever score in the Champions League, beating Inzaghi, and matched Raul’s record of scoring in 15 Champions League seasons.

 As their defender Metzelder said after the game, “Against Inter everything we tried worked. Against United we couldn’t even try anything.” The boss himself commented: “Our concentration, the intensity of our play and the speed of our passing were all excellent tonight. It was a top performance. I’m really pleased with the players, every one of them has done fantastically well tonight.”

 Perhaps United haven’t been given enough credit by most people, even their own fans. Admittedly, we have not set the footballing world alight with our play this season, but to be on the cusp of a 4th league title in 5 years and a 3rd European final in 4 seasons surely means we are not as average a side as we’ve been made out to be. The Red Devils go marching on.

From an appreciative Hougang staff, “on behalf of the playing staff from HGFC”

An extremely touching email to Mervin Tan, our United for United Supporters’ Club Ambassador from a member of the Hougang United staff that wishes to remain anonymous. Never underestimate the role that supporters play in a football team; it’s our presence that makes our players have something worth playing for and go out to give their 110% out on the pitch. The special relationship that we as fans have with our players is unique among all S-League clubs and it’s precisely why we follow this club – win lose or draw – in the first place

Dear United for United

“This is Hougang Stadium, This is Hougang Stadium”, is one of the signature chants that greets the players when the Cheetahs, as they are affectionately known, of Hougang United are engaged in battle with opposition. That particular chant though serves as more of a statement than mere taunting of the lack of support from the opponents cheerleaders. No, that chant makes the players feel that every game, irregardless of venue, is just like their home ground because the fervent support generated by the U4U clan drives them on and that they know the 12th man is there to support them through the whole 90mins.

The supporters have only recently made themselves a force to be reckoned with citing the game against Beijing Guoan Talent back in 2010 as the christening of their love for the team formerly known as Sengkang Punggol. Though relatively new, they have seen the struggles the team faced that season to a team that at the present moment lies in mid-table after a third of the season. Through thick and thin they follow Hougang United (We will follow United!…) and have forged a relationship with the players as well with adoring songs such as “There’s only one Fadhil Salim” and “He’s 5 foot 3, we’ve got Diallo, who’s Freddy Mendy?”. The players themselves have taken to singing them in the changing room, such is the impact the supporters have made.

 There is nothing quite like being part of Hougang United at the moment, the team is having a decent season (not the usual bottom 2 finish for sure this year) and the decent performances have led to more interest in the team which leads to more members of the fan club which leads to a more deafening welcome to any opposition team. But this is not just a PR stunt to get more people involved with the supporters club; these are a bunch of people just wanting to support a team that they love and with Hougang United FC scarves, badges and flags in tow, be sure to catch the action on the pitch with them as well as be part of the atmosphere off it at the next Cheetahs game.

Sorry Piers, we’ve got bigger fish to fry!

In case you just crawled out from under the rock, Piers Morgan is that deluded Irish journalist and television personality with an Arsenal season ticket and an Anything But United mentality. As the editor of the Mirror, jealousy of United’s success led him to print increasingly desperate and hysterical anti-United articles in his tabloid on top of other editorial gaffes such as having to issue a public apology for publishing insensitive articles about the German football team and being found guilty of breaching the code of conduct of financial journalism. He oversaw a period of decline in circulation levels and was eventually sacked for authorizing the publishing of fake photographs of British troops in Iraq.

Of late, obviously having nothing better to do with his sad life, Piers decided to instigate some kind of Twitter feud with Rio Ferdinand, saying he was “ready to take (Rio) down”, following a completely unrelated tweet by Rio who said nothing more than that he was looking forward to seeing Gary Neville on Twitter soon. Obviously a pathetic attempt to draw more publicity to himself and get more followers on his page.

In the most recent of exchanges, Piers issued a challenge to Rio, saying that he could outstrip our boy in number of followers on Twitter, with the relevant tweet going something like this:

And I repeat @rioferdy5 – do you accept my 10k bet (proceeds to#GOSH) that I’ll take you down in follower count by Christmas?#moobspower

Considering that Rio has over 750,000 followers compared to Piers’ slightly over 500,000, I’d say that it’s pretty much a no-contest. Even then, Rio proved too classy for such petty disputes, stating in his reply, quite rightfully, that:

@piersmorgan I got trophies to win…worrying about having more followers than you is not something I need to waste energy on! Sorry fella!

Atta boy, Rio. The best way to shut that Gooner twat up would be to beat Arsenal to the league this season rather than engage in some childish Twitter war, and our Rio knows that only too well. I guess it’s also kind of sad that this is the kind of fan that Arsenal are happy to have as supporters, but that fortunately isn’t our problem.

Same old Arsenal…

Rooney’s two-game match ban: a fucking disgrace

As much as Rooney’s not my most favourite of players, he is a United player nonetheless and it’s absolutely outrageous that he’s been slapped with a two match ban for an incident that would’ve been regarded as trivial and completely ignored had it happened with another club and another player. Bitter anti-United fans are always moaning about how Ferguson manipulates referees and decisions always go our way despite a huge stack of evidence to the contrary and with Ferguson’s touchline ban and now this coming in quick succession there can hardly be any doubt that the FA and the media are hell bent on getting us because we’re Manchester United.

If a picture is worth a thousand words, then a video must be worth ten thousand. This clip from The Paddy Crerand Show best captures the injustice, frustration and anger everyone probably feels at the moment, and it’s all the bloody FA’s doing…again.

What?! Fucking what?!

http://static.photobucket.com/player.swf?file=http://vid291.photobucket.com/albums/ll315/reddevilworshipper/WMCap3.mp4

Why I’m still not singing for Wazza

Wayne Rooney scored a terrific hat-trick yesterday to cap off our brilliant comeback against West Ham. Somewhere between going absolutely mental at The New Paper Sports Bar and downing mug after mug of happy hour Tiger some of the lads were tapping my shoulder and giving those self-satisfied smirks that implied it was high time I started joining in the raucous singing of the Rooney song. You know, the one where “he goes by the name of Wayne Rooney”.

Naturally, of course, I didn’t. I don’t deny there was a huge grin plastered across my face and I was yelling for all it was worth when Rooney scored his third but I’m sorry, cheering and chanting his name is still out of the question. It’s not that I don’t want him to do well – I’m happy for Manchester United every time he scores – and I absolutely, definitely won’t boo him or swear at him but for me, he still hasn’t completed his long and winding road to redemption, and it’s because of that I won’t be singing the Rooney song for the foreseeable future.

Imagine if you had a husband/wife/boyfriend/girlfriend. Then imagine your partner told you that you were the love of his/her life and nothing could every replace you. Then, months after , you catch him/her in the bed with someone else. That’s exactly what Wayne Rooney did. He played his heart out last season and his fantastic performances on the pitch won the hearts of the United faithful. He kissed the United badge and claimed that he wanted to be like Giggs and play for United for the rest of his career. And the most galling part of it all was that we believed him. You could hear the Stretford End chanting his name week in and week out and when the lineups were being read out every matchday the loudest cheer was usually reserved for him. And because he was an Englishman through and through, we couldn’t imagine him doing a Ronaldo and going off to fulfill some ‘childhood dream’ of playing for the big clubs in continental Europe. He told the press that he loved the club and wanted to stay at Manchester for life and we all happily believed him.

We all, of course, know what happened next. He made a lackluster start to the season with the kind of form which, had it been Berbatov instead of Rooney, everyone would’ve been baying for the Bulgarian’s blood. He promptly proceeded to get involved in a messy sex scandal involving cheating on his pregnant wife with a woman old enough to be his grandmother and then started going up against the gaffer in the press moaning that he wasn’t getting enough playing time when Sir Alex was clearly trying to keep him out of the media frenzy surrounding him. Finally, he rounded off his shenanigans by dropping a bombshell on all of us in October by refusing a new contract and handing in a transfer request, citing the club’s lack of ambition as his reason for leaving.

Excuse me? Manchester United, lacking ambition? If competing on all fronts for silverware year in year out isn’t ambition, that what is? Or was there a more sinister, financial motive behind everything? Scott the Red at therepublikofmancunia.com is almost convinced that he had been speaking to City and even Ryan Giggs went on record to say that the fans and players had every right to be angry with him. It took a spark of man management genius from Sir Alex as well as a furious backlash from the fans to keep Rooney at the club and he eventually signed a new contract worth an estimated £200,000 a week, making him the highest paid player at Manchester United.

What pissed me off so badly was not his overinflated wages or the possibility that he had been speaking to City. It was the way he made continual declarations of his unfettered love for the club and we actually believed him. We lapped it all up. We were prepared to overlook his sex scandals and his poor form because he was Wayne Mark Rooney, our eternally loyal talisman who swore to play for the colours of red and white for the rest of his career. And then he repaid our support with a transfer request and blamed everything on the club’s ‘lack of ambition’. Did he really think we fans were really that thick?

We tend to forget things like that too easily. Too many of us were willing to forget that he had embarrassed us and made us all look like idiots after seeing him score a few goals for the club. Have we become as deluded as Chelsea or Liverpool fans, who worship mercenaries such as John Terry or Steve Gerrard as if the former didn’t agitate for a move to Manchester City while the latter said he wanted to leave for Chelsea. Can we honestly say, just after a few good games, we can sweep the whole thing under the carpet and pretend that nothing happened with Rooney?

I can’t, and that’s why I wouldn’t be singing for Rooney even if he scored ten more hat-tricks this season. He lied about his loyalty to the club and was rewarded with a new and improved contract. He betrayed the feelings of the fans that supported him and cheered for him every time he stepped out on to the pitch and I’ll be damned if I’m going to be made to look like a fool again. He lost the trust of the fans that believed in him and it’s going to take more than a season for to get back even one iota of forgiveness.

Of course, that doesn’t mean I’m advocating a lynching and that we should spend matches booing at him every time he gets the ball. He still wears the United colours and we should never boo one of our players, no matter how badly he plays or whatever he does – we have enough opposition fans doing that already, thank you very much. And I will still be happy when he scores, not because I’ve forgiven him, but because I am happy for Manchester United, the club that he plays for and I ultimately support. But to sing his name and cheer for him is to forgive too easily the way in which he pulled wool over our eyes and made a mockery of our devotion and loyalty as fans. And he still has a long way to go to win it back.