I see so many people wearing UTD jerseys because it’s chic to wear so, a style statement. As an ardent United fan it pains me to no end at this apparent disrespect to a great club. For how many of those who don a Rooney or Ronaldo jersey even know of the Munich air disaster??Or that our training ground is at Carrington Road?? Or that our original jerseys were green and golden and not Red? Or that George Best was the most skillful United player ever or that we were the first English team to win the European Cup?
My passionate relationship (hell call it frenzied admiration!!) with United began 13 years ago. Let me tell you how it all began.
12th August, 1998:
The date will forever be etched in my memory. That was the day I first saw the Red devils play. The opposition was LK LODZ I think although I am not sure.
A Gary Neville cross and a Giggsy dribble before slotting the ball into the bottom right corner, Sublime! That was the word that had come to my mind then and 13 years on the match against Schalke reminded me of that very word, again.
Till then my soccer world was limited to the world cups and predictably Brazilian samba magic and Argentine Jogo Bonito! And to one Zinedine Zidan for his heroics in the world cup just concluded.
However the first United match opened up a totally new world to me! It was magical and best of all, all the year round! Then of course throughout the course of the season there happened the Barcelona classics, the smiling assassins Solskjaer and Dwight Yorke, the new sensation called David Beckham, Roy Keane’s El Capitaine performance at Turin and so much more! Manchester United created history by winning the Treble, a feat perhaps never to be repeated again in the near future.
However all these pale in comparison to the two moments which sealed my allegiance to the Red Devils forever.
The first is a goal remembered and revered with great affection by all United fans for rarely had such a goal been scored in such a crunch high voltage tie. Giggs took the ball in his own half and burst past four Arsenal players and at the end of that energy sapping jinking run had a finish up his sleeves of the highest quality. It was a wonder goal, worthy of winning any match by its sheer explosiveness and its intricate craftsmanship. I bowed in heartfelt gratitude! I was honoured to support a team which boasted of such a player.
The second is of course the more famous comeback by United in the dying moments of the Champions league final against Bayern Munich. Deep into the injury time United found the resolve and the heart and the luck of the champions to come back from a goal down and score two that won them the highest European prize after a gap of 31 years! That was one moment I want to relive again and again. Simply magical!!
Then afterwards came so many great players, I came to know about the history of the club, how it had built its success on tragedy, the Munich air disaster , about Eric ‘the king’ Cantona, George Best, Dennis Law, Sir Bobby Charlton and so many other great players. Ruud Van Nistelrooy, Christiano Ronaldo and Rooney happened; we won the CL again in 2008 and equaled Liverpool’s record of the most number of domestic titles in 2009.
However the 1998-1999 season won’t happen again. It was one of a kind and would probably always remain a memory to savour.
It was a love affair that started in 1998 and is now into its 13th year and still going strong!!
Glory, glory MAN UTD
Glory, glory MAN UTD,
Glory, glory MAN UTD,
As the REDS go marching on, on, on!!
