Aug 20
Fans, Let’s Be a Little More Patient, Shall We?
Yesterday’s match resulted in what has now become our worst start to a season in a while. A team of United’s stature getting only two points from three games. The team does not have Rooney and Ronaldo and that will be status quo for sometime now. The team has managed to find the net only once in three games after plundering their way through 83 goals last season.
So surely we’ve lost the title? We need a new striker? We need a better formation? Rooney needs to change his boots? Nani needs to shoot? Blah? Blah, Blah?
Umm… not quite.
There are certain things we need to remember here if we consider ourselves worthy fans of our club. So let us spend sometime in this ‘gloomy’ situation to get some perspective here.
Let us first of all not forget that we have continued in the same vein as we left off last season: we have played great attacking football. We’ve also completely dominated possession and bossed the midfield on all occasions. Man City, for all their optimism this season, were completely run over by United. For huge chunks of the game you would be left wondering if we were playing at home. The look on many City fans during the game showed it all. They were nervous not just because it was a derby game, but because they were worried that with the way they were being stamped all over the pitch, they could concede any moment.
But the way this season has started, we haven’t looked like being able to finish. I doubt we would have scored even if the goal was a mile wide. In the Man City game, credit to Richards and Dunne, numerous last ditch tackles masked the fact that their keeper was slightly out of his depth. Kasper did an okay job, but certainly not a performance that has seen him maintain three clean sheets. Nani and Evra were culpable on a couple of occasions for fluffing chances. Tevez was victim of his own eagerness to impress and was at times isolated in front of goal. Giggs, apart from certain deft flicks, was at best average.
On the other hand, our midfield stood out. Scholes and Hargreaves were outstanding. The latter especially. The sheer number of tackles he won kept the number of chances afforded to City ridiculously low. Evra also impressed going forward. At times he appeared like a genuine winger. Unfortunately he hasn’t been able to show that consistently enough to start as a left winger. It’s a shame with Silly being shite and the Gabby Heinze situation that we don’t have too many options down the left side, when we really need to attack. I am talking of Evra as a left winger because he’s shown more ability down that flank than either of Giggs or Nani.
But all this is besides the point. Yes, United haven’t won yet. And the players aren’t scoring. But just because the results aren’t coming does that mean we get impatient and call for heads to fall? True, many of the current crop of United fans have grown up in an era of complete dominance by the Reds. I dare say, we have been spoiled by the success. Yes we did also endure a period of relative drought, where we went three years without a title (between 2003 and 2006). The 05/06 season was almost ridiculous when the press screamed out about the club being in some sort of crisis. Finishing second best or something may be deemed a crisis of some sort by the press because of the stature of the club. The wave of success and standards set by the club in the past have made not winning the title sound almost disastrous. But do we have to be that way? Can we not accept a certain level of failure from the club? Make no mistake, defeats would be disappointing and fans may be irrational. But does that mean we become unreasonable or downright stupid?
Just because we spent quite a bit this summer does not mean we are entitled to a league title. We should be winning, definitely. We have about the same team as last year. True, we never had a game where both Rooney and Ronaldo didn’t play. But we were winning comfortably, scoring goals freely despite the sale of a certain Ruud van Nistelrooy.
So what really infuriates me to no end is the cynicism and fickleness from certain sections of fans. Lads, it’s three games of really good football where we haven’t won. If we go like this till December there may be a cause for worry. But till then spare a thought for the team. In the City game for example, when we were running rings around Johnson and Hammann, their goal came out of the blue which rattled us to a certain degree. Players like Nani and Tevez were expected to be eased into the side that was winning. After such a good pre-season where we saw Rooney and Ronaldo get some well deserved rest, and saw Rooney inch towards his menacing best, we wouldn’t have, in our wildest dreams, expected Rooney to break another metatarsal! Despite the twin loss, we haven’t played shite either. Remember, when other teams like Arsenal and Liverpool have been dogged by poor finishing for years now, we have been blessed in that department in recent seasons. It is only a matter of time when we start spanking teams.
What we need is an acceptance that our team can lose (or draw) at times in succession. Most teams do that. In fact we used to do that even in our pre-Abramovich-Chelsea years. Yes the margin of error is very little. But crying out that we’ve lost the title smacks of arrogance more than anything else. Where is it written in stone that we have to win the title or else we’ll head towards complete destruction? Has our respective attention spans hit such lows? Conversely, has our respective needs for instant gratification reached such highs? Have we become so obsessed with glory?
Rhetoric apart, winning is important for us as fans. But losing is not the end of the world. There are a lot of highs and lows which come as a part of being fans of our club. The lows give value to the highs when they come. I’m sure, for most of us, the title win of last season must have felt among the best for a long time, coming as it did, after a drought of three years.
For those fans who think it is inexcusable for losing or not scoring for the last three games, I’d have to shed my relative zen-like calm and tread on political incorrectness: Guys go have your head examined. Avoid playing Manchester United on pro-evolution or Football Manager. And if you think Chelsea are better for their ruthless efficiency, go on, support them. Just remember, they didn’t have a particularly good season last year – playing shite while losing the title – despite their expensive buys.
Our team management contrary to certain panic-stricken beliefs is in sound hands. Had we converted the numerous chances that came our way, the same panic-stricken lot would have been singing a different tune.
So fans, please, let’s not get too worked up here. It’s only the beginning. Enjoy the football that we get to see our team play at the moment. And hope, like what we fans would normally do, that United do turn it around like they are famously known for.
Related items from Red Rants:
- Rooney Wants Chelsea. Patient Fletch. Wenger Hates Showboating.
- Ron Writes off Chelsea | Drog Rubbishes Himself | Pique Is Patient | And A Slow Day
- Brum 0-1 Reds: Another Scrappy One-Nil Win
- The Tuesday Tantrum: A Burning Berbatov Cocktail
- Brief Comment on Comments
Tags: Manchester United News
Craig Mc (195)
RedDevilEddy (170)
Opti (135)
Moscow is my heaven (96)
Ian (95)
Cool article. Must say that I am much more calmer now.
I think the problem is more the frustration of the fans. We do not know how and where to vent it because the team is not really doing anything wrong. We’re just not scoring goals. We can’t accept that it is up to luck, not after seeing what an amazing team we have. But, alas, it is…
I disagree with your assessment of Giggs though. He was way beyond ‘average’. It pains me to say this because Giggs has always been / still is my hero in the United team, but, he needs to get his confidence back and make some proper passes. Saw glimpses of it during the 2nd half yesterday, but that was just glimpses. not enough.
Our team is quite fine. We just need to find the back of the net. I’m sure that once we do, the goals will flow.
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I agree with you that it’s only the start of the season, so we must continue to beleive we will be back near the top soon! The thing is, we HAVE to win ALL of our games until the chelsea game on the 23rd, beat them at OT, and we’ll be back in the hunt. Guys, u think we can expect 3 victories against Tothm, Sun’land, and Everton? and that chelski loses at least 2 points against Por’mouth, Aston Villa or Blackburn? I think so… let’s hope our finishing get’s better!
Also, Red Ranter, i was reading a match review of yours, and you said you couldn’t find a website with GOOD live text commentary. I agree that sites like sky are shite, but for MAN U matches, there is nothing better than the Match Tracker on the official website manutd.com. Why don’t you get the commentary from there? Just curious….
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Our only problems is goals. Not enough strikers. Anelka would sort our problem. If we partnered him with Tevez and had Campbell on th bench. We would win by 5 with the way our midfield is playing.
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My concern is that we have already drawn two and lost one against teams we should be slaughtering.
I mean,we just cant afford to drop silly points with the knowledge that we just wont be beating che,arsenal or ‘pool twice.Anything but 3 points on sunday could be the last nail in the proverbial coffin as far as the title is concerned.
one more thing…we were painfully dire in the box and le sulk would be most welcome.High time glass legs is off loaded.
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Well said. We are playing well and creating chances. It is just a matter of them going in. Somebody is going to pay for it and I think it will be Spurs. Come on United !!!
All said n done though we are ” The Champions “
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Yeah I agree there is no need to panic!! we have played some really entertaining football and I’m not worried. The signs are there so just a little more patient. Too be honest your article is far too long winded I got your point after the first paragraph.
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You’re right on one thing – we’ve definitely continued as we left last season. In the last month of the season, we lost 3, drew 1 and won 1. We’ve played in a very similar manner that we played in towards the end of last season – not enough chances, good until the final third.
Have United bought the wrong players? I don’t think so – though it is possible for ‘big names’ to flop (remember Veron, Kleberson). But we’re certainly lacking a cutting edge which desperately needs to be ‘fixed’.
There are NO excuses – United SHOULD have won, at least, two of their games. I don’t think I would have been disappointed with a draw against City and even a loss is not a surprise. City has been a tough place to go to in the last few years, let us not forget this. People are saying “Ah but we’re playing good football” – that may be true but, unfortunately, good football does not guarantee you 3 points as has been shown in the last week. Like it or not, winning most certainly is everything in football and to say it’s fickle for United fans to be annoyed by United not winning is just silly. We have spent well over £60 million this summer that means something is expected of these players – it is unfair that they’ve had to come in straight away but that doesn’t give them an excuse. A win is a win – you get 3 points for it. Playing good football and losing – you get nothing for that.
I’m hoping that we can turn it around against Tottenham on Sunday but even that is a potentially tough game. United should turn it round, at some point, but by then it could all be too late!
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once nevilles back he’ll bang a few in lol but real we do need a proper striker how can score 30 goals a season why not alfonso alves he can find the back of the net and he would only cost £6-7m
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Totally agree Red Ranter. We should be calm about the situation, accept it and go on. Also, with the attackers Saha and Rooney out, we have to play 4-5-1 or 4-3-3 like we have done, so really Fergie could not have done anything different in these games.
But; I think our preseason was horrible, going to Asia(or USA) has always affected our first 4-5 games, that should never be repeated!
Hargreaves looked immense!
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great article, lets hope the reds can get their scoring groove back on..
Go REDS Go
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I couldnt agree more…… yesterday I got the feeling that if one of the chances went in, we would have a rout on our hands! sadly that never happened……..
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Words of a true manchester united heart. Couldn’t agree more, great article!
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good and a long article
on the funnier side how do have the patientence to write all that up man and specially this part
Anyways its always like that on a defeat day we over react the next day we’re talking abt crushing the opponents on the next weekend .
anyways the world has not come to and end and i am still optimistic that the quality in many teams has grown up the strategies have started to work for many teams speciallyy small ones who crowd the box in every corner or spot kick so it will be copetivie and tough season expect evry1 to drop points so we’re still in there hanging on
As much as i hate to play the chasing game and expect the other teams to drop points i still feel we have a chance and we can make things work for us still
and for me its still CL the target as i said earlier i still wnat us to win europe and finally have a place in history books to known among top europe clubs
i dont know how does loserpoolers manage this but hell we ruled premiership they had their play in europe so i am okay with the exchange 4 this season
And regarding spending big and registering a good season is not true ballack and sheva remember anyone??
Glory glory Man Utd( without a doubt this chant is a huge reason why we are glory hunting bastards)
United till die
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There is a clear reason for a lack of goals. Not enough strikers. It’s as clear as day light. We got rid of Smith plus his potential replacement Rossi and didn’t replace him. We have no like for like cover/competition for Saha. Which is doing us in ATM.
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I for one am not calling for heads to fall. On the contrary, I am calling for heads to be added. Like a striker or two for example. “PATIENT” Isn’t that someone who stays in a hospital or sees a doctor? I have no patience. Bollocks! Does Mourinho have patience? NO! He hates it just as much as I when his team is injured or under performing.
RED RANTER WRITES
“What we need is an acceptance that our team can lose (or draw) at times in succession. Most teams do that. In fact we used to do that even in our pre-Abramovich-Chelsea years. Yes the margin of error is very little. But crying out that we’ve lost the title smacks of arrogance more than anything else. Where is it written in stone that we have to win the title or else we’ll head towards complete destruction? Has our respective attention spans hit such lows? Conversely, has our respective needs for instant gratification reached such highs? Have we become so obsessed with glory?”
Sorry mate, I love your blog and your loyal passion for the club, but you have it all wrong. I’m sure, no I am positive Sir Alex himself would disagree with you on accepting a loss or two. As a competitor, you never accept losing nor do you tolerate it. If it happens, you analyze it and attempt to correct it. If you are not obsessed with glory or winning then why the hell do they play the game. These are nice values to teach a toddler but not a grown adult who has tasted the reality of life and the competitiveness of the workplace. To quote a baseball manager the late Leo Durocher in America who said it like this, “Winning isn’t everything, it’s the only thing”. I damn well guarantee you that Sir Alex lives by that rule every day of his life. He is the consummate competitor and he hates to lose. He is also strong enough, smart enough and experienced enough to know that even the best teams will lose on occasion or have problems. He also knows that to show panic would be fatal to his squad, even if a little panic has entered his blood stream. Zen is for calmer folk who watch others take what they could have had. I’m sorry Red Ranter that you feel fans like myself have to get our heads examined because we have the guts, passion and insight to call it as it is. The world has become ultra competitive and the weak get eaten alive. Ask Sheffield or Charlton fans if they agree with your way of thinking. They would instantly adopt a policy of political incorrectness and killer instinct if some Russian Billionaire bought up their respective club and transformed it into a competive team capable of winning every match. And as for Chelsea, no mate, I will never support them because I am a die hard supporter of United. I guess you feel I am unworthy because I have the unmitigated gaul to complain or question the powers that be when things aren’t going as planned. I say BOLLOCKS to political correctness. It’s for timid conformists and losers. I’m not insane and I don’t go slapping people’s babies in my spare time. I just expect the club I support by choice to play like they care and like they are capable. I can handle a loss here and there, but not to Man City and certainly not to teams who’s players should be cleaning our jock straps. We are in good hands as I have every confidence that SAF will correct the team’s lack of approach and malaise. I just hope it’s not too late that it will cost us either the EPL or a Champions League spot we covet as United supporters. You say that Chelsea lost last season because of poor play. The way they play, the most important man other than Terry is Cech. Losing Cech exposed their defense and gave other clubs the belief and confidence to attack them. Once he came back they were pretty unbeatable. Fortunately we had built a comfortable lead and coasted to the title. I am afraid of that scenario happening in reverse this season. Rooney is the heart and soul of the squad and even if he isn’t scoring, he stirs the drink that makes United’s style work. Hopefully he returns soon.
Anyway to Red Ranter, hopefully you don’t hold my views against me. I am a Canadian who unfortunately has inherited a little old fashioned American competitiveness along the way. I believe in fair play and sportsmanship and all that, but I also believe in playing to win. Otherwise I’d find a hobby where winning wasn’t the aim of the game. Although we may disagree, I must say that I truly enjoy reading and participating in your very informative blog. Keep up the good work.
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Lol no panic… United always seem to do things the difficult way…
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any news on wen saha will be back??
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Read my blog on “Do we need a new striker” comments 22. I said we should get Huntelaar. He scored 4 over the weekend. GET HIM NOW FERGIE – YOU STUBBORN OLD MAN. You are losing it. Where is the hairdryer treatment. Fergie has mellowed. Utd should go back to basics. Simple pass. Tackle hard. Stick the ball at the back of the net.After scoring a couple, then come fantasy football. BUT WHAT WE HAVE DONE WRONG IS PLAYING FANTASY FOOTBALL RIGHT FROM THE START. TRYING TO SCORE THE PERFECT GOALS. Plus too many missed opportunities.
No variations, no PLAN-B when Plan A is not working.
Sell Heinze to the scums and get a striker. Do not keep an unhappy player.
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I forgot to add as Ericsson said…we do not get points for possession or attempts. So do it the Chelski way when they won the title first time round. Boring but efficient. At least the fans are happy with 3 points. MR RED RANTER. Do you know how much it hurts to get beaten by the scumbags……??????????
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I am not normally one for knee-jerk reactions, but right now I would be extremely happy with the addition of Nicolas Anelka (and Anelka only – no Huntelaars and Quagliarellias please!) to our attack. Anelka is a pacy, top class finisher who is PROVEN in the Premier League (he has been flying out of the traps and banging in the goals lately), and when paired or rotated with Saha or Rooney, would form part of a truly devastating front two, or even a three-pronged attack, for us. We only have three, not the four, top class strikers as most top teams require, and two of them (Saha and Rooney), are out for a lengthy period of time. Tevez is clearly only settling into the team and cannot be expected to provide the goals just yet (though he was never prolific in the first place). Our options outside this bracket are extremely limited – Rossi and Smith are gone, Solskjaer can’t be relied upon with his dodgy knees, Dong, Campbell etc. are unproven. So, although the fans should not panic just yet, one more quality finisher wouldn’t go amiss at Old Trafford. Just need to scrape around for another £10m…
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Excellent write up. I decided this weekend to not panic until 2 or 3 more matches.
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Well if we are to gauge the reaction of the fans based on the feelings of guys like Al and Nino I think that Red Ranter is definitely not among the majority. I agree 110% about Huntelaar. Although he isn’t exactly a carbon copy of van Nistelrooy, he knows how to find the holes in the defense and score goals. He will be harder to pry off Ajax now though as the season has started and they would be hard pressed to replace him. Despite liking the money, they too have a fan base to satisfy. Selling a player who justed netted four times on the weekend without replacing him with a very good player would cause riots in Amsterdam. Anelka on the other hand can be had as Bolton are clearly earmarked for quick relegation. Sammy Lee needs to buy players to save his job. I also agree that we have created a team of fantasy footballers who don’t like to play hard physical football and who always pass too much and look to score the perfect goal. SHOOT THE BLOODY BALL ALREADY. When Scholes unleashed one, great things happened against Pompey. Fergie has to stop letting the opposition dictate the terms of play. We are Manchester United and they must bow to us damn it. “Pride, poise and a commitment to excellence” is a creedo the NFL’s Oakland Raiders used in their glory days. United should borrow it. We really need a Roy Keane to set down the law to both our opponents as well as the squad in the dressing room. I doubt Sunderland will come out and stink again next week. Keano wouldn’t stand for it. Fergie shouldn’t either. I think he has gone a bit mellow and he needs to throw a boot at somebody. A wake up call is needed and somebody with a bit of anger must deliver it. These players make millions and millions of pounds a year. We poor blokes who support them deserve much better. We deserve a better effort from both the players and the coaches. If they were a hard working but financially humble club, you wouldn’t hear a peep from me. Nothing I hate more than 11 rich boys sunbathing on the pitch on Saturday or Sunday afternoon. Time to check their trousers and check to see if they have a pair.
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[Grognard]
Your points are well taken. I didn’t intend to attack you, although honestly those comments on my article were veiled criticism on certain sections of people. It’s good you got that. But let me make this a little more clear. What I am trying to say is that your panic levels after just three games is a little over the top. And now that I know where you come from let me tell you this: Fan following in football/soccer in Europe differs from that in American sports in one very crucial respect. Fans have an almost tribal loyalty towards the club they support in England. You have die-hard fans of clubs like Grimsby Town or Macclesfield! Being fans extends to not just winning and losing. It is the very joy of being a part of the club’s family. Of course, of late, after takeovers and so on some fans have felt dis-enfranchised with their clubs, but that is a different story.
Fans feel gutted by losses, and elated by wins. But they wouldn’t go around panicking immediately after three games. They may be irrational in their mad loyalty towards their club, but they also have a certain sense of mature understanding of the stature of their club and wouldn’t swoop to pass judgements instantly. Otherwise, fans of Sheffield United and Charlton would have long deserted their clubs and moved on to more successful ones.
In fact, if you ask Chelsea fans who were there before the Abramovich era they would actually share a different tale with you. They would talk about the 50 years they endured without a title. Hell, veteran United fans will talk about the 1974-75 season where United got relegated and played in the old second division (now Championship), and they still managed to pack their stadiums. We weren’t (atleast I wasn’t) born in that era. So I wouldn’t really know.
Back to what you said, yes, ruthlessness is necessary, but from the team management. What can we do by being ruthless and competitive? By demanding so much we put too much pressure on the players than there is already. Encourage them, egg them on. Get behind them and help them perform.
In fact it was this backs to the wall situations that United have come out on top on numerous occasions. Every where they were written off by the rest of the country, the fans got behind the club and proved everyone wrong. We did it when Beckham was under fire, Ronaldo did it when everyone was willing to kill him, we won last season when everyone wrote us off.
Anyway I could ramble on and on, but I guess we wouldn’t agree on many respects.
[Al]
I know how much it hurts, but we’ve been beaten by them before too. In fact we haven’t done too well against them lately. Anyway about strikers, we wouldn’t buy a big name striker for sure. Otherwise we wouldn’t have sold Rossi or Smith. All we could do at the moment is get an experienced striker on a short term loan to plug the void. I doubt Fergie would buy a big name striker.
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IMO, playing attractive football is most important. true, it’s very frustrating for us when MU is not winning……but would u rather see them win with boring boring tactics? or would u prefer attacking football like what we’re doing now?
i guess we’re jz unlucky so far….let’s be patient for a little while longer.
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as ive mentioned i think panic and outrage isnt the sentiment exactly of most united fants it’s probably more of frustration that our work isnt bearing fruit and we arent getting the points.
we do need a good old fashioned centre forward target man but if we were to go out there and get one now who’s going to want to be benched when rooney saha and solskjaer’s back. definitely not the incredible sulk. besides it takes time to gel into a team as well a short term loan deal for an experienced striker of immense footballing intelligence and only one man does it for me — henrik larrsson.
and yes grog i agree that we do need someone to stamp his authority out there on the pitch, heck if smith was here i’m pretty sure he’d be able to lift the team and create a sense of urgency and inspire his team mates as he plays. rooney does it too and so does neville which would explain why he’s our captain but so far we’re lacking that character as of late. and it’s character like these that turns draws and losses into victories. quite simply put, someone has to step up.
but as united fans we never ever turn on our players, even though we see what we perceive as a continued lack of interest and committment (unless its a blatant act of judaism (eg heinze) then that’s another matter altogether) but even so as red ranter puts it aptly things like that ought to be sorted out in management we’ve been blessed with fergie an old school astute manager both tactically and in man management who has the right footballing attitude of commitment and team above player and ive never ever seen anyone anywhere be as ruthless in exacting this out than he is. so if any player’s a lazy pansy trust that he’ll be told in no uncertain terms to wake up or shipped out sooner or later, whichever works best for manchester united.
much as i hate to bring it up but pool fans sang “we’d win 4-3″ at half time in istanbul. if scousers can do that, what more us? i dont believe we’re saying shed our standards or anything we’re just saying this is crucial for manchester united and we’ve to bond together as a unit, fans players management alike against the critics against the people who attack our players against the people who write us off and IF we wind up say anything but champions, we would have known up against it we fought we gave our all but it wasnt to be but im glad i stuck with my team im glad im still manchester united im glad we’re all going through this together.
it’s backs to the wall, it’s us against them, and yes red ranter ive said so as well, this is the kind of environment that united’s proven to thrive upon, so much so it’s written in our dna, you NEVER write manchester united off but write us off and look what we’ll do.
we’re not letting the title go anywhere.
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Red Ranter, very good points you bring up in describing the fan-club relationship and climate over decades of loyalty and support. I agree with you on principle except for one major point. The game has changed these past five to 10 years as big corporations and big money have infiltrated the top leagues and destroyed what was once truly wonderful football leagues throughout Europe. Big money has created a class system similar to what the George Bush administration has successfully begun in the US. Their is no more middle class. There is only the aristocracy and their are the peasant classes. In the EPL, money has created such a high bar of expectations for the the four or five clubs that can honestly call themselves the aristocrats. This has unfortunately created rivalries that are not just hard fought and bitter on the pitch, but in the boardrooms as well. The sad thing I’m afraid to admit is that this negative and ultra greedy economic climate has corrupted many of the supporters of these top clubs. I am guilty and admit to be one of them. I was never upset in the 80′s or 90′s whenever United went into slumps or lost league titles to either Blackburn or Arsenal. The fact that Blackburn and Newcastle had some great clubs during the early to mid 90′s tells us just how great the league was. Now Man U, Livepool, Arsenal, Tottenham and of course Chelski are run by deep pockets who expect big returns for their investment. The rest of the clubs just languish in Purgatory. This corporate mentality has corrupted a lot of us supporters and I do agree that we have lost a proper perspective on things. However, as long as Chelski continues to shame the game with their spending, Man U, and Liverpool will follow suit because of the increased pressure to not just compete with them and win the league, but to cash in on the riches of making the Champions League. The last couple of Man U v Chelsea matches have been boring, uninspiring, risk free fiascoes. because the price of losing is far worse than the glory of winning. The game needs to become fun again and not polluted with corruption, money and greed. Then maybe some of us fans can once again relax and not take an upset of our team so badly.
As for the difference between Europe and North America. I agree on a lot of what you say, but please believe me when I say that things are very similar in many areas and sports. Boston Red Sox fans have the same affection and spiritual connection to their team. The greatest tales of fan loyalty have been watching Red Soc fans, Chicago Cubs fans wait almost entire centuries to see their team’s win a World Series. The horror stories on and off the field for both clubs is epic and only Hollywood movie could be more unbelievable.
No club in Europe has as much of a connection and has as great a loyal following as do Boston Red Sox fans. Cubs fans come a close second. In fact there are many sports in North America where the supporters are fused at the hip with the clubs they support. Being Canadian, I challenge to find greater support and more loyal followings than those of die hard Canadian hockey fans to such team as the Montreal Canadiens and Toronto Maple Leafs. Tremendous team and supporter histories there. They live and die with their clubs. The difference is that the North American business mentality is a cut throat, fast paced and highly competitive one. Mediocrity is not tolerated anywhere, especially in sports. The ans have no say if a popular coach gets the sack. Losing is not an option in America. This mind set has corrupted sports and has caused a money hungry feeding frenzy that has brought about steroids, gambling and other forms cheating and dirty dealings. The romanticism that once followed such sports as baseball and American football has started to lose it’s strength. This will happen in England too. It already has hit Italy, Spain and Germany. Anyway sorry for rambling on. I just felt that it was important to get a proper perspective on key differences in philosophy.
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[grognard]
About North American sports, I wouldn’t know too much apart from this: Yes I agree Red Sox fans are a crazy lot. The real passion in American sport however is the kind you see in College football/sports. That loyalty is forged for life and that is what can be compared with a lot of English football fan following or even that with fans in Spain.
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united we stand and united we fall, we can still win the league.
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Excellent comparison. The college comparison completely slipped my mind because Canadians don’t share the same passion for college/school sports like Americans. Entire generations of families attend specific colleges and follow that schools sports with extreme loyalty and passion, even after they have left the school or state. They pass that tradition on to their children and the cycle continues. But even college sports gets ultra competitive with money entering the fray. Big universities make billions of dollars through their NCAA sports programs. The media blows rivalries way out of proportion and this encourages support of specific schools even if the supporter never went to the school or lived in the state in question. Corruption is also running rampant. Gambling, bribes and drugs have all tainted the college and high school ranks as well. Our entire society it seems is infested with this “must win” mentality and greedy, unethical activities have become second nature. I see this beginning to show it’s ugly face in the EPL. Look what happened to Juventus and what about the bribery and referee scandals in Spain and Germany. As bad as American sports can be, we do not see British style hooliganism. That is part of the “tribal loyalty” you talk about that has nothing to do with the sport other than it is an excuse for complete idiots to bash each other to death. North America has had a few incidents but nothing compared to the rubbish that occurs between Rangers and Celtic fans.
No stadium in North America is partitioned or fenced off in order to keep supporters of two sides apart. That’s bloody barbaric. When Michigan meets Notre Dame, the fans yell and spew profanity at each other but very rarely does a single fist fight occur. And people say I have to chill? British hooligans use football as an excuse to let out their hate and frustration over the useless lives. In America with do it by fooling around on our wives or playing computer games(JOKE). All this expenditure of passion and energy over a sport of light weight puffer kicking a ball around. You’d think hooligans would have embraced sports like Boxing, wrestling or martial arts. Football is nothing to kill over. Just a few impression from the other side of the Atlantic.
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GROGNARD, i am originally from MONTREAL, Canada now living in Europe. You are right when you say that we are CRAZY when it comes to the “Habs” (montreal canadians NHL hockey team)
RED RANTER, you wouldn;t beleive the fans we are. I swear 2 defeats in a row and evrybody says were doomed, no heart, no talent, etc… the fans and media want to fire all the staff and change all the players. HOWEVER, win 2 or 3 in a row, WE”RE GOING TO THE CUP!!!
I support Man U so you can see that the fans or not so different after all! lol
(funny that my hockey team’s owner is the same owner of my football team’s MOST HATED ennemy) lol
RED RANTER, i asked on a previous post “Also, Red Ranter, i was reading a match review of yours, and you said you couldn’t find a website with GOOD live text commentary. I agree that sites like sky are shite, but for MAN U matches, there is nothing better than the Match Tracker on the official website manutd.com. Why don’t you get the commentary from there? Just curious….”
Glory Glory man united!!
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Good article, im glad somebody with the power to reach the masses has made these calming comments. I myself have been trying to talk down United’s “crisis” start ot the season. No need for panic stations just yet. And at least Fergie and Carlos are staying true to there football ethos of playing good football, something i think will pay dividends for us this season. We might be misfiring a little at the moment, but its only a matter of time before the likes of Tevez, Nani and Anderson start to stamp their flavour on the games. Tevez and Nani already look good, but we all know there is so much more to come. Hargreaves was out standing against City, as good a debut as i’ve ever seen. Biggest disappointment for me this season has been the early season form of Giggs. He’s looked awful since March. He needs to step it up a bit, IMO.
Anyway, don’t panic yet, we’re looking good. Good like a smouldering bonfire made of dynamite thats about to go off, big time.
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I just hope we don’t revert to ‘boring’ football in order to get a result.
As frustrating as it is at the moment, I would prefer the team to play attacking football the way they have been now lately…just hope they can score a couple. I still maintain that the problem has more to do with luck. We’re creating the chances as least. The only thing I would like to see changed in our approach is I beleive we will create ‘better’ chances if we play with 2 strikers instead of 1.
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No doubt when Fergie has two fit strikers, he’ll be playing two strikers. But thats the whole problem right now. Lack of strikers.
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I have just come back from portugal where i was unlucky enough to watch our first three games in the company of a lot of gooners and chavs! Its as plain as the nose on your face that we need a committed front man. You dont have 60% possession and lose, or you shouldnt!! Playing pretty football in front of a determined resistance is all well and good but incisive passing and sharp finishing is what is required and we look well short in this area. If SAF’s sound bites are accurate and he is happy with the quality of football being played i am the man in the moon. We have no plan B and dont seem to be able to overcome the sort of disciplined defending that the 3 teams we have played have adopted. Of course its only 3 games and a couple of goals and wins against spurs and sunderland will restore some confidence but we look well short up front.
incidentally i spoke at length to a few Sporting Lisbon fans one evening, they reckon Nani is good but nowhere near what Ronaldo was whilst with them and were gobsmacked at the fee. They raved about Anderson though and reckon he was the best player by a mile in Portugal. Where is he though? Surely he must be somewhere near fitness and ready to play. They think he will be a massive player for us. There is a lot of interest in UTD in Portugal and they were keen to tell me about the players involved.
One thing i do think about our current play and the way in which we fell over the line last year, its made me appreciate even more just what a great player Gary Neville is and the positive effect he has on the team.
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Thanks to B for his contribution on the passion crazy demands of Montreal Canadiens fans when their team lose a game or two in ice hockey. I am originally from a city made famous by a hockey player named Wayne Gretzky. Edmonton Alberta has always been madly committed to their team and very passionate. In the eighties the team was considered to be one of the greatest teams of all time. They won 5 championships in 7 years and yet, fans would demand heads be cut off if the team lost two games in a row. They were also a record breaking attacking team that scored way more goals than all other teams. They quite often would get criticized by supporters and media if they played a game where they only scored 2 or 3 goals. The entire city turned out to watch the wedding of their native son and idol Wayne Gretzky. Two months later they were rioting in the streets when the team owner sold him to Los Angeles. That was a black day not only in Edmonton, but in Canada, because to Canadians, Gretzky was Canadian first, an Edmonton Oiler second. Did the rest of Britain give a damn when Beckham was sold to Madrid? So upset was the city and the supporters, that they literally ran the extremely hated team owner out of the city. That certainly didn’t happen to Sir Alex now did it. That same city also had an Canadian football team (similar to US football) called the Edmonton Eskimos which won five straight championships between 1978 to 1982. The team was owned and operated by the community and still is. The fans are still very devoted to the team and get very angry demanding changes be made when they come upon hard times on the pitch. A highway that runs into the city from it’s neighboring rival city Calgary says “WELCOME TO EDMONTON – CITY OF CHAMPIONS” That was placed there as a beacon of pride for the city as well as a reminder to all Calgarians that Edmonton and not them rule in Alberta. And you want to talk to me about rivalries and derby matches. Many a drunken fight has been started between supporters of the opposing teams. Both cities absolutely hate each other. When the teams meet in hockey, the whole league makes a big deal over the “Battle of Alberta”. Trust me when I say that footy in the UK doesn’t have a monopoly on passion and crazed support from their supporters. Just a comparison from the other side of the ocean on the craziness that is sports. Now if we could just steal the sport back from greedy billionaires who are polluting and destroying the fabric and tradition of the sport before it’s too late. North American football, hockey and basketball have introduced a salary cap system that insures that all teams spend the same amount of money to run their operations and buy their players. This system would allow Reading and Derby to fairly compete with Chelsea and United thus, leaving the decision on who’s best based on coaching , organization and proper player assessment. I know, it sounds communist but that is the only way to control the mad spending and terrible behavior of teams like Chelsea, Real Madrid, Barcelona, Inter, Juventus and AC Milan. Those teams tactics for signing players are tantamount to skulduggery and poor sportsmanship. Dirty tactics used because they have the money to do it. Any solution on how to solve the vicious cycle of big money teams destroying the leagues they play in?
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You know when the team has the ball 65 to 75 percent of the time and cannot create more than a couple of clear cut scoring opportunities inside the 18 yard box, then I would call that BORING football. To all those who are afraid of boring football coming, I say bring it on if it means that a counterattacking style that generates 3 great opportunities in game helps us to win. Stop trying to make that extra pass to score the perfect goal. Shoot Shoot Shoot!
As creative as Ronaldo is, at least he likes to shoot the ball. What he needs to incorporate in his awesome attacking arsenal of moves and tricks is finesse shooting from distance and free kicks. Start bending it like Beckham around that wall,instead of trying to murder the ball. His shots lack rotation and movement and unless the keeper is screened, he usually stops it. As for the rest of the midfielders, stop trying to make impossible passes through an air tight defense. Start using the width, start using greater pace and for gods sakes, take a lesson on crossing the ball with more pace and accuracy. It is times like this that make me cry for Becks. Sure we need strikers, but we need better service to the one we have. It is asking too much of Tevez to score on the one chance he gets in a game. He needs service that will give him at least 3 to 5 great chances to score. Those odds will allow him to score 1 or 2 goals. The rumor mill is working hard spitting out names like Martens and Anelka. You mark my word, that even if Fergie buys one of these strikers, he will still play 4-5-1. He will be afraid to use both in a game fearing injury will reduce him to one again. It’s too bad Rooney’s break isn’t a toe like Lampard or Gerrard, so that he could wrap it up and come out and play. We really need the depth and the clock is ticking. I’ll be surprised if Fergie actually buts one of these payers because it will prove to himself that he was wrong before the season started in selling Rossi and Smith without adequate backup having been acquired. For all of Fergie’s greatness, he is stubborn and proud. So who do you all prefer, Anelka (Old Sulky)
or Martens? I actually think that Martens is far stronger inside the box and that’s what we need. Sulky is great coming into the box or shooting from just outside. We already have to many of those. What I would give for the player I have been coveting from day one to arrive at Old Trafford. That being Klass Jan Huntelaar. He would have helped us forget Ruud. The chances of getting him now are slim to none I’m afraid.
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[B]
I always thought Manutd.com’s match tracker or highlights or anything related to live match related stuff were paid services. And usually I do get links to united matches. But anyway thanks for the tip.
And about fan craziness, I admit my ignorance of Canadian sports. My observations were based on my opinions on American sport. Which, I have to say, for most part, does not hold a candle to European soccer fanatics. Although it is a generalization and Red Sox fans wouldn’t agree.
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Red Ranter
I definitely think American sports fanatic can more than hold their own against their European counterparts. The biggest difference as I see it is that in North America their are so many top level sports to choose from and enjoy and thus, the fans suffer from a little attention deficit disorder. They generally don’t follow just one sport exclusively for the whole year. In summer it is baseball and golf, fall it is American football and winter is devoted to hockey and basketball. The UK does have cricket and rugby but my experience has been that not that many footy fans follow those other sports. Golf and tennis is for the individualists. On the European continent footy rules and their are no other distractions. Therefore footy fans in Europe as well as South America have tunnel vision and go overboard for their one chosen sport. On that basis, you are correct that our passions for a given sport don’t rule our lives solely. Although I have met many Canadians that have hockey on the brain 24/7 all year round. My wish has always been to live in Europe and support either Man U or my other favorite Bayern Munich. AHHH! We can always dream.
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