The Holy Pilgrimage Pt. II

Pt. I of my post on the visit to Old Trafford was a straight-up chronicle of events, and can be found here. This one is about my post-visit observations/reflections.

On the bench!!

1. Consumerism runs amok. After the match, approximately 34539 people squeezed their way into the Megastore. There was actually security personnel who had to perform crowd control, limiting the flow of people into the store. The crowd formed a massive, uncoordinated bloc that waitd outside the entrance, as the store was already bursting with people. They need a Ginomostore, not a Mega-one, methinks. The crowd situation made me wonder if it'd be as crazy if United had lost. Sure, tourists like me would probably still venture in, but I'd guess that regulars might not feel quite as inclined to entertain their kids' requests for that United scrabble set. We're more likely to splash out the cash when we're in a good mood obviously. This really highlights the importance of United maintaining their winning ways given their massive debt: It's not just Champions League earnings, but also merchandise sales, that will be affected.

Dawn of the Dead comes to life

2. The match itself will not be making it into the hall of classics anytime. Both teams played averagely, with many sloppy passes made. In fact, I was kinda shocked at how casual players looked when pinging those passes. Making it look easy, sure, but I still found it slightly disconcerting how unbothered they looked. Both sides had few clear-cut chances at goal, with most of the match being played in midfield and both teams struggled to string passes together.

3. C'est triste que I missed WR10 in action, but I am very thankful to have been able to catch United legends Giggsy and Scholesy in action. Scholes, in particular, was on form that day, and seeing him do his thing in the centre of the park, committing those "oops isn't it cute how he still doesn't know how to tackle" fouls was pure joy.

4. Poor Berbatov. He didn't do well that day, but he didn't fare that badly either. But, every time h got the ball, you could seriously feel the weight of the pressure/expectation the crowd was putting on him. Every time he messed up yet another good scoring opportunity, the collective groan from the stands got louder and ever more frustrated.

Giggsy about to score from the spot.

5. Speaking of disappointments, Michael Carrick was another who faced the crowd's wrath. Underperforming the entire season, Carrick exemplified the whole 'couldn't care less' attitude I described earlier. "Take your time, son", I remember a disgruntled fan in my vicinity shouting. And he would.... only to misplace his pass. Shape up, or ship out, Mister!

6. Nani - Ah, aren't we glad for his revelatory form in the second half of the season. In an uninspiring team performance, it was obvious that Nani was the spark of the squa, the one who proverbially 'made things happen'. Still no Ronaldo, but we'll all be expecting greater and better things to come from him this coming season.

7. Last note on the United squad -- Just want to pay tribute to Evra. Seriously, best left-back in the world (maybe not when playing for La France). ♥

8. Spurs note: Crouch does win those headers, doesn't he? And Gareth Bale was definitely the Nani equivalent for them.

Last chance you were able to hi-five that day! hah!

9. It's sad but I have to confirm that the away crowd is indeed more enthusiastic in their singing/cheering. I think that's the way it is everywhere though. And WC and I sadly were also part of the much maligned prawn sandwich crowd since I didn't know any of the songs and couldn't take part in the singing. *ashamed*

10. On to general thoughts: Attending a football match is nowadays a very wholesome event. Besides the alcohol ban, I was most impressed by how disabled-friendly the club is. There's a big section right at the corner between the East and South ends reserved for fans on wheelchairs, and there's a big MUFC Disabled Supporters' Club, which has its own publicity board inside the stadium. Also, they have a designated hangout area on their own termed the 'Ability Suite'. A big too obvious or cheesy to some perhaps, but I thought it to be a great message.

Also, that day coincided with the anniversary of the Disabled Supporters' Assocation, so that was a 3 on 3 match between some mentally handicapped Spurs and United kids during halftime. I smiled when I head someone near me say "Cone on lads, we're United, we wanna win everything." We lost 1-7 though. Oops.

It's 20LEGEND! O.G. Solskjaer, Reserves manager, leads the squad out to collect their trophy for finishing top of the Northern half of the Reserves League before the match.

11. And finally, another way match-attending is wholesome is how it is very much a family affair. All throughout the stands, there were numerous father-son attendees, including fathers with adorable, excitable children, dads with their teenage lads who might be too cool and slightly embarrassed to hang out with their parental units, and grey-haired men with their grown-up sons. I could easily imagine generations of fans attending United games - Dad brings son brings grandson and so the tradition passes on. Saturaday afternoons would be that special bonding time between father-son as they share the elation of a victory, or the despair of a loss. And eventually, such Saturdays would become amazing, shared memories. I can almost picture a Kodak commercial based on this. NGL, I felt a twinge of envy/sadness seeing these scenes of familial bonding, knowing I never had a decent dad with whom I had memories of joyful experiences. (Sorry, woe-is-me attitude henceforth ceases!)

That is why after the match, this thought came to my mind: maybe Manchester United is too big of an institution today. United is as grand and majestic as football stadiums come, but I couldn't help but envision this rosy, idealised picture of father/son attending their local club's match, where every one's voice mattered, since one's absence wouldn't simply be filled by the next football tourist. Seems like that'd be a more authentic experience, for a lack of a better description. The grandiosity and commercialism of MUFC, exemplified for example by the way the megastore is run like a well-oiled machine and by how skyrocketing season ticket prices are hurting middle/working-class football families, takes away the soul from the experience, this overthinking fan believes.

Farewell to thee, Old Trafford... I will be back!

The Holy Pilgrimage Pt. 1

Ok, so throughout my travels this past year, I've actually been pretty faithfully journaling each trip, but I've only posted summarized thoughts on them because I didn't think the world needed minute-by-minute accounts of my holidays. But, I decided to break the trend for this trip, because it's Manchester freakin' United! So there'll be 2 parts to this post: the first is a more straightforward chronicle of events and the second will be random thoughts along the lines of this or this. Please excuse the rambling!

only blue you'll see in this post!

Day 1:
So on the historic days of April 23/24, I finally made my long-awaited pilgrimage to the Holy Land, aka Old Trafford, Manchester. Thanks to the generosity of a friend, I manged to snag a pair of season ticket passes and invited fellow Man United fan Way Cherng along for a trip up north to catch United in their penultimate home game of the season against Tottenham Hotspurs.
We took a 0730 train on Friday and from Oxford, it was a 3 hour ride to Manchester Piccadilly station, the central train station there. When we arrived, we took the tram to the stop named Old Trafford which is of course where the stadium is near and also where our hotel was located. After checking in and getting a pub lunch at Wetherspoon's, we proceeded to OT for our stadium/museum tour.
The museum was great, especially the section on the Munich aircrash. I was aware of the history of the tragedy but being there, reading all the info and looking at the photos/old newspaper reports, I really felt kinda emotional. This incident was the football equivalent to the day the music died, definitely. It was amazing how Bobby Charlton bounced back to win the World and European Cup!

And as for the stadium, what can I say. Way better than the Santiago Bernabéu! We got to visit the players' dressing room, where there were tactics white boards and a TV. Just imagine Sir Alex giving one of his trademark hairdryer treatments there!

Treble season, baby!

Legend

After the stadium tour (which inevitably ends at the merchandise store), it was time to shop the vast United megastore, featuring all sorts of crap you can think up of, from Man United candy to rugs. *Sheer bliss* I got a jacket, and a 07/08 Champions' League DVD on the cheap.

MUFC candy? Doubt it's M&S quality though.

...and grass(!) lol.

Sir Alex in his youth! Amazing!

After departing OT, we took the tram back to Manchester city centre, and did a walking tour of it. We had dinner in Chinatown, and the waitress who served us in the restaurant turned out to be local! She was a Malaysian Chinese who had lived in Singapore for a long time, in Tampines even! We went back to the hotel after dinner to rest.

oh, we had time for a helicopter ride around the stadium too.

Day 2 (Match day!):
After an English breakfast at the hotel, it was time to head to the stadium for the game. WC and I each bought a Love United, Hate Glazers yellow and green Newton Heath scarf before heading in. Our seats were on the East end, pretty near to the action really. United attacked our end in the first half, but sadly, all three goals they scored occured in the second, so we only got to see the Ledley King goal up close. Also, Rooney had the audacity to miss the one match that I came to watch? The nerve! =(

Players warming up, doing that zig-zag body twisting thing I used to do during badminton training too!

Players having emerged from the tunnel.

Setting up for a FK. Can't remember if it was Nani or Gigg who took it.

United won the match 3-1 at the end, with Giggsy converting two penalties and Nani contributing an exquisite individual goal that kept our title challenge alive. You could feel the air of hope and positivity lingering after the match ended. It was not to be, as the events in May informed us, but I am so grateful the team won, putting the cream on top of the proverbial strawberries (thought this'd be a more apt metaphor for England, no?) (or the vinegar on top of fish and chips perhaps).
After the match, we walked back from OT to the city centre (the trams being crazily packed, of course), which took some 45 minutes, I'd say. We went to eat at the food court in the main mall there. Western food courts are not quite like those in Singapore, where you have stalls selling a vast array of hawker-type food. Here, food court stalls are more likely to consist of McDonald's, KFC, Pizza Hut, and some sandwich shop. There was, however, a Chinese stall there so WC and I both had roast duck/char siew rice (yes, we both love our Chinese food). Not quite local standards, but mai4 hiam2, buay3 pai4.
Then, we headed to a coffee shop to hang out and read the matchday programme before taking the 1936 train back to Oxford, where Trinity term awaited.

yay! WC looks joyful, to say the least!

remember that, folks!

Mad Skillz, y'all

This just needed to be posted:

Cristiano would be proud.

And how about this for a counter-attack?

United at their Fergie-influenced best: Swift, incisive, effective breaks. All hail King Rooney!

Sheer Genius

Two of the most important goals of United's campaign this year.

Just like that, a star is born.

And this one....what else can you say but 'wow'. It actually takes like 1 sec for the ball to go for foot to goal - that was how long the distance was. Really, Messi has an amazing ability to keep the ball stuck to his feet, but Ronaldo has the overall package and is the best player in the world.

The Prodigal Son Returns

So United was at the San Siro in Milan this past Tues for the first leg of their Champions League 09 quarter-final. Guess who in the neighbourhood decided to drop by their training session?Aww..Memories... Glad to see all grievances over the flying boot incident have been buried by Becks and Sir Alex!Two of England's best midfielders

Two greats, one legend: Becks, Giggs and Robson.Ah, if only Beckham didn't leave....

The Hotness

Lol. Forget the Real transfer sage, Ronaldo changing his race is the real shocker. And nice shorts, btw.

Champions 07/08!

A little for-good-luck celebratory post before the Champion's League Final!

Manchester United - Premier League champions once again! Incidentally, they've now won the league five times in the 00s, the same number as they did in the 90s (But you only hear stuff like "back when Man Utd dominated in the 90s..."). So, there!



God bless SAF. Footballing legend, but still celebrates like a spastic. But he's more than earned the right to do so!





Love you, Fergie!

Good weekend at the office for the men in red!

First, United came back from a 0-1 deficit to beat Villa away 4-1, thanks to some sloppy defending by them! My stupid live feed crapped out in the middle of the first half, when we were down, so I missed all 4 goals, the two Villa sending-offs, and Rooney's missed penalty. Crap. Still, it's a good away win, and Rooney's scored 6 in 5 now, with his partnership with a fast-improving Tevez looking more and more fluid. Good timing too, given that Saha's injured (again!!!).

Wazza the Boy Wonder is back on form!

Then, in more unexpected but most welcome news, Kimmi 'Ice-Man' Raikkonen won the Brazilian Grand Prix and the Drivers' Championship in Formula 1 in the closest title race in quite a while, thanks to Hamilton's gearbox failure! In the end, he pipped Hamilton to the title by a point, and third was Alonso (hah! I'm elated he didn't get a third consecutive title. Whiny bitch.) Who would have thought this when Hamilton looked to have the title all but sewn up one or two months ago? And of course, Ferrari won the Constructors' title after cheating McLaren were stripped of their points. Yay!

Here's to the first of hopefully many titles with Ferrari, Kimi!

And now we look forward to the 08 season, with the brand new night race stop in Singapore!

Football in all its glory

This is a highlights clip of the classic 1999 FA Cup semi-final replay between Manchester United and Arsenal. United won it 2-1 on route to the treble and it was an amazing game with all the ingredients for high drama: a cracking, electrifying atmosphere, brilliant goals (one from Becks and of course, that virtuoso goal from Giggs), red cards (Keane), disallowed goals (Anelka), penalty saves (Schmikes from Bergkamp) and extra-time match winners. Simply awesome.

I love Manchester United.

Edited to add: I just found two fellow freshmen Man United fans, and they're both Americans! Cool beans!

2OLEGEND

Farewell, Ole. You were a great servant to the club, and will always be remembered for the last-gasp goal against Liverpool in the 99 FA Cup and of course, that magical night in Barcelona.
A better finisher than you in the club, no one can find.


This clip embodies all that is brilliant about Ole. On as a substitute in the second half in a league match against Forest, he promptly scores 4 goals in 12 minutes.

You are my Solskjaer,
My Ole Solskjaer,
You make me happy,
When skies are grey,
And Alan Shearer,
Was f*cking dearer,
So Please don't take,
My Solskjaer,
Away....

Sigh. Slowly but surely, all my 90s United icons are leaving the game. The only ones left standing are Neville, Giggs, (my fav) Scholesy and obviously, Sir Alex Ferguson. Time sucks.

Liverpool to win the EPL? NEVER!!!

Heh.

Yes, it's typically arrogant for a United fan to speak so early. Never good to do so as Sir Alex knows all too well.

a hilarious yet frustrating sight. still love ya, SAF!

And whilst on the subject of all thing red, it was great to see Ferrari doing the 1-2 at the Turkish Grand Prix. Alas it was Massa 1 and Kimi 2. Damn. I doubt either will catch up with the McClaren duo though. The points gap is just too great and McClaren are too consistent. I'm mostly resigned to that already, as long as it's Hamilton and not prissy Alonso!

And I still miss Schumi. Nice to see him do the occasional cameo in the Ferrari crew.

Hopefully, the tortoise does win the race.

2 draws and 1 loss in the opening three games of the 07/08 EPL season against luminaries such as Reading, Portsmouth and City. 2 points out of a possible 9. 16th in the table. This is Manchester United's worst start to a season in 14 years.

Sigh.

We really really need an actual striker (Saha, get fit already for fucks sake!) who is tall and strong enough to lead the line and then we can revert to 4-4-2. Tevez, Rooney, Giggs and freakin' O'Shea are not natural strikers and we're not fucking Arsenal, so stop trying to pass the ball into the net and SHOOT!

*thinks like delusional Liverpool fans of the past few seasons* It's ok, we're gonna go on a tear and win 30 straight games!

Time to embrace those American sports then.

They don't call 'em Rent Boys for nothin'

Found off of RedCafe, a Manchester United forum.

Post Chelsea vs. Man Utd Charity Shield 2007 pictures or How Frank "Half my goals are either deflections or penalties" Lampard remains as captain.

Before:

After:

Heh.