 MEET THE COMMITTEE - MATTHEW PORTELLI O’TOOLE

1) Can you tell us something about yourself (your personal life, age, marital status, work/profession)? What are your favourite past‑times apart from football? What was your favourite holiday destination? What are three words that describe you?

I’m Matthew Portelli O’Toole, turning 39 in January, married to Lara and also the proud father of my jewel, Zayden who’s 9 years. I would say that the three phrases that capture all that I am are; loyalty is a very big principle in my life, I’m a person who’s always willing to help those in need and I am someone who loves anything which has a cultural element. The biggest part of my working life has been working for the past 20 years as part of the logistics team with a leading food importer and distributer company.

Apart from football, one of my passions is socializing and meeting new people. Being a committee member of the club, I’m lucky to be in a position to be able to do both. I am also a lover of the local feasts, in fact for the past 18 years I’ve been a member of Attard’s ‘Fratelanza’. I also used to take part in the Good Friday procession.

Exploring other countries is a wonderful thing to do. I’ve been lucky to have visited various countries in the past: Canada, Scotland and just returned from Turkey to name a few. Each country has its own characteristics, but I always say that the trips to England have always been my favourite. The first time I’ve been to this beautiful country was more than 25 years ago and since then I’ve visited so many times. Despite my many trips, when I return home I always think the same about this country – I will always return and visit again. The culture, the people and the places all make the trips to this wonderful country my absolute favourite. Luckily, my favourite team hails from this same country so I’ve got the perfect excuse to visit again and again! is your best memory of United? How many times have you visited Old Trafford? Who is your favourite current player and club legend? If there was one thing you could change at United, what would it be? If you were Man Utd manager and had an unlimited budget, which player would you bring to United and why? Which team would you support if Man Utd did not exist?

My father has always supported West Ham United but this was never a team I was attracted to. When I was 11 years old, I was listening to the radio and an astonishing score was announced – Man Utd 9 Ipswich 0. This result captured my imagination and from that day onwards, I started calling myself a Red and never looked back.

The first time I visited Old Trafford was with my friend Darren Cristina in February 2018 for the 2-0 win against Huddersfield Town. I was always mesmerized by our home ground and I will never forget the atmosphere that one experiences from the moment you enter the Theatre of Dreams. The first time is always a special memory and one that I will never forget. Since then, I’ve visited more times and will always cherish each occasion.

My current favourite player is David De Gea, as I always see him as one who truly and proudly plays for the club and does his best for the crest. My all-time favourite will be between Eric Cantona and Roy Keane. It will be very difficult for me to choose between the two but both have something in common – they are both born leaders and won’t ever accept being second best. A non-United favourite player definitely would have been Erling Haaland but this will have to remain a dream as he’s now joined Man City.

If I were to have any influence on the way the club operates, I would definitely change it to be more focused on the footballing matters rather than the commercial aspect. I accept that football nowadays has to have the commercial element, however I will never accept having the commercial side taking over the football side. There has to be a balance.

I will never imagine myself following another club but I must admit that I have a soft spot for Aston Villa. The reason for this was another remarkable result against our biggest rivals when they won 7-2 a couple of seasons back. Who’s to argue that we weren’t all Villans on that day!

3) What attracted you to join the Supporters’

Club? What made you contest the

Committee election? Describe your role in the club. Why would you recommend a

United supporter to join the world’s oldest

Man Utd supporters’ club?

Both my friends Darren Cristina and Kenneth Portelli used to mention the club very often to me and they always spoke highly about the club. One day, I agreed to meet Darren at the club to go watch a match together and after I joined as a member. At the Club I started meeting new people and showed interest in what was happening at the club. Club President Joseph Tedesco and Committee Member Antoine Portelli had spoken to me and asked whether I would be willing to join the Committee. After making sure that I was able to meet the demands of being a committee member, I accepted and was co-opted. The role given was Venue & Facilities Co-ordinator and I also assisted to organize events. In my role, I do my best to make sure that our club premises are in top condition. During the last couple of years, I am delighted to say that I have been part of the team that has worked very hard to improve the state of our premises and I proudly say that we’ve got the best supporters’ club premises in the island, if not the world!

Knowing how hard the committee works to make sure that the members always get the best from the club, I always say that each Maltese Man Utd supporter should become a member. As we always say between ourselves, we at MUSC Malta lead and others follow! GGMU!