Echoes from Old Trafford - October 2016

NEWSPAPER POST

Volume 44- Issue 1, October 2016

“Man Utd are a giant club and giant clubs are for the best managers.”

José Mourinho

Manchester United Supporters’ Club-Malta Founded 1959, is officially recognized by the Manchester United Football Club.

In this issue 3  EDITORJAL............................................................................................ 5  CLUB NEWS.......................................................................................... 6  TEDDY’S CORNER................................................................................8  HENRIKH MKHITARYAN...................................................................... 11  GEARING UP FOR THE NEW SEASON..................................................13  WILL IT WORK.....................................................................................15  THE RETURN OF PAUL POGBA............................................................ 16  UNITED’S INS AND OUTS................................................................... 18  JOSÉ IN THE DRIVING SEAT…............................................................ 20  OF GODS AND KINGS......................................................................... 21  JOSÉ MOURINHO’S BIGGEST TEST................................................... 22  THE STAGGERING REALITY............................................................... 29  DOWN MEMORY WAY........................................................................ 31  MAJOR LEAGUE’S ROUND-UP........................................................... 32  IS BUYING THE WAY FORWARD?.......................................................34  WHERE ARE THEY NOW? PAUL SCHOLES........................................... 35  FOOTBALL AGENTS AND THEIR MONEY............................................ 36  DEALING WITH THE TOFFEES............................................................. 37  MIXED MANCUNIAN PLATTER........................................................... 38  THE WAR YEARS................................................................................ 41  THE SEASON SO FAR......................................................................... 45  RESULTS AND STATISTICS................................................................ 48  EDITORIAL............................................................................................

Official publication of the Manchester United Supporters’ Club Malta editorial team Braden Galea · Michael Calleja · Daniel Cushcieri · Clint Camilleri advertising executives Joe Catania · Kenneth Portelli contributors Michael Calleja James Handyside Joseph Tedesco Jude Cauchi Alex Demarco Silvio Scicluna Alan Abela-Wadge Kenneth Abela Roderick Psaila Braden Galea Julian Tabone Fr. Anthony C. Ferrante John Calleja Antoine Dalli Daniel Cushcieri Norbert Bugeja Karm Galea Iain McCartney Michael Gatt

printing Progress Press patron Sir Alex Ferguson club founder ­ John Calleja club committee Joseph Tedesco Joe Catania James Handyside

President, Match Tickets Coordinator Vice-President, Assistant Advertising Executive Secretary, Tours Coordinator

Kevin Tabone

Treasurer, PRO

Robert J. Muscat

Assistant Secretary, Logistics Manager

Antoine Portelli

Assistant Treasurer, Venue & Facilities Coordinator

Charles Cauchi

Membership Secretary, Fund Raising Coordinator

Clint Camillieri

Media & Publishing Coordinator

Egidio Sciberras Souvenir Shop Mgr., Asst. Venue & Facilities Coordinator Kenneth Portelli Braden Galea

Advertising Executive ICT Manager, Sports & Social Activities Coordinator Gozo representatives ­ Joe Xerri · Stefan Attard translator Tiziana Caruana

FOUNDED 1959

club chaplain Fr. Anthony C. Ferrante (Carmelite)

Quarries Square Street, Msida MSD 1101 Malta.

Telephone: +356 21223531 E-mail: info@manutd-malta.com Website: www.manutd-malta.com

business partners

MALTA MALTA

Based in Msida, Malta, we are a non-profit organization designed to bring the Manchester United experience to United fans here in Malta. We are the only Official Manchester United Supporters’ Club on the Maltese Islands. We are also the oldest Manchester United Supporters’ Club in the World.

THE VIEWS IN THIS MAGAZINE ARE NOT NECESSARILY SHARED BY THE CLUB. VOL 44 - ISSUE 1 - OCTOBER 2016

1

MALTA MALTA

FOUNDED 1959

2

VOL 44 - ISSUE 1 - OCTOBER 2016

Editorial EX NIHILO NIHIL FIT A

ttributed to the Roman philosopher Lucretius, the Latin motto ex nihilo nihil fit implies “nothing comes from nothing” and is sometimes used as a reminder that hard work is always needed in order to achieve a target.

In this connection, expecting miracles from day one with José Mourinho at the helm is tantamount to ‘wishful thinking’. Proper football projects take time and besides, Mourinho always states that his teams seem to peak during his second year at the club. It is yet to be determined whether Mourinho is the right type manager for Manchester United but can fans honestly think of someone better at this moment in time? The Portuguese tactician fits the bill as being the right type of person to manage this giant of a club. Competent and wily, intelligent and enigmatic – his persona fits well into the fabric of the organisation and it is just what Manchester United needed after three frustrating seasons. It goes without saying that everyone throughout the football world will look forward to his post-match analysis, dry humour and at times sarcasm – it’s what makes Mourinho different from other managers. It’s what makes him, after all, ‘the Special One’.

Fans gasped in awe when the summer transfers were announced and finally concluded. For once, you could just see that special sparkle in every fan’s eyes. Mourinho opted for proven match-winners rather than ‘probable game changers’. In came Eric Bailly, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Henrikh Mkhitaryan and of course Paul Pogba: four players with proven match experience and quality – four players than can make the difference when needed. It is understandable that Bailly and Mkhitaryan might not have been noticed and appreciated as much as Ibrahimovic and Pogba but their professionalism and work rates could not be ignored at Villarreal and Borussia Dortmund.

These two players excelled at both of these clubs with a European pedigree and will no doubt serve United in good stead throughout the course of the season.

The league campaign has so far been rather positive. The Community Shield fixture against Leicester proved that the defending champions would indeed prove to be a one-season wonder. There can be no doubt that Leicester will do well if they simply manage to survive in the Premier League – therefore achieving any European qualification will already be seen as another ‘miracle’. On the other hand, United proved early on that they will be a force to be reckoned with. It is easy to state that United will be challengers given the amounts of money they spent, but all major clubs around Europe splashed the cash – it’s being proven year after year that this recipe does not necessarily equate success. Value for money, on the other hand, is becoming the name of the game.

United’s opening day win against Bournemouth was very pleasing. Rarely had fans seen such a dominant and complete performance and Ibrahimovic’s goal was the icing on the cake. On to Southampton and it took some guile and fighting spirit to break down a spirited Saints side, but the game proved that small margins can certainly make or break a game. With Southampton defending rather resolutely, it took an expertly executed header from Ibrahimovic to break the deadlock and his second half penalty sealed the game. It wasn’t classic United by all means but the performance was professional and dominant – Old Trafford seemed to be rocking after this fixture and the fans were full of praise having witnessed Pogba’s impressive debut. Hull City away was certainly a nerve-wracking encounter and that

last-minute goal seemed to suggest that the ‘United of old’ were back. The celebrations that erupted at the end of the game seemed to instil the club with a new surge of energy that was greatly needed. It was certainly a moment to savour!

Derby games are more often than not rather tight. In this case however, United failed to turn up in the first half. Fans were disappointed with the performance of the team and Mourinho himself claimed that he had picked the wrong line-up with players who did not reach the level expected of them. The 1-2 loss against City was disappointing but served to remind fans that success was not guaranteed. If United are to win something, they need to work hard for it.

They need to defend as if their lives depended on it. They must resolve to take nothing for granted. Hard work and training are needed.

Ex nihilo nihil fit!

Finally, the Manchester United Supporters’ Club (Malta) is constantly on the look-out for fresh faces willing to contribute in any way whatsoever. Whether you’re interested in contributing to the ECHOES team or willing to aid the committee in any way, get in touch with the club and help fellow fans maintain the high standards of this supporters’ group.

Running any voluntary organisation is never easy but this magazine often serves as a reminder that when a job needs to be done, it can be accomplished professionally if the fans really want it to succeed. Thanks for your contributions and the Editorial Board hopes that you enjoy the read!

VOL 44 - ISSUE 1 - OCTOBER 2016

3

Editorjal EX NIHILO NIHIL FIT M

arbut mal‑filosfu Ruman Lukrezju, il‑proverbju ex nihilo nihil fit jimplika li “xejn ma jiġi mix‑xejn,” u dan il‑proverbju xi kultant jintuża b’tali mod biex wieħed iżomm f’moħħu li jeħtieġ jistinka biex jilħaq għan partikolari.

F’dan il‑kuntest, li wieħed jippretendi mirakli mill‑ewwel jum ta’ José Mourinho fit‑tmun ikun qiegħed ‘joħlom’. Proġetti ta’ suċċess jieħdu ż‑żmien fil‑football u barra minn hekk, Mourinho dejjem stqarr li t‑timijiet tiegħu jiġu fl‑aħjar tagħhom tul it‑tieni sena tiegħu ma’ club. Għad irid ikun stabbilit jekk Mourinho huwiex il‑coach adatt għal Manchester United iżda onestament, f ’dan l‑istadju, il‑partitarji kapaċi jaħsbu f ’ħaddieħor aħjar? It‑taliżman Portugiż għandu r‑rekwiżiti kollha biex ikun hu l‑individwu adatt fit‑tmexxija ta’ dan il‑club ġigantesk. Kompetenti u għaqli, intelliġenti u misterjuż – il‑karattru tiegħu jidħol sew fil‑qafas tal‑organizzazzjoni u huwa eżatt dak li Manchester United għandu bżonn wara tliet staġuni frustranti. M’hemmx dubju li kull min qiegħed fid‑dinja tal‑football se jkun qiegħed jistenna fuq ix‑xwiek l‑analiżi tiegħu wara kull logħba, b’kummenti xotti u spiss sarkastiċi – għax dan hu li jagħmel lil Mourinho differenti minn coaches oħra. Wara kollox, huwa dak li jagħmlu ‘speċjali’.

Il‑partitarji kienu fuq ix‑xwiek meta tħabbru u ġew konklużi t‑trasferimenti tas‑sajf. Għal darba, wieħed seta’ jara għajnejn kull partitarju jleqqu. Mourinho għażel rebbieħa bil‑provi aktar milli ‘possibilment game changers ’. Ingħaqdu mal‑club Eric Bailly, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Henrikh Mkhitaryan u ovvjament Paul Pogba. Erba’ players b’esperjenza u kwalità ta’ logħob bil‑provi – erba’ players li jistgħu jagħmlu d‑differenza meta meħtieġa. Wieħed jifhem illi Bailly u

Mkhitaryan jaf ma kinux innutati u apprezzati daqs Ibrahimovic u Pogba iżda l‑professjonalità u l‑livell ta’ logħob tagħhom ma setgħux jiġu injorati meta kienu ma’ Villarreal u Borussia Dortmund.

Dawn iż‑żewġ players kienu eċċellenti f ’dawn iż‑żewġ clubs b’ċertifikat Ewropew u bla dubju se jservu tajjeb lill‑United matul il‑kors tal‑istaġun.

Il‑kampanja tal‑kampjonat s’issa kienet waħda pożittiva. Il‑konfront tal‑Community Shield kontra Leiceister wera kemm ir‑rebbieħa difensuri tal‑kampjonat kienu biss sorpriża ta’ darba.

M’hemmx dubju li Leiceister se jmorru tajjeb, jekk jirnexxielhom sempliċement isalvaw fil‑Premier League – għalhekk l‑akkwist ta’ kwalunkwe kwalifikazzjoni Ewropea diġà jkun meqjus bħala ‘miraklu’ ieħor. Min‑naħa l‑oħra, il‑United wera mill‑bidu nett illi se jkun qawwa li mhux ta’ min jinjoraha. Faċli tgħid li l‑United se jkun avversarju tajjeb meta tħares lejn il‑flus li nefaq, iżda l‑clubs il‑kbar kollha ta’ madwar l‑Ewropa jroxxu l‑flus – sena wara sena joħroġ biċ‑ċar illi din ir‑riċetta mhux neċessarjament issarraf f ’suċċess. Infiq ta’ kwalità min‑naħa l‑oħra qed dejjem jikseb popolarità fil‑logħba.

Id‑debutt ta’ United b’rebħa fuq Bournemouth kienet sodisfaċenti ħafna. Il‑partitarji rari kienu raw prestazzjoni daqshekk dominanti u kompluta, u l‑goal ta’ Ibrahimovic kien iċ‑ċirasa fuq il‑kejk.

Kontra Southampton kien meħtieġ daqsxejn ħsieb u sforz ikbar sabiex jitkisser l‑ispirtu tas‑Saints iżda l‑logħba wriet li marġini żgħar jistgħu jistabilixxu jew ibiddlu r‑riżultat. B’Southampton jiddefendu b’mod pjuttost deċiżiv, kienet id‑daqqa ta’ ras eżegwita b’mod espert ta’ Ibrahimovic li kissret it‑tensjoni; filwaqt li bil‑penalty tiegħu fit‑tieni taqsima ssiġilla r‑riżultat. Ma kienx il‑United tas‑soltu assolutament, iżda l‑prestazzjoni kienet

professjonali u dominanti – Old Trafford bħal qam wara din il‑logħba u l‑partitarji kellhom biss kliem ta’ tifħir wara li kienu xhieda tad‑debutt impressjonanti ta’ Pogba. Il‑logħba away kontra Hull City kienet ċertament intensa u dak il‑goal fl‑aħħar minuta wera li l‑‘United l‑antik’ kien ġie lura. Iċ‑ċelebrazzjonijiet li faqqgħu fl‑aħħar tal‑konfront taw lill‑club doża ta’ enerġija ġdida li kienet bżonnjuża ferm.

Aktar spiss milli le, id‑derbies jintlagħbu ras imb ras. F’dan il‑każ però, il‑United falla milli jaġixxi fl‑ewwel taqsima. Il‑partitarji kienu diżappuntati bil‑prestazzjoni tat‑tim u Mourinho stess ammetta li żbalja meta għajjat players li kienu għadhom ma laħqux il‑livell mistenni minnhom. It‑telfa ta’ 1‑2 kontra City kienet diżappuntanti iżda serviet biex il‑partitarji jżommu f ’moħħhom li s‑suċċess mhuwiex garantit. Jekk il‑United għandu jirbaħ xi ħaġa, jeħtieġ jistinka ħafna għaliha. Il‑players ta’ United jeħtieġ jiddefendu daqslikieku hemm ħajjithom fin‑nofs; jeħtieġ jiftakru li ma jistgħu jieħdu xejn b’xejn. Xogħol u taħriġ huma meħtieġa. Ex nihilo nihil fit!

Fl‑aħħar, il‑Manchester United Supporters’ Club (Malta) huwa kontinwament fi tfittxija ta’ uċuħ ġodda li lesti jagħtu daqqa t’id kif jistgħu. Jekk int interessat tikkontribwixxi fit‑tim ta’ ECHOES jew tixtieq tassisti lill‑kumitat bi kwalunkwe mod, avviċina l‑club u għin partitarji dedikati oħra jżommu l‑livell għoli ta’ dan il‑grupp ta’ partitarji.

Li tieħu ħsieb organizzazzjoni volontarja qatt mhi faċli iżda dan il‑magazine spiss iservi biex ifakkar li meta xogħol jeħtieġ jitlesta – jista’ jsir b’mod professjonali jekk il‑partitarji verament ikunu jridu jirnexxu! Grazzi tal‑kontribuzzjonijiet tagħkom u l‑Bord Editorjali jittama li tieħdu gost taqraw dan l‑artiklu!

VOL 44 - ISSUE 1 - OCTOBER 2016

5

CLUBNEWS

by James Handyside

amendments were made to the Club Statute – a copy of which will be sent to all members in the near future.

As stated in the Club Statute, the attendance of committee members for meetings would be published in the Clubs’ magazine. During the 2015-2016 season the Committee met a total of 15 times (August 2015 – July 2016), below is the attendance of each member:

First Important step in owning MUSC Malta Premises with the signing of the Proof of Purchase last June with the landlord Mr. Albert Zammit (middle) alongside Mr. James Handyside (Club Secretary), Mr. Robert Muscat (Club Assistant Secretary) & Club President Mr. Joseph Tedesco.

June 2016 n Friday 10th June, the opening day of Euro 2016, the new bar operators Robert & Alex Attard held an opening party at the Club. The event was well attended and included a 3-hour open bar and finger food.

O

The new Adidas replica away (blue) shirts were available for sale from the Clubs’ souvenir shop in early June, together with some items from the new Adidas training and leisurewear ranges.

Members are entitled to a 10% discount on all Adidas apparel and accessories purchased from the souvenir shop on presentation of a VALID membership card.

The Committee would like to thank Mrs Sheila Crompton for the very kind donation of her late husband’s (Jack) Manchester United blazer. Jack was a regular visitor to our shores and was instrumental during the Clubs’ formative years and he remained close right up until his death. Indeed, Jack was one of the Clubs’ Honorary Members – an honour now bestowed on his widow Sheila. The blazer was worn during Jack’s playing years at Manchester United and it is the intention of the Committee to have it framed before having it take pride of place amongst the Clubs’ many items of memorabilia.

July 2016 he month of July saw the installation of a table tennis table and new darts board at the Club house. It is the intention of the

T 6

VOL 44 - ISSUE 1 - OCTOBER 2016

committee together with the bar operators to organize both a table tennis competition and darts competition sometime later this year. More details will be communicated in the near future.

Following a review of this seasons fixtures it was decided that a tour would be organised for the Arsenal games at Old Trafford in November. Depending on United’s league position come January, there is also the possibility of organising further tours for the Chelsea game in April and the final home game of the season against Crystal Palace in May. Further information will be announced exclusively to Club members in due course.

The November tour will leave Malta on the 17th November and return on 21st November.

The price will start from €860 and will include direct flights Malta – Manchester – Malta with Air Malta, hotel accommodation on bed and breakfast basis at the Portland Hotel, transfers from the airport to the hotel and vice-versa, a one-day excursion and a guaranteed match ticket.

The new Adidas replica home shirts were available for sale from the Clubs’ souvenir shop just a few days after they were launched in China as part of Manchester United’s preseason tour.

Sunday 31st July was an important date in the Clubs’ calendar – the Annual General Meeting was held. During this meeting a number of

Committee Member

Attended

Excused

Joseph Tedesco

13

2

Joe Catania

14

1

James Handyside

14

1

Kevin Tabone

15

0

Charles Cauchi

13

2

Robert Muscat

12

3

Antoine Portelli

13

2

Clint Camilleri

15

0

Egidio Sciberras

15

0

8

4

Felix Galea

5

5

Braden Galea

2

0

Sean Galea

(resigned May 2016) (resigned April 2016) (co-opted June 2016)

August 2016 nce again, those members who renewed their membership before the end of July were eligible to participate in a lottery to win a new replica shirt. The draw took place during the half time interval of the FA Community Shield game again Leicester City. Congratulations to our lucky winner, Marco Mercieca.

O

Following a Committee meeting held in early August, it was decided to co-opt Kenneth Portelli to the Committee, to fill the vacancy left by Sean Galea following his resignation last May. Kenneth will be taking on the role of advertising executive. Welcome on-board Kenneth!

September 2016 head of Malta’s World Cup Qualifier against Scotland a number of Committee members were lucky enough to meet up with Scotland captain, and former Manchester United midfielder, Darren Fletcher at the team hotel.

During the brief meet-and-greet session they presented Darren with an MUSC Malta polo shirt and a memento from the Clubs’ 50th anniversary.

A

held in neral Meeting

The Annual Ge

Kieran Mical lef - PS4 Fifa

16 Winner.

PS4 Fifa 16 Runner-up.

PS4 Fifa 16 3rd Pla

ce.

July 2016.

W

hen Scotland played Malta recently for a World Cup qualifier match, a delegation from the Supporters’ Club made arrangements to meet former Manchester United player Darren Fletcher at the hotel where the Scottish contingent was staying. Upon arrival at the hotel, Darren came straight away to greet us and we had quite a long chat with him about United, Malta and the Supporters’ Club. During our meeting we presented him with a gold plated medal commemorating the Supporters’ Club 50th anniversary and a polo shirt with the Supporters’ Club emblem.

In 2004, Darren was the star guest for the annual end of season event organised by the Supporters’ Club. He has good memories about his visit to Malta and is looking forward to come back for a holiday with his family.

Manchester United fans were split on Fletcher.

Some rated him highly, to the extent that they would argue that his absence in the 2009 UEFA Champions League Final was the main reason why United lost to Barcelona. Others rated him less. One thing all should agree about is the fact that Darren is a true gentleman and a Mr. Joseph Tedesco presenting the MUSC Malta great ambassador for whatever he represents, 50th Anniversary Year Gold Medal. be it United, West Brom or Scotland. Looking forward to see him back on the rock!

th Darren Fletcher

members wi Some committee

d).

(Captain of Scotlan VOL 44 - ISSUE 1 - OCTOBER 2016

7

TEDDY’S corner Dear All Welcome back to the most exciting football league in the world. Most probably the only one left from the big ones in Europe apart from maybe Spain where the eventual winner is not known before a ball is kicked. Bayern Munich will conquer the Bundesliga, PSG will triumph in France and Juventus will seal it in Italy. In Spain it will be between Real Madrid and Barcelona again (not sure about Atletico Madrid this season). In England, all looked so interesting before the first kick off but after 6 games the bertie blues seem to be setting some benchmark.

Manchester United are always likely to be one of the top protagonists in the transfer market, especially the summer one, and with the arrival of the Special One, the expectations for a hectic one were up there. The arrival of Zlatan was

8

VOL 44 - ISSUE 1 - OCTOBER 2016

on the table as soon as Mourinho put pen to paper. The Portuguese believes a lot in the qualities of the Swede. There are no arguments about his high self esteem but no doubts about his abilities either. The good omen is that he won the league with every team for which he wore the shirt, so fingers crossed. The name of Eric Bailly was maybe the least popular from the new acquisitions but to date has proven to be a great deal. From what I’ve seen so far, he possesses the credentials to place up there with the Vidic and Ferdinand in years to come. Henrikh Mkhitaryan, or Micki for short as nicknamed by the Borussia Dortmund fans, is viewed by many as a hot prospect. He was voted as the Bundesliga Players’ Player of the season last season and so much is expected from this talented Armenian. Till date he was not given much time on the field and had to deal with niggling injuries. His first Premier League start in the Manchester derby has been

have your say on info@manutd-malta.com

anything but a dream debut and unfortunately reminded me of a frustrated Shinji Kagawa who shined in the Bundesliga but failed to make an impact in the Premier League. Some may argue that he did not play in his most effective position but for sure he still needs to adapt to the speed of the game in the UK. Apparently, he always takes time to settle down and if he is to have a similar effect at United as the one he had at Dortmund, then we should all be looking forward to that.

It can easily be said that the highlight of the whole 2016 transfer market was the Pogba deal. It dominated all the papers and the social media talk. At the end, Pogba chose Old Trafford over the Juventus stadium for a world record fee. There are still debates about who paid who and what but surely the agent (a serial crook in my opinion) kept fattening his wallet. United needs that quality in midfield

very badly, whilst Juve fans seem (at least from the outside) very happy with the fee they received for a player they acquired for merely nothing and turned out to be one of the star performers in the past 4 years. Actually deep, deep down Juve fans are gutted. They know they released a player who could make the difference between them winning that coveted 3rd Champions League winners medal (and reach Inter Milan) and not. They cannot digest the fact that one of their idols moved to a rival Club with no UEFA Champions League this season. Football is a huge business nowadays which generates so much money. Rest assured that Manchester United did their home work very well before committing themselves to such a fee. To date, Pogba’s form has been on and off but I was expecting it to be like that - a 23 year old with such a high price tag will need some time to settle down. My prediction will be that he will be to United what Patrick Vieira was to Arsenal. I hope he achieves that before his next move to Madrid though.

From the first 6 games, United lost 2 already, which for a team aiming to challenge is not very encouraging really. I was not that concerned about losing the derby to be honest. Statistics show that usually it’s the team that beats the ‘lower’ Clubs home and away consistently throughout the season will be the team that ends up lifting the League trophy and the Watford defeat was the one that hurt me most. The big games are a bonus. What worried me most about the derby is the way in which City dominated the first part of it. Guardiola’s style, which brought him so much success with Barcelona and Bayern Munich, was evident from day one and it gave him the edge in his first Manchester derby. There is always a slice of good and bad luck…the latter was on the side of the reds. Claudio Bravo should have had an early shower and United should have been awarded that penalty. But it is all swings and roundabouts. At least we have a League Cup tie against the noisy neighbours on the horizon and an early chance for United to pay back.

There will be no fairytales this season. That is 100% sure. Leicester are doing absolutely great in the first ever UEFA Champions League experience and I wish them all the very best. In the Premier League, it will be down to one of the top 5 – City, United, Chelsea, Arsenal and Liverpool. At the moment, City look absolutely top favourites. Klopp got his scousers functioning well and if they keep momentum, they will be a hard nut to crack.

Arsenal, not for the first time, started on the wrong foot but are recovering well. Chelsea had some lucky breaks in the first few games but the Italian prima donna is currently facing his first crisis already. If United play all games with the same tempo and energy used in the first half against Leicester, we will surely be challenging but I won’t bet on it this season.

I hope I got this one wrong.

Enjoy the football guys.

Yours United Teddy

VOL 44 - ISSUE 1 - OCTOBER 2016

9

10

VOL 44 - ISSUE 1 - OCTOBER 2016

Henrikh Mkhitaryan From Pyunik to Manchester United

by Jude Cauchi

T

he story of Henrikh Mkhitaryan is a fascinating one, especially when considering that the boy lost his father so early during his childhood. This article will review his football and international journey up until the present day where the player has embarked on a new challenge at Manchester United.

Henrikh Mkhitaryan was born on the 21st January 1989 in the city of Yereman in Armenia but because of country instability, his family moved to France in the early 1990s. In those days, Henrikh Mkhitaryan’s father (Hamlet Mkhitaryan) used to play football with ASOA Valence where the player helped his team to gain promotion to Ligue 2. As a result, during his childhood, Henrikh Mkhitaryan dreamt of becoming a professional footballer.

Unfortunately for him, Henrikh lost his father at the age of 33 due to brain cancer.

Following his father’s death, the player was determined more than ever to follow in his father’s footsteps and fulfill his dream of becoming a professional football player.

Mkhitaryan’s family returned to Armenia in 1995 and following their return, Henrikh joined FC Pyunik where he was rapidly promoted from the club’s youth system to the first team, enabling him to make his professional debut in 2006 at the age of 17. The player spent 4 years with the club where he managed 89 appearances in all competitions, scoring 35 goals in the process. During those four years, the Armenian won the league four times in a row and also lifted the Armenian Super Cup twice. Unsurprisingly, in 2009 Henrikh Mkhitaryan left the club for Metalurh Donetsk in the Ukrainian Premier League to further his career ambitions.

Following his arrival in Donetsk, the player continued to impress and scored on his Europa League debut on the 16th July 2009.

The player finished his first season with a total of 14 goals from 38 appearances.

Eventually, in his second season at the club, Mkhitaryan became the club’s youngest

captain in their history. In total, the Armenian made 47 appearances for the club, scoring 17 times before Ukrainian Premier League Champions Shakhtar Donetsk secured his signature in August 2010.

Luckily for Henrikh, his debut season was very successful for both himself on a personal level and at club level as Shakhtar Donetsk won a treble of the Premier League, Ukrainian Cup and Ukrainian Super Cup. Furthermore, he also made his Champions League debut on the 28th September 2010 against Braga, where his side won 3-0.

The following season at Shakhtar helped the player to continue to improve his performances and he was voted on the club’s website as the 2011-2012 best player of Shakhtar. The Armenian ended the season with a total of 11 goals in 36 matches and on a club level, the club also retained their Premier League trophy and the Ukrainian Cup. During his last season in Donetsk, he added 2 UEFA Champions League goals and a Man of the Match performance in the competition to his tally. On a personal level, in 2013, the Armenian played his 100th match in the Ukrainian Premier League and ended the season with 25 goals in the league which was a record for the most goals scored in a season.

What followed after these three promising seasons was a move to Borussia Dortmund on the 8th July 2013, where he became the club’s most expensive signing in their history. Unfortunately, because of injuries, the player had to wait a further 3 weeks for his official league debut but upon his return, he helped his team to beat Frankfurt by scoring two vital goals. His first UEFA Champions League goal with Dortmund arrived in 1-2 victory against Arsenal at the Emirates stadium. In total, Mkhitaryan ended his debut season with 9 goals and 10 assists but unlike previous seasons, in which he won the title, this time around, the Armenian had to settle for second place as Bayern Munich clinched the title.

The following season was mostly characterised by injuries, but the midfielder made amends in the 2015-16 season where he scored some key goals which earned him the Bundesliga Players’ Player of the Season award. That season turned out to be his last for the club as on the 6th July 2016, Henrikh Mkhitaryan signed a 4-year contract with Manchester United following the arrival of José Mourinho.

In terms of his international career, following his debut in January 2007 against Panama, the player has also impressed on the international stage. In fact, although Armenia failed to make it to the finals of the European Championship 2012, he managed to score six goals for his country. Furthermore, in September 2013, he captained his country for the first time in his career and later on managed to become the all-time record goal-scorer of his national team. This is an impressive record considering the fact that Mkhitaryan has still a lot to offer at both club and international level.

Furthermore, in terms of his qualities, the player’s club and international experience, his ability to pass the ball, shot, dribbling, pace, work rate, creativity and the space he creates for other players to exploit make him an invaluable asset to the football club especially when considering that Manchester United have lacked these qualities in midfield for the last couple of years. Having said that, at this moment in time, José Mourinho is preferring to use him more from the bench where the player can have more of an impact when matches are not going according to plan, as illustrated in the match away to Hull City (the Reds won 1-0 thanks to a Rashford goal in injury time).

The 2016/17 season, unlike the three previous campaigns, promises to be an exciting season for both the club and Mkhitaryan and although the player has not managed to complete a full-match appearance, the future signs are that the player will play a very important role in the success of the club. The fans should get ready to fasten their seatbelts!

VOL 44 - ISSUE 1 - OCTOBER 2016

11

6th Generation Intel® Core™ Processor

J. MICALLEF

Service Station & auto care Tal-Barrani Road, Żejtun

Tel: 2180 1493 • Mob: 9980 7932 • E-mail: zejtunss@jmicallefgroup.com.mt

Free Car Wash with every 7 washes

(when washed by attendant)

- Professional Car Valeting - Interior and Exterior Carwash - Car Wax & Polish - Odour Removal - Full Range of Car Accessories, Products, Ironmongery and Marine Products - ATM service - 24hrs self service Car Wash and Fuel - LPG service - Maltco Agent Opening Hours: Carwash and Shop Mon - Saturday - 7:00 - 18:00 Fuel : Mon - Friday - 6:30 - 18:00 & Saturday - 6:30 - 15:00

Gearing up for the new season

by Alex Demarco

M

ay’s FA Cup final victory over Crystal Palace was not enough to save Louis van Gaal’s job after two inconsistent seasons. A fifth place finish in the league leaves United without Champions League football for the upcoming campaign after just one season back in Europe’s elite club competition.

Despite the inconsistency, van Gaal left behind a number of positives, namely a much-improved defence (the joint-best in the league in 2015/16), the emergence of a number of promising academy products, such as Marcus Rashford and Jesse Lingard, as well as a couple of impressive signings, mainly Anthony Martial and Daley Blind. Ultimately though, results and performances on the pitch are what count, and shortly after the FA Cup win, Louis van Gaal was sacked as Manchester United manager, with José Mourinho being announced as his successor. It’s plain to see that there is a renewed optimism amongst fans that this season could shape up to be an exciting and successful campaign. After a summer of change, the following factors will be crucial in ensuring that it will a memorable 2016/2017 season: The Boss Mourinho’s appointment as manager has been met with great enthusiasm by United fans. The Portuguese coach will be looking to re-instill a winning mentality into his players that has seemed to desert them in recent seasons. He has already declared that the target this season is to win the league, which makes for a pleasant change from the last two campaigns, when finishing fourth was deemed acceptable. Mourinho will be hoping that his side can recapture the fear factor that it once possessed. The past three years have seen victories for Sunderland, Norwich, Newcastle and West Brom at Old Trafford, once a fortress, where these teams would simply have wanted to keep their losses respectable. Mourinho’s record in home matches is remarkable, having suffered nine league home defeats in his entire managerial career. He’ll be hoping to keep this staggering record intact during his time in Manchester.

Summer Signings José Mourinho typically likes to get his transfer business done early and this year was no exception. The signings of Eric Bailly, Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Henrikh Mkhitaryan were all completed in time for pre-season, with only the protracted, worldrecord signing of Paul Pogba taking time to complete. However, even that deal was completed in time for the first game of the league season. These four have significantly strengthened the spine of the United team, adding world-class quality and potential for improvement. Eric Bailly, a raw 22-year-old

from Ivory Coast, has shown in the opening few games that he has got all the attributes to become a crucial player at the heart of the United defence. Ibrahimovic, Mkhitaryan and Pogba were all voted the best players in their respective leagues last season, so they join United with proven pedigree and undoubted quality. Their influence on the team will be key in helping bring back the title to Old Trafford.

Youth Mourinho has often been criticised in the past for not giving youth a chance to cement their places in the first team. However, he’s got a host of talented young players at his disposal this season and has already publicly stated that they all feature in his plans. It will be up to the players to take their chances and become a mainstay in the team, just as Anthony Martial and Jesse Lingard did last season. Martial, still only 20 years old, was arguably United’s best outfield player last year, scoring 17 goals in all competitions, including his 91st minute winner in the FA Cup semi-final win over Everton at Wembley.

Thanks to this summer’s signings, there will be less pressure on Martial to carry the team, as was the case on a number of occasions last year.

Jesse Lingard finally broke into the team last year, which he capped off by scoring the brilliant goal that won us the FA Cup for the first time since 2004. Despite the fact that he will face stiffer competition for places this time round, he remains an important player for Mourinho and will be given plenty of chances to show what he can do, as he did in this season’s Community Shield win over Leicester, with an excellent solo goal.

Perhaps the most impressive and unexpected breakthrough last season came from Marcus Rashford, who burst onto the

scene with two goals on his debut against FC Midtjylland in February and repeating the trick two days later at home to Arsenal. He finished the season with 8 goals, including his winner in the 1-0 victory away to rivals Manchester City. Mourinho has repeatedly said that Rashford will get plenty of game time this season and the chance to build on last season’s impressive form, and in Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Rashford has the perfect mentor.

Dutchman Timothy Fosu-Mensah was another academy player to leave a positive impression when called upon by Louis van Gaal last year. His physical presence and intelligent use of the ball endeared him to United fans. He is another player who has been assured of his place at the club and who will be given opportunities to continue to impress across all fronts.

18-year-old Axel Tuanzebe is the next academy player who could feature for the first team this season, having impressed José Mourinho in the pre-season friendly win over Wigan. The young defender, who was on the bench on a couple of occasions last year, will be hoping to build on that and make his competitive debut for United.

At the time of writing, United have obtained maximum points from the first three games, as well as beating Leicester at Wembley to win the Community Shield. All four new signings have hit the ground running and have given the team a much-needed balance and physicality: a trademark of every Mourinho team. With the first Manchester derby on the horizon, United have the chance to steal an early march on their rivals and start to pull away from their rivals in the league table.

For the first time since Sir Alex Ferguson’s retirement, there is a feel-good factor again around Old Trafford with fans confident that Mourinho is the right man to take United back to the top.

VOL 44 - ISSUE 1 - OCTOBER 2016

13

WILL IT WORK?

by Silvio Scicluna

A

fter experiencing the stability of one manager in 27 years, here we are in a campaign which sees United with the third different man at the helm in four seasons.

Sir Alex Ferguson was always going to be an impossible act to follow. David Moyes came and lasted only nine months. Louis van Gaal fared slightly better in lasting two seasons and managed to win the FA Cup, but his reign was doomed due to his unpopular management style and stultifying tactics. Now it’s José Mourinho’s turn. Will it work?

For me the answer to that question is simple.

It’s a resounding yes. It has to be. Now I know nothing is certain in football, especially the Premier League, but if José Mourinho cannot turn our fortunes around, I don’t know who can. And the early signs are that United have turned a corner. Mourinho being available after being out of work for six months meant that the writing was on the wall for Van Gaal.

Ed Woodward knew he could not pass up the golden opportunity to hire one of the best coaches in world football (in my opinion he IS the best, whatever our noisy neighbours might suggest with their new manager). Manchester United is tailor-made for José Mourinho and vice versa. He loves being the best at the biggest and he will be going all out to prove it. His detractors might argue that he does not fit in with United’s DNA of giving youth a chance but that is a myth which he will eventually disprove. Sure, he’ll buy the best players on the market and will want to win from day one but for José, like for Sir Alex, if you’re good enough you’re old enough.

They may also point to the fact that he rarely lasts more than three seasons at any given club he has managed and that would go against United’s preference for longevity and the creation of a legacy by managers, much in the way Sir Matt Busby and Sir Alex Ferguson managed during their golden eras.

The reasons as to why Mourinho does not stay too long in one job could be attributed to his instant success and thus the achieving of his targets early on and then seeking the next challenge. It could also have been due to clashes of his strong personality with club chairmen and owners. I had always admired Mourinho grudgingly from afar as a rival manager. Admittedly, last season at Chelsea was one to forget but, in my mind that is the only real blemish in his glittering managerial career. Following the notorious incident with the club doctor he seemed to lose the dressing room and he couldn’t quite get it back. Things snowballed and he lost his job. But every manager experiences some sort of crisis at some point and that bleak period will surely have made him even more determined to get back on top. Chelsea’s loss should be United’s gain. If he plays his cards right, I can see him bucking the trend and staying at United for many years to come. I am sure he realizes the history and traditions of our great club and he might just have found his spiritual home at Old Trafford.

Many were of the belief that he would replace Sir Alex when he retired, but the timing was not quite right. Apparently José had committed to returning to Chelsea after leaving Real Madrid and Sir Alex had suggested Moyes as his successor to the board. But the inevitable happened this summer.

He has gone on record saying that the minute he lost his job at Chelsea, he watched as much of United as he possibly could. He analysed the team: the makeup, the faults, the assets, the mood of the fans, everything. It was as if he sensed that destiny was calling. From afar he had already concluded that four positions needed strengthening with a certain profile of player for each position. And the moment he got the job, he handed Ed Woodward his wish list. To be fair to the much maligned Woodward,

who was a figure of fun for media and fans alike together with Moyes as David Gill’s and Sir Alex’s successors, José’s influence seemed to rub on him too as he shrewdly managed to sign all four of Mourinho’s top targets relatively early in the transfer window. José couldn’t wait to get started. His posts on social media all hinted at his preparedness for one thing: the start of pre-season training and rolling up his sleeves to start working in earnest at what he always described Manchester United to be - a monster club. Little things, attention to detail.

It’s what José excels in.

The fans are happy. They’ve got the man they wanted. You can feel it. For sure they have got their wish in having a passionate manager patrolling the touchline and constantly cajoling his troops rather than the sedentary van Gaal who rarely, if ever, ventured on to the touchline but was always glued to his seat, clipboard on his lap. I personally love listening to him in his pre-match and postmatch interviews and press conferences with the media. His English is perfect, very much unlike van Gaal who suffered many misinterpretations due to his poor English, and he’s always refreshingly honest. The new boss seems to be taking the fans back to Sir Alex’s era. Many are commenting that both men share many sporting traits. They are both winners. Insatiable winners. And José himself has found no difficulty in declaring that he wants everything. To win every game. To play entertaining football in the process. To always be better than the opponent.

It’s still early days. When he was asked in his first press conference what he was considering himself to be now that he had got the United job after he had labeled himself as the ‘Special One’ and the ‘Happy One’ at his Chelsea unveilings, he simply replied that he was where he wanted to be. Many would argue that he is where he was destined to be.

Join us on MALTA

FOUNDED 1959

www.twitter.com/manutd_malta VOL 44 - ISSUE 1 - OCTOBER 2016

15

The Return of

Paul Pogba

by Alan Abela-Wadge

I

t was the 31st of July 2009 when it was announced that Manchester United were recruiting a talented young player going by the name of Paul Pogba to join their youth academy from Le Havre. Le Havre didn’t take it lightly and they insinuated that United had poached their prized teenager and in fact reported United to FIFA, after which United were cleared of all wrongdoing just a few months later.

When he joined the youth academy, Pogba immediately started to impress those around him and the first impression was that United had got a superstar in their ranks. Rio Ferdinand said about Pogba: “I remember Paul Scholes kicking the living daylights out of him in every single training session, every day.

But he earned our respect by never moaning, never shouting and never making a fuss. He always wanted the ball still and that kind of attitude has helped him progress.”

In his formative years at the United Academy, Pogba continued to impress, so much that in the 2009/10 season he scored 7 goals in 21 appearances. In April 2010, Pogba was part of the Under-18 team that successfully defended their title at the Torneo Calcio Memorial Claudio Sassi-Sassuolo in Bologna, Italy. Pogba started the 2010/11 season with the Academy, however after 3 months he was promoted to the Reserves team. In January 2011, Pogba gave us a taste of his splendour when he scored a fantastic pile driver in the FA Youth Cup against Portsmouth. Just a month later, he scored a similar goal once again in the youth league against West Bromwich Albion.

February 2011 saw Pogba being one of four academy players promoted to the first team for the FA Cup 5th round match against Crawley Town. Pogba was given the number 42.

Pogba’s highlight during the 2010/11 season was the FA Youth Cup where Pogba scored in the first leg of the semi-final encounter against Chelsea, which finished in a 3–2 defeat, and provided the assist for the opening goal of the second leg: a 4–0 win. In the Final, Manchester United defeated Sheffield United 6–3 on aggregate to win their tenth Youth Cup title. Pogba started and played the entire match in both legs.

In the summer months of 2011, Sir Alex confirmed that Pogba would be utilised in the first team during the season. As a result he was promoted permanently to the Reserves

16 VOL 44 - ISSUE 1 - OCTOBER 2016

team for that season. Pogba made his first team debut that season in the League Cup against Leeds United and also played again in the same cup in the next round. Later on in January, Pogba made his league debut as a second half substitute for Chicharito against Stoke City. From that moment, rumours started flying around that Pogba was not happy with the limited number of opportunities that he was given. Although he did play from the start in the Europa League match against Athletic Bilbao, Pogba felt that he wasn’t being given an opportunity to showcase his true potential.

Pogba felt that he should have figured in the December 2011 clash against Blackburn, which was on Ferguson’s 70th birthday.

Ferguson had omitted Rooney, Evans and Gibson after a night out and lacking three injured central defenders, played Michael Carrick in the back four and selected a new central-midfield partnership of right-back Rafael da Silva and Park Ji-sung.

In the beginning of June, Ferguson announced that Pogba had left United for free and joined the Old Lady in Italy, Juventus. Many United fans were annoyed and dismayed by this as most of the fans felt that Pogba was the real deal and the future of Manchester United.

In the following months, Pogba was vindicated as he started the season really well for Juventus. With Juventus, Pogba won the Serie A four times in a row and twice the Coppa Italia. He also scored a total of 34 goals in 178 appearances, won the Golden Boy award in December 2013 and was selected in the Serie A Team of the Year twice in a row. Pogba was also chosen in the FIFPRO World XI in 2015 and the UEFA Team of the Year in the same year. Pogba was also the Serie A Top Assistprovider in 2015/16.

Pogba’s love for Manchester United never diminished. Once he reached global stardom and he had fans everywhere in the world chanting his name, Pogba began flirting with Manchester United once again. Since early May we started reading about rumours that Pogba was close to joining United in a world record transfer. During European Championship 2016, the rumours intensified and in the last two weeks of July they went in overdrive. We started seeing comments, reports and tweets about Pogba’s each and every move while he was on holiday in the US

and the whole world stood still while Pogba left the US to see his destination: back to Turin or else to Manchester.

On the day United played Leicester in the Community Shield, United announced that Pogba is going to come back home. The media went wild and Twitter erupted with hashtag #PogBack. The next day Pogba was announced as a new Manchester United player for a world record transfer fee of €105 million. Pogba, now donning his new shining #6 Manchester United kit, made his second debut on Friday the 19th of August. Although he was playing his first game after the summer holidays with just a few days of training, Pogba gave United fans a glimpse of his talent in a great performance in which United won comfortably by the score of 2-0.

Under a watchful eye of the brilliant mastermind José Mourinho and flanked by superstars such as Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Wayne Rooney, Pogba will surely thrive in playing for the club that he always loved.

This is a case of love at first sight and of the prodigal son that returned home to prove his doubters that he is the real deal.

Paul Pogba, now the most expensive player in the world, is once again donning United’s red shirt and once again the fans are getting excited to see what this Manchester United team can achieve.

Games can’t come quick enough and I’m sure that having someone like Pogba playing as box to box midfielder in the heart of United’s team can soon enough vindicate the fee that Mourinho was ready to pay for him.

Pogba not only grew as a player, he also grew physically and he grew as a man as well.

When he was asked about his relationship with Sir Alex Ferguson, he immediately answered that he respects him a lot and that he can’t wait to meet him once again.

That is a sign of a young mature individual, eager to make the fans fall in love with him once again. Let’s all hope that he won’t take long to settle back into life at Old Trafford and we start seeing those thunderbolt shots that he is so famously renowned for. Until then, welcome back home, Paul!

VOL 44 - ISSUE 1 - OCTOBER 2016

17

United’s Ins and Outs

by Kenneth Abela

A

ll the speculation was correct after all.

United manager Louis Van Gaal did not complete his contract and 53 year old José Mourinho, was the first ‘special’ signing of the new season when he was appointed the new Manchester United manager. Mourinho, best remembered for the famous quote: ‘Please don’t call me arrogant, but I’m European champion and I think I’m a special one,’ joined United on a three-year contract with an option to stay at the club until at least 2020.

Who is out: Paddy McNair

Sold

Adnan Januzaj

Loan

Donald Love

Sold

Nick Powell

Released

Victor Valdes

Released

Oliver Byrne

Sold

George Dorrington

Released

Jimmy Dunne

Sold

Ashley Fletcher

Sold

Oliver Rathbone

Released

Tyler Reid

Sold

Joe Rothwell

Sold

Guillermo Varela

Loan

James Wilson

Loan

Cameron Borthwick-Jackson Loan Tyler Blackett

Sold

Andreas Pereira

Loan

Will Keane

Sold

James Weir

Sold

Dean Henderson

Loan

Joel Castro Pereira

Loan

18 VOL 44 - ISSUE 1 - OCTOBER 2016

The new boss came with his shopping list and United were happy to oblige.

The most notable signing was former Manchester United player and French midfielder Paul Pogba from Juventus for a world-record fee. The previous British record arrival was Angel Di Maria, whom United bought from Real Madrid in August 2014 for £59.7million, ironically beating the £37.1million United paid Chelsea for Juan Mata when Mourinho sold him off. Juventus have shown their class by thanking Sunderland Paul Pogba and wishing him Sunderland luck following his return to Manchester United: “On Sunderland an individual level, Pogba’s Wigan Athletic arrival at Juventus Stadium Middlesbrough in the summer of 2012 and continued excellence in the Cardiff City heart of the side deservedly Huddersfield saw him progress from a Burnley promising youngster into a world-class performer, being West Ham United first named European Golden Rochdale Boy in 2013 before closing a magnificent 2015 with a place Swansea City in both the UEFA and FIFPro Oxford United teams of the year.”

Eintracht Frankfurt United were seriously short Derby County of goals last season, until Wolves Marcus Rashford came along.

Reading Zlatan Ibrahimović has now provided more firing power.

Granada With his unique playing style Hull City and acrobatic finishing, Ibra is Hull City widely regarded as one of the best strikers in the game. His Grimbsy Town spectacular bicycle kick for Belenenses Sweden against England won

the 2013 FIFA Puskás Award for Goal of the Year. Off the field, he is known for his brash persona and outspoken comments, in addition to referring to himself in the third person. In December 2013, Ibrahimović was ranked by The Guardian as the third-best player in the world, just behind Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.

He has won league titles in 12 of his last 13 seasons. He has been voted the Swedish Footballer of the Year for nine seasons in a row. Not many players have joined United with such impressively glowing CVs. This time, it looks like United have got it right. Ibra has certainly impressed at United, scoring in the Charity Shield as well as in the first two games of the season. He was also showing strong leadership, both on and off the field. Due to the absence of first team games, Marcus was unfortunately ‘relegated’ by England boss Sam Allardyce to the Under 21s, in spite of his display of predator qualities in the game against Hull City.

The CV of Henrikh Mkhitaryan is also impressive.

He captains the Armenia national team and is Armenia’s all-time top goal scorer, scoring 19 goals in 59 international matches since his debut in January 2007. Mkhitaryan has been chosen Armenian Footballer of the Year five times. Henrikh has not as yet become a first team starter, but appears to be an impressive midfielder in the limited time we have seen him play. He comes from the Bundesliga and has left as the DW Player of the Season. Scooping the fan-voted award is no mean feat when you consider the opposition from the galaxy of stars at Bayern Munich and the runner-up and former Red Devil, Javier Hernandez at Bayer Leverkusen. Although brought up in the most football obsessed of families, he is still quoted as saying: “I don’t play football to become famous but to enjoy life.”

Who is in: Name

Position

Age

Nationality

From

Bought for: (million euro)

Contract

Eric Bailly

Central Defender

22

Ivory Coast

Villarreal CF

34

4 year contract with option of a further one year

Henrikh Mkhitaryan

Midfielder

27

Armenia

Borussia Dortmund

34

4 year contract with option of a further 2 years

Zlatan Ibrahimović.

Striker

34

Sweden

Paris Saint Germaine

Free Agent

One-year contract, which had the option of being extended

Paul Pogba

Midfielder

23

France

Juventus

103

5 year contract with option for a further year

Many fans had not heard of Eric Bailly when his transfer from Villarreal was announced on the 6th June. Manchester United fans were however pleased with Eric Bailly’s impressive performances in this early stage of the season and he has already won over the supporters. Bailly’s instant impact in José Mourinho’s side has successfully cemented his place in the team. He has done well to adapt to life in England quickly, despite the fact that he can’t even speak English fluently yet. Eric had made his international debut for the Ivory Coast in 2015 and helped them win that year’s Africa Cup of Nations. Standing over six feet tall and weighing a muscular 12 stones, Eric is a force to be reckoned with and his imposing style has already bruised the opposition.

No less than 16 United players have had to be sold off, loaned or released. Some notable names left, amongst them James Wilson, Tyler Blackett and Cameron Borthwick-Jackson. The latter had only made his debut last November

and played in 14 first-team games under previous manager Louis van Gaal.

Former United boss, David Moyes, who took over at Sunderland soon took to raiding Manchester United in his recruitment for the Wearside club. Northern Ireland international McNair, who represented his country at Euro 2016, had made 27 first-team appearances for United and was also a key figure in the Reserves’ Under-21 success over the past two seasons. Love was another mainstay of Warren Joyce’s side and one of his two senior outings for the Reds, his debut, came during the 2-1 defeat at the Stadium of Light last February.

Adnan Januzaj also linked up again with the former Reds boss at the Stadium of Light.

Januzaj, of course, scored twice on his full debut at Sunderland in October 2013, to earn the Reds a 2-1 triumph on Wearside during Moyes’ spell in charge at Old Trafford. Adnan is on a season long loan. “Adnan fits into my plans, that is why he’s on loan at a Premier League club,” José Mourinho insisted, “we

care about him because we think he’s a talented player.” The same can be said for young Brazilian Andreas Pereira who joined Granada on loan for one season in La Liga. They are two players whose progress Mourinho did not wish to stifle by leaving them for a whole season on the bench, but who are expected to return and feature for United in future seasons.

Last season, James Wilson scored five goals in 11 starts when on loan at Brighton & Hove Albion, and has again been loaned off, this time to Derby County. A loan was inevitable after the arrival of Zlatan Ibrahimovic. The fact that the player has only been loaned and not sold confirms that United still consider Wilson as a top quality player. In the U18s and U21s, he was like Adnan Januzaj, Andreas Pereira and Paul Pogba – a real cut above the players around him.

As Michael Carrick said: “Our main targets are in and we are a squad now – this is what we’re going to go forward achieving things with.” Well, we’ve made a good start!

VOL 44 - ISSUE 1 - OCTOBER 2016

19

José is in the driving seat….

but who are your first eleven?

by Roderick Psaila

W

hen I decided the title of this article and got clearance from the editor, this was a hot topic. We had just registered our third win in the Premiership. Three losses on the trot later following the setback at Watford, the topic has become even hotter. Let’s forget the atrocious refereeing decisions against City and Watford if at all possible and focus on the topic at hand.

However, before listing my first eleven, I would like to discuss the system, which in my opinion United should adopt. José’s system has generally been a compact 4-2-3-1, and in fact United started playing in this manner for the first games of the season. Should we retain this system? I would say no. Sometimes, coaches have to look at the players in their squad and choose a system that suits as much as possible the type of players available for selection, rather than having a fixed system and try to fit square pegs in round holes. My preferred system would be a 4-1-4-1, whereby the manager plays a single striker and a holding midfielder in front of his defence. Hence, my preferences are based on the latter system.

Here are my first eleven considering that everyone is fit and eligible to play, and the arguments that support my selection.

Goalkeeper – David De Gea  There isn’t much to debate on this one. David is arguably the best goalkeeper in the world, certainly in the top three places. Certainty.

Right full-back – Antonio Valencia  Albeit subdued against Watford, where he constantly found himself with a decision to make on which player to pick between Capoue, Ighalo or the adventurous Holebas, and on a number of occasions finding himself outnumbered on that flank, Antonio had an excellent start to the season and is one of the players who improved markedly under the tutorship of Mourinho. Deserves a prolonged run.

choice of centre backs but the physicality and toughness of the league work against him.

Smalling has been excellent last year and it’s only a matter of time before he claims back his position in the starting eleven. He is strong in the air and tough in the tackle, and is now one of the most experienced members of the squad, hence providing valuable experience to the backline.

Bailly on his part has been immense in the first part of the season, almost a revelation for those fans that did not have him on their radar, including myself. He is lightning quick and strong in the tackle. Certainly the boy needs to learn to be less exuberant and rash in his challenges, but he is very promising and should be used permanently.

Holding Midfielder – Fellaini  This was the most difficult selection I had to make from the lot. There are at least three players that can easily occupy this position, not to mention also Blind and Fosu-Mensah.

Michael Carrick has filled a similar position with United for more than ten years and at 35 years of age has a wealth of experience that makes up for his lack of agility. He can dictate most matches and gives them the desired pace. Carrick also provides the assurance that he can retain his position and protect the defence, as it was never his ambition to be a box-to-box midfielder and score goals.

Ander Herrera is probably the most gifted from the three options, going forward. He has an eye for goal and works tirelessly for the team, while also having the ability to read the game well, similar to Carrick. He may not be as hard in the tackle as the other two and his urge to go forward when the team is attacking was his downfall in my preference for this position.

Left full-back – Luke Shaw  After a full season out, Luke worked hard on his recovery, also during summer and it shows. He has come back stronger and fitter and similar to Valencia on the other flank, provides an attacking threat on the left and balances the team perfectly. Blind offers competition to Shaw for this position but despite his football intelligence, the fact that most teams in the Premiership employ quick wingers leaves Blind vulnerable with his lack of pace.

Fellaini is one of those players who under Mourinho has had a new lease of life. He was excellent in the first matches and brings strength and height to the team, which are two qualities that are needed in every winning team. He gets my vote for this position, mainly because of the aerial prowess he contributes to the team, both in attack and defence and his no-nonsense approach. His weakness is the fact that he has a trouble-maker reputation with officials, which he gained during the years. That said, I think that he has been quite disciplined in the season so far and in most matches, he was one of the standout players for United. So he gets my vote to shield the defence.

Centre backs – Bailly and Smalling  Blind is once more a good alternative to my preferred

Attacking Midfielders – Rooney and Pogba  Rooney is the captain of the team and the

20 VOL 44 - ISSUE 1 - OCTOBER 2016

figure-head most other players look up to.

True that he is passing through a lull period but I put this down to the absence of a proper pre-season this summer. However, form is temporary while class is permanent. Rooney has been a stalwart for United in the last 12 years or so and he is closing in on the first position in the top scoring rankings with a United shirt. He knows all about the United way of interpreting the game and for a manager Rooney is a dream to have. Indeed, when a manager has a player whom he can trust to give 100% in a match no matter what and can also guide the players around him during the match, it is very difficult for the manager to do without that player. Furthermore, he adds goals to the team. Captain.

Pogba has also started slowly and most haters have been enjoying this. Again, he started late in a new team. I am however convinced that he will soon be the star man in the team.

Strong, athletic, tall, good in the air, excellent shot and passing skills, he is the complete modern midfielder. I think that with another midfielder consistently behind him, him and the team would benefit markedly if he plays further up the field. Next captain.

Losing out for these roles are a bunch of players. Herrera is difficult to leave out also for these positions. Mata is easy to leave out for me. As I explained in previous articles, Mata is a good player in the wrong league.

He would be a star in Spain or Italy.

Right winger – Mkhitaryan  I am a firm believer that in the wide positions of this formation, players need to provide assists and several goals. I kept this in mind for this and the next preference.

Lingard is a good option on this flank. The local lad is learning all the time but he’s not there yet. Mikki will take some time to adapt but when he does, he will take the team a level up. Quick, excellent dribbler and sublime skills, two good feet, excellent vision and can pick passes that others do not see. He will score goals and make goals. He might like to play more behind the striker but I sincerely think that this is his position. Different class.

Left winger - Rashford  Martial started there in the first matches. He has not started well and Rashford is starting to come in more consistently lately. I think that the younger lad will make the position his in the next month or so. Rashford will provide plenty of goals from the flank and also adds that unpredictability that every team needs in matches. He will

terrify defenders this season with his direct running. A gem.

Striker - Ibrahimovic  I have never really followed closely the career of this

phenomenal striker and always thought that he was over-rated. My error of judgement.

At 34 years of age, he still has it all. Ibra has been outstanding in the United shirt and I cannot praise him enough. Apart

from his technical and tactical ability, his mental toughness and confidence will diffuse throughout the team sooner or later. He leads by example and most importantly, he scores goals consistently. An inspiration.

Of Gods and Kings W

hen Manchester United legend Eric Cantona proclaimed himself the only king of Manchester in a video for Eurosport, he suggested that Zlatan Ibrahimovic can settle for being ‘prince’. To this, in typical Zlatan fashion, Ibrahimovic replied the he did not want to be seen as the king of Manchester but as the god of the city. The prolific Swedish striker has a self-confidence that verges onto arrogance, with the media ignoring his real personality (calm person who loves an occasional adrenaline rush), family values (family man with love for his wife Helena and two boys) and past personal experiences (difficult childhood being brought up in Rosengard, alcoholic father and a former football agent who did not look for his best interests, to name a few) that shape his behavior. Securing Zlatan’s signature on a free from PSG was a major achievement for Ed Woodward working in conjunction with the striker’s controversial agent Mino Raiola.

What was saved in transfer fees was made up for in terms of salary given to the player, reported to be in the region of £260,000. Yet, money for the first English club to surpass the half a billion mark in terms of annual revenue does not seem to be an issue.

This was proven again this summer when the club moved for another one of Raiola’s clients, Paul Pogba, for a record-breaking £89.3 million transfer fee, just four years after the young Frenchman left the club for free to play for Italian club Juventus. Such move has transformed Paul Pogba from a young Frenchman who was vying for playing time at Manchester to a world class midfielder and four-time Serie A title winner in the white and black striped shirt of Juventus. Despite paying a huge sum to secure his signature, Manchester United have potentially got themselves their future captain and a midfield maestro for the next decade, as well as expensively rectifying Ferguson’s error of not giving him sufficient senior playing time that made him leave on a free. And now it was revealed that Zlatan had a say in the transfer when he threatened to break Raiola’s legs if he would not get Paul Pogba to join him at Manchester United. The two seem to have struck a healthy friendship at the training ground that can reap significant dividends on the pitch.

Success seems to be in the blood flowing through the veins of both Zlatan and Pogba.

With a 100% league record for Pogba at Juventus, four out of four league triumphs, and a hugely impressive nine out of the ten past years finishing with league success for Zlatan, Manchester United have got themselves two compulsive winners. The only year that Zlatan did not win a league title was in 2011/12 at AC Milan, when an incorrectly disallowed Sulley Ali Muntari goal against Juventus eventually shaped the top of the table and handed the league title to Juve, but he still finished top scorer that season. In 2004/05 and 2005/06, Zlatan had won the Serie A twice with Juventus, before these were revoked as punishment for the Calciopoli scandal that led to relegation to Serie B and the departure of Ibrahimovic to bitter rivals Inter, that came through to whole debacle unscathed.

Zlatan played for one season at Inter under the tutelage of José Mourinho and won the league title, which was his third recognized Italian league title in three seasons, if one excludes the revoked ones at Juve. He then moved to Barcelona because they came knocking with an offer that Inter could not refuse: £59 million plus Samuel Eto’o in exchange.

In his biography “I Am Zlatan Ibrahimovic”, Ibrahimovic lays the blame for his short stint at Barcelona on the management style of Pep Guardiola, current manager of our arch-rivals Manchester City. Guardiola and Ibrahimovic have a tumultuous history, ranging from the player feeling that he was like a Ferrari being driven like a Fiat, feeling that the mentality of everyone being equal at the club that Guardiola instilled at Barcelona was killing his real self, and entirely being ignored as if he did not exist since February by Guardiola on the training pitch. This led to Zlatan’s short-lived experience at Barcelona where he still collected a La Liga winners’ medal.

He then moved to AC Milan where he won the league title in his first season at the club in 2010/11, missed out on the Serie A title in 2011/12, moved to France with Paris Saint-Germain in 2012 and won four straight league titles.

When he chose Manchester United as a new challenge to win the Premier League title aged 34, Zlatan posted a picture on Twitter with the text “I came like a king, left like a legend”.

When the two years of his stay in Manchester come to an end, would he be able to quip “I came like a legend, left like a god”? It is

by Braden Galea

difficult to compare Zlatan with Cantona as they came in different times and have diverse qualities. Zlatan himself stated that he was flattered by the comparison with the famous Number 7 but said that every player has his own story, and that is what he is looking to build at Manchester United in the closing stages of his career. In the few months that Zlatan has played for Manchester United, his personality, aerial prowess and experience have reinvigorated the club. His hard work at training and coaching of young players, especially the promising Marcus Rashford, will certainly pay off in years to come. It has been reported that Zlatan’s table at lunch is always crowded with youngsters conversing and learning from the dominating Swede.

Having won the Community Shield with Manchester United as his first title in England after scoring a header against Leicester, and following it up with goals against Bournemouth and twice against Southampton, Zlatan is on course to being a success at United. He also scored against Guardiola’s City, despite a loss of 2-1 at Old Trafford. Zlatan seems to be the automatic choice leading the front line as expected.

His goal scoring form can lead the club to glory as he has proven at other clubs that he has played for. Mourinho is without doubt his favourite manager and the club is targeting the Premier League title this season, something which would be a first for Zlatan. Subsequent to this, the team can then look ahead to challenging for the UEFA Champions League, another competition that Zlatan Ibrahimovic has failed to win in his illustrious career.

In spite of all the bad press that the Swedish former captain has received from the media throughout his football career, there is no denying that he is an excellent addition to the first team this summer, and complementing the transfer of Pogba, he was part of a major rebalancing that was needed after the disappointing stint of Louis Van Gaal. His CV shimmers with success in Italy, Spain and France, but he will be ultimately judged by Manchester United fans solely on his future success in England. If Zlatan can deliver the Premier League this season and the UEFA Champions League next season, he will take supporters to heaven with the return of the glory days and fulfil his wish of being the undisputed god of Manchester.

VOL 44 - ISSUE 1 - OCTOBER 2016

21

JOSÉ MOURINHO’s biggest test

by Julian Tabone

T

he complex relationship between luck and fate is tricky to define or comprehend. So much was said when José Mourinho was unveiled as Manchester United manager last May. Some said it was his fate and it was always a matter of time for him to get the top managerial post. Others decribed the appointment as a combination of destiny and luck largely because of the circumstances that had developed around the club in the preceding months.

The appointment of José Mourinho as Manchester United manager on Friday 27th May was one of the main highlights of the year for Manchester United fans and for football fans in general.

It was the eve of a supposedly classic Champions League Final and I was expecting all media portals to be dominated by the build-up to the Final – but no – there was only one story doing the rounds that day and in subsequent days too.

Since then, so many things have been said or written and my intention is to avoid repeating that.

Let’s just say that he divides opinion – there are those who like him - for a variety of reasons - and those who doubt him - for a variety of reasons. There are those who really believe he is the special one and there are those who see him as an arrogant employee to sugar-daddies.

The start we have had has been promising.

Then came the expected blip and all the haters had their desired field day.

Manchester United fans need to remember this is all a work-in-progress and there is no-quick fix.

22 VOL 44 - ISSUE 1 - OCTOBER 2016

José Mourinho has all the qualities to succeed in what is regarded by many as the hardest jobs there is in football. In his autobiography ‘Farewell but not Goodbye’ the great Bobby Robson describes José as his “trusted lieutenant, a great ally and a brilliant student.”

He certainly was and he has gradually steadily climbed up the ladder of football management.

The Portuguese talisman now faces his most difficult task. For Mourinho, his future and his legacy will forever be shaped by what happens in the next 2 or 3 years. With that in mind, he seems to fit the bill perfectly, as he comes to Old Trafford as an extremely self-confident person.. having already won two champions league titles.

It is worth noting that his first meeting with the press was quite interesting. “It is a job that everyone wants and not many have had the chance to have. I have it. I know the responsibility, expectation and the legacy of this club. I know what the fans expect from me..... Playing well is to score more goals than the opponent, concede less goals, and to make your fans proud. We want everything at the same time. This is an aggressive approach. I want everything” he said.

Fine. I’m sure he is now getting to terms on how daunting a task this is. However, he remains confident. And so should we.

Whatever happens – whatever the circumstance - there should be no conceit in victory and no despair in defeat. That has always been our mantra. We should never get carried away. And we should never feel too down. If only we can always keep that in mind.

Mourinho believes in that. He understands

what being a Manchester United manager means. He’s obviously had proper advice before accepting the post and he wants to make the most of it by enjoying that. That is what Manchester United fans also want - enjoy watching matches again.

He is an excellent motivator and that should work wonders in the dressing room. He can be funny and colourful as well. He chooses his words perfectly. He loves banter. He can speak the journalists’ language and he seems comfortable with the psyche around English football which can be an idiosyncractic world in which every game amounts to an avalanche of pressure.

Apart from these obvious assets mentioned, he is extremely professional with an incredible attention to detail. He is a decison-maker as Schweinsteiger can testify. He is a crowd puller and he can atttract players as Pogba can verify. He has an impressive CV – as his stint at Chelsea, Madrid and Internazionale FC show.He is results-oriented. Obsessed, really.

Above all, he is a winner.

Ok, he can stretch it a bit too far at times but we should not have any problem with that.

Manchester United fans – just like he is – are used to winning and it hurts when that does not happen. New players will help. But for everything to fall into place, it needs time.

And there is another important contributing factor...he needs luck. And that, nobody can control. He is brave, so luck should favour him.

Then again, luck is leaving it in the hands of fate. José Mourinho’s fate – irrelevant of what he’s achieved in the past - will be determined in the next 2 or 3 years.

MANCHESTER UNITED SUPPORTERS’ CLUB MEMBERSHIP CARD IS NOW ALSO A DISCOUNT CARD When presenting your Membership Card to these outlets:

incognito* unknown since 1974

10% Discount on A LA CARTE MENU

Alencia Jewellers Triq il-Htajriet, Mosta:

20% discount on Silver Jewellery, silverware, pearls, crystal 30% discount on yellow gold and white gold No discounts given on brand watches.

10% Discount on any Gold Card purchased

K-Optics

10% Discount (does not apply to contact lenses and solutions and also to discounted /sale items)

20% Discount Tel: 7984 3204 5% Discount for purchases over € 50 10% Discount for purchases over € 100

.

Tal-Familja Restaurant

10% Discount (excluding Saturday dinner and Sunday lunch)

10% Discount on presentation of membership card

10% Discount (terms and conditions apply)

Old Trafford Stationery

451 & 453, Fleur de Lys Road, Birkirkara 156A, The Strand Gzira 30% discount on engagement rings 10% discount on silver jewellery 10-20% discount on silver ornaments Also various discounts on gold jewellery

JJ SCERRI CO. LTD.

12% Discount on over €50 spent (Terms and conditions apply)

Importers & Distributors of Electrical Appliances and Household Goods

Centro Casalinga

15% Discount on all small electric home appliances 10% Discount on all white goods 10% Discount except public holidays

Montaldo Insurance Agency Ltd 10% Discount on all Insurances to club members

Tal-Barklor Restaurant 5% Discount on total bill (Excluding Public Holidays)

10% Discount on direct bookings only.

5% Discount on total bill

10% Discount on total bill (Does not apply for on Sale items)

10% Discount (terms and conditions apply)

These offers are not to be benefited from in conjunction with any other that the shop may have from time to time.

Therefore if a particular establishment has an offer on already on a particular product or service, the Discount Scheme shall not apply to that product or service.

©

WE ARE 501 THE LEVI’S STORE MERCHANT ST. VALLETTA. T:22584444 | ST.ANNE’S SQUARE, SLIEMA. T:22584431 FIND EVERY STORY AT LEVI.COM/LIVEINLEVIS 501© CT JEAN

The Staggering Reality!

by Fr. Anthony C. Ferrante

I

n Fiddler on the Roof, the protagonist is the dairyman Tevye, a likeable, hard-working, pious man who attempts to maintain his Jewish religious and cultural traditions even when faced by the “aberrations” of his three eldest daughters or anything that alienates from the customs of his faith. For the purpose of my reflection, I choose Tevye’s “If I were a rich man” wherein he laments: “Dear God, you made many, many poor people. I realize, of course, that it’s no shame to be poor. But it’s no great honour either! So, what would have been so terrible if I had a small fortune?!”

Of late, we have been inundated with the transfers of players from one club to another during the summer transfer window. Rumours, rumours and more rumours are rife, and the sums involved verge on the scandalous! These are a boon to the sport media, and it is no secret that sometimes they set the ball rolling themselves. Of course, this has been going on for quite some time. It has certainly become more and more the order of the day. More than that, I personally think that all that is cleverly planned. I guess that it has all become a necessity since our favourite football clubs have become more and more of an industrial investment. Do you remember the previous Manchester United crest? It used to have “Manchester United Football Club” on it. Then it was changed simply to “Manchester United”.

Diehards would probably argue that it is only right and fitting since it is enough for all connoisseurs to acknowledge Manchester United for the great Club it is. But was that the reason behind the change, when we all know what was in the offing?

An industrial investment always requires greater turnouts. So this brought about the need of “owning” better coaches and players to win trophies and thus render the income more fruitful. Competition raises the value.

Quality becomes imperative, at a price of course. Players become more and more expensive. The highest bidder usually gets his prize. Money, millions of it, becomes the most important means. We are all aware of the millions that are bid to “buy” players.

Oh my! This makes me think of a cattle market! Players are spoken of as “bought or sold”. Shouldn’t the appropriate phrase be something like “buying the transfer”? After all, even considering that the players themselves earn thousands per week, they are still human beings. Of course, agents do have a thick thumb in the pie.

A statement by that gentleman player in the Reds’ squad, Juan Mata, hits the nail on the head when just speaking of the players themselves. Juan is a soft spoken guy, but he is strong in his beliefs! It is recorded that he conscientiously declared that he would even take a pay cut to help eradicate greed in modern football: “Football is very well remunerated at this level.

It’s like we live in a bubble. Compared to the rest of society, we earn a ridiculous amount.

It’s unfathomable. With respect to the world of football, I earn a normal wage. But compared to 99.9 percent of Spain and the rest of the world, I earn a silly amount.”

He even went further than that by declaring in a Spanish television interview (via Sky Sports): “I don’t enjoy the business side of football. I love the game. I love training and competing.

I’d take a pay cut if there was less business involvement in the sport.”

That is the point: he is well aware that football has become more of a business!

Juan Mata earns around £8.5million a year but his earnings are far from the highest at Old Trafford. He also states that: “The barometer we use for measuring our salaries is comparing them to those of our team-mates and what other players are earning elsewhere.”

To rub salt into the wound, it is not the first time that one who was bought for, and paid, huge sums of money, did after all that was said and done finish up as a flop! That is the business risk.

I am sure we all followed the transfer market.

With the first £100m transfer surely not far away, recent years have seen a trend of bigger spending as money is pumped into the pockets of the game’s elite. It has become a rather common picture to see kids who let the exposure get to them think they are star specials and buying, owning and driving fancy cars. The business side of football makes it seem as though the owners are now more important than the fans. Is it not possible that all this unbridled greed is at the roots of corruption that is sometimes discovered?

Having said all this, it is so refreshing to see that there are some footballers who despite all their wealth and fame do think of other lesser beings. This brings to mind one of the greatest, if not the greatest football player at present: Cristiano Ronaldo. The ex-Red grew up in a largely working class neighbourhood in a small tin-roofed home that overlooked the ocean. His early life was shaped by hardship. He has become immensely rich by playing football. Remember the thenextravagant price he was “sold” for? Yet, he does not seem to have forgotten his lacklustre childhood. He has been charitable along the way. One instance is reported when he was asked for a jersey to be auctioned to help in the cure of a child patient. He not only complied, but he went so far as to pay for the operations and cure of the child. Now that is praiseworthy, isn’t it?

To conclude my reverie, I myself come down to earth. Most of us can relate to Tevye’s claiming “If I were a rich man” even as to grumble and complain. Yet, in most ways, we are blessed with a good degree of comfort. But then, how is it that we are quite often somewhat wasteful? Quite recently Pope Francis stated that whoever wastes is actually stealing from a poor hungry man’s table. It is well known that tons of eatable food is wasted and thrown away. We should be aware that while we enjoy somewhat of a comfort, there are millions who lack the bare necessities for life. It is of no merit to try to sweep the reality under the carpet, by pretending that we do not know or do not hear the disastrous truth. Let us be aware, helpful and thankful. So, “If I were a rich man”, what then?

VOL 44 - ISSUE 1 - OCTOBER 2016

29

30 VOL 44 - ISSUE 1 - OCTOBER 2016

DOWN MEMORY WAY FERGIE’S FIRST EUROPEAN TROPHY – 1991 Cup Winners’ Cup

by John Calleja

F

ollowing the savagery of some Liverpool fans at the Heysel Stadium in 1985, UEFA fully gave vent to their Anglophobia by suspending all English clubs from European competitions.

It was like the story of a decrepit, unjust teacher, who punishes the whole class for a mistake made by one student.

Five years later, the suspension was lifted, and as usual, United were one of the English clubs that qualified to take part in the now defunct Cup of Cups, by virtue of being FA Cup winners.

United, then, had just one European trophy in their showcase, the European Cup won in 1968, so they were eager to add a second triumph, and Fergie his first European title with United.

The long trek began in September 1990, with a first leg played at Old Trafford against the

Hungarian team Pecsi Munkas. A crowd of nearly 27,000 welcomed United’s return to Europe. United did not disappoint and returned a 2-0 win, which turned out to be easier than expected. The return leg was a 1-0 win, courtesy of a goal scored by Brian McClair.

United were gifted with an easy second leg, having been drawn against Wrexham of Wales.

30,000 attended Old Trafford, and were rewarded with a 3-0 victory, followed by a noproblem 2-0 win in the return leg. United were now in the last eight, and hadn’t conceded a single goal.

On to the quarter finals, with French opponents Montpellier, United stormed into their opponents with an early goal but this seemed to produce a false sense of security.

Montpellier defended strongly and not only prevented United from scoring a second goal, but in a rare counterattack, scored the equaliser: United had conceded their first goal. In the second game, however, the French could not play another ultradefensive game and had to attack to try and win. This left open spaces for United, who used this to their advantage, and won by two clear goals.

Now the semi-finals l o o m e d , wi t h a possibility of being drawn against Juventus or Barcelona, but lady luck again smiled on United as they were paired with Legia Warsaw from Poland.

The Poles were a reputedly dour side, but United put up a great performance, and triumphed 3-1.

The second leg proved tougher, and the Poles managed a 1-1 draw, mainly due to a great performance from their goalkeeper.

United had reached their second European final without losing a game. They now had to meet the mighty

Barcelona, which were the favourites to win the competition. The Final would be played in Rotterdam. This did not deter thousands of United fans from traveling, all anxious to see the end of 23 trophy-barren years.

The Final was branded by some as the Mark Hughes final, as Sparky had been a Barcelona player from 1986 to 1988, before being transferred to Bayern Munich, and eventually to his first love: a club he was most unwilling to leave. Eventually, it was Sparky who inspired United in this Final.

United had much more of the play in the first half, but they had no goals to show for it, as the first half ended goalless. In the 23rd minute of the second half, the game erupted. Hughes was fouled on the edge of the area, Robson crossed accurately for Bruce’s head, and Hughes had the easy task of tapping the ball in. Just seven minutes later, Hughes scored his personal as well as United’s second goal, when he connected with a Robson pass, rounded the goalkeeper, and coolly slipped it in.

It was not all over however, as Koeman pulled one back for Barcelona in the 79th minute, leaving another eleven minutes of normal time: a heart-throbbing and anxious experience for everyone. But United kept their cool, under a bombardment from Barcelona. At last, the final whistle was blown by the referee and it was another European triumph for United on a glorious night!

VOL 44 - ISSUE 1 - OCTOBER 2016

31

Major League’s Round Up Strong starts for Manchester City, Bayern Munich and Juventus

by Antoine Dalli

by not being included by Man City in their Champions League squad. Nonetheless, Guardiola’s rather ruthless approach is, so far, paying rich dividends for Man City as they have claimed maximum points from their first six Premier League outings, including a significant 2-1 success against bitter city rivals Man United at Old Trafford.

W

hat a difference a coach can make! In these last few years, Man City were considered by many as perennial underachievers despite the fact that they were crowned English champions in seasons 2011/12 and 2013/14.

The Citizens also lifted the 2010/11 FA Cup, the 2012 FA Community Shield and two League Cups in 2013/14 and 2015/16 in the last five years or so. On the continent, bar for their excellent run in last season’s Champions League, Man City seldom made inroads in UEFA’s flagship club competition despite spending big in the transfer market.

However, the general perception has always been that Man City have simply won too little for the huge amounts of money their wealthy owners from the Abu Dhabi United Group splashed on the signing of new players and the hiring of highly regarded coaches.

Moreover, the general feeling was that Man City hardly played like a team or functioned like a unit. Their six major trophies of late were more the fruition of individual talent rather than the result of the creation of a whole that was greater than the simple sum of its parts.

Last summer was a summer of wholesale changes for the Blue side of Manchester. In came Pep Guardiola with this big reputation following his successful stints at Barcelona (2008-2012) and Bayern Munich (2013-2016).

A number of players (like for instance Joe Hart and Samir Nasri), who were an integral part of the Man City sides that lifted six major trophies between 2011 and 2016, were shown the backdoor in a planned clear-out. Veteran holding midfielder Yaya Toure was humiliated

32 VOL 44 - ISSUE 1 - OCTOBER 2016

Although it is still premature to assess whether Man City can go all the way and lift their fifth English Premier League title come May, one thing is already evident: Man City are finally functioning like a unit and seem to be strong in all departments. Thus, in my view, Guardiola’s side are the early favourites to dethrone Leicester this season.

Man United’s season started promisingly but there is still a long way for new coach José Mourinho to make them function like an effective unit and for the Red Devils to be considered genuine favourites to win their 21st English Premier League title – their first since season 2012/13.

United lifted their 21st FA Community Shield early in August at the expense of reigning champions Leicester and overcame Bournemouth (3-1), Southampton (2-0) and Hull (1-0) in succession before being brought back down to earth by back-to-back defeats at the hands of Man City (1-2) and Watford (1-3). A resounding 4-1 home win against Leicester on the sixth day ensured that Man United remained in touch with Man City at least till now.

League title since 1989/90. For example, the five-times European champions simply cannot afford to beat Arsenal and Chelsea on the road and, at the same time, succumb to a 0-2 defeat against minnows Burnley.

Chelsea, now under new coach Antonio Conte, were off to a brilliant start only to fade with successive defeats to Liverpool (1-2) and Arsenal (0-3), putting the former Italy national team coach immediately under pressure.

At the time of writing this article, Conte was one of four Italian coaches plying his trade in the English Premier League in 2016/17.

Significantly, there are more Italian coaches than English coaches (only three) at the helm of the 20 English Premier League teams. But one is not sure how long will Conte, Francesco Guidolin (Swansea), Claudio Ranieri (Leicester) and Walter Mazzarri (Watford) will survive in the shark-infested waters of the English Premier League.

The ongoing season is proving to be a reality check for Ranieri’s Leicester which, after match day six, are 11th with just seven points under their belt, thus closer to relegation than to the top spots of the division. In similar vein, West Ham were off to an uninspiring start, collecting just three points from the first-available 18.

Tottenham, Arsenal, Chelsea and Liverpool might also have their say in the title race this season, albeit not being considered to be at par with Man United and particularly with Man City.

In particular, Tottenham and Arsenal seem to lack in strength in depth whereas Liverpool have made several bold statements of intents that they mean business after beating Arsenal (4-3), Leicester (4-1) and Chelsea (2-1) and held current runners-up Tottenham to a 1-1 draw at White Hart Lane in their opening six games: no mean feat for a new-look side.

However, Jurgen Klopp’s side need to improve in terms of consistency if they are to make a creditable challenge for their first English Premier

Juve still in a class of their own in Italy Contrary to last year, Juventus were off to a brilliant start this season despite losing the services of key players Paul Pogba (Man United) and Alvaro Morata (Real Madrid). Except for their 1-2 defeat at the hands of Inter on the fifth day, Juve found little, if any resistance in beating Fiorentina (2-1), Lazio (1-0), Sassuolo (3-1), Cagliari (4-0) and Palermo (1-0).

The early indications are that Juventus are still in a class of their own in the Serie A and an unprecedented sixth successive Scudetto is theirs for their taking. Napoli are expected to be Juve’s biggest challengers. Although Juventus prised last season’s top-scorer Gonzalo Higuain away from Naples, the southerners invested heavily in the transfer market to increase the options at the disposal of head coach Maurizio Sarri.

In the German Bundesliga, Bayern Munich, now under the charge of former Milan, Chelsea and Real Madrid mentor Carlo Ancelotti, are once again heads and shoulders better than Borussia Dortmund and the rest of the division.

Their 2-0 success over the 1997 Champions League winners in this season’s curtain-raiser German Super Cup amply testifies Bayern’s domestic supremacy. Bayern Munich, who are vying to lift their fifth straight German league title, have won all their first five league outings, scoring 15 and conceding only one goal in

the process. This puts Ancelotti into a strong position to win the German Bundesliga after his successes with Milan in the 2003/04 Serie A, with Chelsea in 2009/10 English Premier League and with Paris SG in 2012/13 Ligue 1.

In the Spanish La Liga, one expects a tight contest between Real Madrid, Barcelona and Atletico Madrid. By the sixth day, Zinedine Zidane’s Real Madrid had already built a slim lead at the top of the Spanish La Liga table. The Merengues started the season in style by beating Sevilla 3-2 after extra time in Trondheim to claim their 11th European Super Cup. One expects Real Madrid, who except for the signing of Morata from Juventus have remained practically unchanged when compared to last season, to end their five-year barren run by winning their first La Liga title since 2011/12, then under a certain Mourinho.

In the French Ligue 1, defending champions Paris SG were off to a stuttering start – four wins, one draw and two defeats in their first seven outings under new coach Unai Emery.

In the close season, Laurent Blanc was given a hefty €20M golden handshake to leave Paris SG after leading them to three straight Ligue 1 titles, amongst other domestic triumphs.

Much was expected of Emery, who led unfancied Sevilla to three straight Europa League triumphs. Perhaps Paris SG are sorely missing the notable departures of Zlatan Ibrahimovic (Man United) and David Luiz (Chelsea). After match day seven, Nice, spearheaded by Italian outcast Mario Balotelli (scorer of four goals so far) lead the Ligue 1 standings with 17 points, one ahead of nearest pursuers Monaco. Time will tell whether this is an early indication that Paris SG will lose their domestic dominance in France.

VOL 44 - ISSUE 1 - OCTOBER 2016

33

Is buying the way forward?

by Daniel Cuschieri

A

t time of writing, United have played six league games and have had a strong start in the league. After a busy summer in the transfer market, spending a world record fee to get Paul Pogba back to the club and also recruiting 3 other players in Eric Bailly, Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Henrikh Mkhitaryan.

The fans and the club knew, upon the appointment of Mourinho that he is the manager that goes out and gets the men he needs. His track record at Chelsea was second to none, and players that he bought spent a large part of their careers at Chelsea, which when considering the fees paid for the length of time spent at the club, the cost is relatively small. During an invite by the Supporters’ Club to be a guest on its radio show, I was asked which manager would I like as manager and I replied “Mourinho”. I strongly believe he is a brilliant manager and better than Guardiola.

Upon his appointment, fans argued this would hinder the development of our young players at the club and also limit playing time for current players within the first team.

However, in all my time as a MUFC fan, the club has always spent and spent big when wanting to buy players. Sir Alex Ferguson regularly had a marquee player every other summer and only a handful can be stated about youth players that came through the ranks and stayed on at the club. The club has evolved into a

34 VOL 44 - ISSUE 1 - OCTOBER 2016

global super power that not winning a title or failing to qualify for the UEFA Champions League is considered a failure. Hence, the fact that the expectation gap has been narrowed means there is no patience in the footballing world today. Clubs go out and buy at will, with agents promoting trade between clubs as this benefits both their clients and their own pockets.

Good youth players will always stand out, even though players are bought. Marcus Rashford is an example that if you are good enough, you will play. The club has bought players over the years that haven’t lived up to the fee paid, and on occasions ‘cheap’ players couldn’t handle the pressure for playing for such a club. Due to the club’s global standing, it cannot afford to wait or gamble on youth players coming through. It’s too costly missing out on playing in Europe’s top league, even more the fact that the club must win titles to grow its fan base even further and retain its current fans due to fickle fans changing teams. Money is a top priority for clubs these days. Look at Arsenal: a club in the late nineties and even noughties challenged for the title and won it on occasions, but nowadays are a laughing stock of the Premier League. It is a club that has now accepted that a top four place would be mission accomplished.

The fans and other rival clubs should

appreciate the fact that United buy players at big fees which aids their club. Having such cash injection by selling a player helps the club financially, which in turn can be reinvested in the club. MUFC’s business model does not rely on producing players and selling them on. The club’s revenue is driven through sponsorships which attracts big names. The club has changed due to its growth in stature and with that growth, expectations get larger on a daily basis.

As to whether buying is the way forward, it is certainly the only way forward for the club to have the best talent in the world in its squad, complemented by young talent that have fought their way through the ranks. It will always be more satisfying that a club like United has home grown talent on the pitch… unfortunately, it is not always possible.

Fans must be satisfied with the club determination to remain one of the best clubs in the world. However being the most expensive brand in the whole world does not come easily, therefore uneasy decisions must be made so the club remains at the top not just off the field but also on the field, and Mourinho is the man to do it. He is at a club that breathes winning and bouncing back from defeats. I hope the season ahead bears fruition to the hard work done in getting those four players on board.

Where Are They Now

Paul Scholes

by Norbert Bugeja

the season, but he never won the Footballer of the Year award. This is hard to believe as this was a consistent performer who performed well, week in, week out, producing assists, goals and controlling the tempo of midfield when things got a bit panicky and yet never won the award. Scholes played 718 games for Manchester United (third most appearances) and scored 155 goals.

G

etting to contribute to a Manchester United magazine is an honour. Getting to contribute towards the magazine of the oldest Manchester United Supporters’ Club in the world is another big honour. In the last issue, I wrote about a person I considered the fan’s dream come true, who even though he was not the most skilful player, went on to win everything and play for the club he supported. That was Gary Neville. Manchester United is a club where the term “legend” is not overused. Yet, there are a number of players who won the right to be called so. Today, it’s Paul Scholes’ turn.

Describing Paul Scholes is hard so I’ll use some descriptions given to him by fellow professionals and football legends.

Xavi – “The best central midfielder I’ve seen in the last 15, 20 years” Thierry Henry – “The greatest player in Premier league history” Zidane –“My toughest opponent? Scholes of Manchester, he’s a complete midfielder” Roy Keane – “An amazing gifted player who remained an unaffected human being”.

These are some of the comments. Writing all comments would have taken the space of the whole article.

Even though Paul Scholes got this sort of reviews and comments by fellow professionals, he was not good enough to play for England.

Yes, for the famous Three Lions who have won nothing for over 50 years and who had players of the calibre of Carlton Palmer, David Bentley

(The New Beckham?), Keith Curle and many more football flops. During the time, England had three midfielders: Steve Gerrard, Frank Lampard and Paul Scholes. So how do you keep all three midfielders happy? The tactical genius in this case was Sven Goran Eriksson: Gerrard and Lampard central midfield and Paul Scholes on the left. The result of this: Scholes retired from international football. What would have the Three Lions achieved with a midfield combination of Steve Gerrard and Paul Scholes instead of fielding an underachieving Lampard whose only highlight in his career was a disallowed goal against the Germans, will remain a big unanswered question. But England’s loss was United’s gain and the FIFA World Cup count for England remained one, while Manchester United won the FIFA Club World Cup twice.

Socrates, the famous Brazilian midfielder, said: “I enjoy watching Scholes, he could play for Brazil”. Yet Paul Scholes was good enough to play for Brazil as a central midfielder but not in the England team. Following Sven’s resignation from the England manager post, other managers tried to persuade him to go back to the England squad but Scholes never went back. The latest reply for his refusal to join the national team was: “I want to spend time with my family”.

So what can I write more about Scholes, apart from being the first player I would select in my Fantasy Football team? He won 11 Premier League titles, 3 FA cups, 2 League Cups, 5 Community Shields, 2 UEFA Champions Leagues, 1 FIFA Club World Cup and 1 Intercontinental Cup. He also won loads of personal honours from being named Player of the Month to being named in the teams of

So after making a comeback, Scholes finally hung up his boots in 2014. Before making his comeback he was helping Nicky Butt with the Under 19’s. Together with Gary Neville, Giggsy, Nicky Butt and Phil Neville he purchased Salford City, a semi-professional team. The ambition of the Class of ‘92 is to take Salford City to the Football League. After their purchase of the club, Chinese billionaire Peter Lim whose net worth is $2.2 Billion and who is also the owner of Valencia CF bought 50% of the club stake. So the current ownership is as follows: Peter Lim 50%, Paul Scholes 10%, Gary Neville 10%, Phil Neville 10%, Nicky Butt 10% and Ryan Giggs 10%. Since the takeover, Salford City won promotion to the National League North via playoff and also collected the scalp of League Two team Notts County, beating them 2-0 in the F.A.Cup. BT sport made a great signing when they offered Paul Scholes a 4-year contract, making the best central midfielder ever a pundit. The quiet footballer who used to go to training and back home, now became one of the most outspoken pundits around. “The last thing I want is United being happy with finishing 4th and winning the FA Cup. Arsenal do that”, he said after 2-0 defeat at Anfield. His criticism of Louis Van Gaal was an example of this: “Players looked bored themselves. There is no spirit, there’s nobody having a go at each other, there’s no smiling, there is no entertainment. I think even Van Gaal on the bench looks bored, but he’ll come out and say he is happy”. Following this, Van Gaal told Scholes to be positive but Scholes struck reality spot on as there weren’t many positives worth a mention.

Scholes is a clear example that success doesn’t come easy: he battled asthma during his career and suffered from a knee condition when still young (Osgood-Schlatter disease). Yet, he managed to become one of the most successful footballer ever, if not as Xavi described him, the best central midfielder of the last 15-20 years.

Whatever the future holds for Paul, big thanks for the memories and best of luck for the future: who knows maybe he’ll make another comeback and partner Pogba in midfield.

VOL 44 - ISSUE 1 - OCTOBER 2016

35

Football Agents and their Money

W

hat is the link between three of the four Man United summer signings Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Paul Pogba, Henrikh Mkhitaryan?

The answer is rather straight-forward: all three deals were brokered by a certain Mino Raiola.

Whereas Ibrahimovic was signed by the Red Devils as a free agent, Armenia national team captain Mkhitaryan is reported to have cost the coffers of the club a staggering £31M to prise away from 2013 Champions League runners-up Borussia Dortmund.

The transfer of 23-year-old French international midfielder Pogba from reigning Italian champions Juventus materialised only towards the end of the summer transfer window. In this case, the 20-times English Premier League champions forked out a record breaking £89.2M for a player that was allowed to leave the club only four years ago for a meagre £800,000.

Pogba’s transfer from Juventus to Manchester United beats the previous record, which was set when Wales star Gareth Bale left Tottenham for Spanish giants Real Madrid in 2013 for £85.1M. The question that follows is: who brokers such big deals? In the case of Bale, it was Jonathan Barnett of Stellar Group who masterminded this big-money move. In the transfer of Pogba from Juventus to Man United, the 48-year-old Raiola was reported to have earned close to £20M: no mean feat for someone who in his heydays used to work in his family’s Italian restaurant called “Napoli” in the Netherlands. Besides the three Manchester United stars, Romelu Lukaku of Everton, Milan’s up-and-coming goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma and France and Paris SG holding midfielder Blaise Matuidi are amongst Raiola’s most valuable clients.

This summer, Raiola, who according to Forbes Sports Agencies earned commissions to the tune of $35.6M as of September 2016, wasted no time in spending his summer windfall as it was reported in the media that he spent £7M to acquire a stunning seven-bedroom Miami villa, which was previously owned by the notorious gangster Al Capone. But if you thought that Raiola is the most successful football agent in circulation, you are utterly wrong.

Jorge Mendes of Gestifute International, has been given the Best Agent of the Year accolade at the Globe Soccer Awards for six consecutive years between 2010 and 2015. Mendes, who was the key person behind Josè Mourinho’s move from Porto to Chelsea in 2004, once worked as a DJ. His soccer career came to a halt very early in his life due to the fact that several Portuguese clubs rejected him when he was still in his early 20s.

Mendes began his career focusing primarily on Portuguese players, with the transfer of Nuno from Vitória de Guimarães to Deportivo

36 VOL 44 - ISSUE 1 - OCTOBER 2016

de La Coruña, in 1996, being the first ever deal he brokered. At this point in time, Mendes’ active client contracts are worth nearly a staggering $727.4M according to Forbes Sports Agents. Real Madrid duo Cristiano Ronaldo and James Rodriguez and former Manchester United players Radamel Falcao and Angel Di Maria are amongst Mendes’ most famous clients.

Mendes became a household name in 2004 when he facilitated Mourinho’s move to cashrich Chelsea, which had been taken over by Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich only a year before, despite the fact that the Portuguese trainer already had an agent by the name of Josè Baidek.

The self-proclaimed Special One had known his agent since his time at União de Leiria and before his headline-grabbing move to Chelsea immediately after leading Porto to their second Champions League success in the club’s history, it was reported in the media that Baidek was lining up a move for Mourinho to Liverpool. Mourinho and Mendes negotiated with agent Pini Zahavi, who acted as Chelsea’s representative and the Portuguese trainer was eventually unveiled as Claudio Ranieri’s successor at the Bridge.

In the weeks that followed, Mourinho started rebuilding a new-look Chelsea side and surprisingly enough he signed four of Mendes’ clients, namely Ricardo Carvalho, Tiago, Paulo Ferreira and Maniche. In similar vein, when Mourinho signed a three-year contract with 11-times European champions Real Madrid in 2010, the Portuguese mentor worked with five of Mendes’ clients in the Spanish capital, namely Pepe, Ricardo Carvalho (his signing was sanctioned by Mourinho in 2010), Ángel di María (his signing was sanctioned by Mourinho in 2010), Ronaldo and Fábio Coentrão (his signing was sanctioned by Mourinho in 2011).

Generally, football agents have a vested interest to build a good working relationship with football coaches, particularly the highlyregarded ones, the Mourinhos and Guardiolas.

Lately, it was reported that the agent of Manchester City’s Yaya Toure, Barcelonabased Russian Dimitri Seluk, has fallen out with Guardiola after the former Barcelona and Bayern Munich mentor left out his client from City’s Champions League squad. Guardiola went as far as saying that Toure would not play again for the Citizens unless his agent apologised.

As recently as two years ago, Mendes, 51 next January, was the protagonist of the 2014 close season transfer window as he brokered four deals – Colombia’s James Rodriguez moved to Real Madrid from Monaco for £63M, Angel Di Maria from Real Madrid to Manchester United for

by Antoine Dalli

£60M; Diego Costa from La Liga outfit Atletico Madrid to Chelsea for £32M and Eliaquim Mangala from Porto to Man City for £32M – out of the seven biggest deals worldwide, becoming £30M richer in the process.

Shady deal Avid Man United fans might recall a player by the name of Bébé, for whom the Red Devils paid £7.2M in August 2010. At the time, it was reported that Bébé’s just-appointed agent Mendes was paid £2.89M from the transfer fee and this transaction became the subject of a criminal investigation in Portugal by the judicial police’s national unit for combating corruption.

This transfer prompted football agent Gonçalo Reis to make an official complaint that he had been left on the sidelines when Bébé, a player he represented, was transferred to Manchester United from Portuguese outfit Vitória de Guimarães. Originally, Reis had arranged Bébé’s move to Vitória as a free agent from Estrela da Amadora in the semiprofessional Portuguese third division after the cancellation of the player›s contract due to the club›s inability to pay his wages. At that point, Mendes stepped in and Manchester United signed Bébé. Reis received notification that he had been sacked by Bébé in a letter dated 5 August that arrived two days before the completion of the official transfer to Manchester United on 11 August.

In the summer of 2003, Mendes was also the mastermind behind Cristiano Ronaldo’s transfer from Sporting to Manchester United for £12.24 million and four years later, in 2007, he oversaw the transfers of Anderson and Nani to Old Trafford for £46M. At the time, it was reported that the transfer of Portuguese international winger Nani materialised only once the player had dropped his existing agent, Ana Almeida.

Two years later, Mendes was responsible for Ronaldo’s sensational move to Real Madrid for £80M, a deal from which he earned around £4M. Last summer, Championship side Wolverhampton Wanderers, who had been up for sale since 2015, were taken over for £45M by a Chinese group, Fosun International. It was reported that this investment group has links with the super-agent Mendes.

Players’ agents earn a lot of money as a consequence of facilitating big-money deals for their clients. Some of the football stars – Lionel Messi, Arjen Robben, Neymar and Juan Mata – prefer to use family members as their trusted agents to generate wealth within the family. Some reports suggest that, by contrast, Belgium and Chelsea stalwart Eden Hazard does not actually use the services of a football agent and the same sources suggest that his father takes care of all his affairs.

Dealing with the toffees

by Michael Calleja

G

ames between Manchester United and Everton have always served up some tasty and nerve-wracking encounters. It goes without saying that whilst United have enjoyed a considerable supremacy over the Merseyside club that does not mean that the going has always been easy. Rather, throughout the years Everton have established themselves as a genuine force capable of toppling the so called ‘big guns’ at any given time!

Everton Football Club were founded in 1878 [co-incidentally, the same year Newton Heath were established]. The club participated in the inaugural football league, won the title in 1891 and went on to win the FA Cup in 1906. The ‘Toffees’ (as they are affectionately known) enjoyed a good run of form in the 1920s, winning the league thanks to the irrepressible Dixie Deans (who had joined from nearby Tranmere Rovers).

Everton’s nickname originated very early in the history of the club, by association with not one but two local Toffee Shops: ‘Ye Anciente Everton Toffee House’ - where much of Everton’s early development as a Football Club occurred and ‘Mother Noblett’s Toffee Shop’, which was located near Goodison Park, and figured prominently after the move from Anfield in 1893.

In contrast, Manchester United were struggling to make any significant progress and would not reach the top echelons of English football until the arrival of Matt Busby after the Second World War. Coincidentally, the 1960s would prove to be a very successful era for both sides. Guided by Henry Catterick, Everton managed to win the league in 1963 and the FA Cup in 1966. They then managed to win the First Division again in 1970 (beating United 3-0 and 2-0) with notable players Alan Ball and Howard Kendall proving to be extremely useful throughout the campaign!

Both United and Everton enjoyed a quiet period throughout the 1970s, but whilst United tried to re-capture the league title, the Toffees on the other hand had one trump card up their sleeve! Former player Kendall was appointed manager and guided Everton to new heights.

They won the FA Cup in 1984 beating Watford 2-0 in the final and the League Championship in the 1984-85 season. United fans will surely remember the epic 1985 final when Norman Whiteside scored a beautiful goal from outside

the box to seal the victory for the reds! What a game that was for all lovers of football!

Everton’s misery was quickly forgotten when they sealed the Cup Winners’ Cup beating Rapid Vienna in the final. The following season, galvanised by the signing of Gary Lineker, Everton finished runners-up to neighbours Liverpool in both the League and the FA Cup. Manchester United had unfortunately started the 85-86 campaign with a blistering 10 match winning streak but succumbed to pressure and injuries – eventually finishing in 4th place.

After the Heysel Stadium disaster in Brussels and the subsequent ban of all English clubs from European football, Everton lost the chance to compete for the glamorous European Champions Cup [as it was then know]. Key players left the club and Howard Kendall moved on to pastures new at Athletic Bilbao.

The club was still considered a major force but the tide was certainly turning in Manchester.

Everton’s fall from grace coupled with United’s rise to prominence. In the same year Everton clinched the title, United appointed a certain Alex Ferguson to steer a sinking ship and guide the club on the right path.

It is interesting to note that at the beginning of the famous 1992-93 season Everton came to Old Trafford and hammered United 3-0, prompting pundits and fans to immediately write-off United’s title credentials. Thankfully, the club recovered and merely one month later, the Red Devils travelled to Goodison Park and promptly defeated the Toffees 2-0.

After the game, the then returned manager Howard Kendall remarked that this was the quickest turn around he had ever seen in a team’s fortunes.

United dominated the 90s comprehensively but fans will certainly remember the 1995 final played at Wembley between both sides.

Dejected and devastated after losing the league title to Blackburn, United lost the match against Everton 0-1 to conclude a miserable campaign. The Toffees meanwhile revelled in a much welcomed victory and gained sweet revenge for their loss suffered in the cup 10 years previously. Despite this win, the Red still dominated the Toffees but the arrival of David Moyes in January 2002 sparked a fresh revival amongst the Merseyside faithful.

In October of 2002, United faced up to Everton

at Old Trafford in a normal league fixture. What should have been an easy win turned into a nightmare for the reds as they could not penetrate the Everton rear-guard for a full 84 minutes. A certain Wayne Rooney then also came off the subs bench and almost scored for the Blues but thankfully the ever-reliable Paul Scholes rescued United with 2 late strikes in an eventual 3-0 victory. The Red Devils may have won the match but the reality couldn’t be further from the truth. Moyes had fashioned a new and brutal Everton side- capable of finally beating all league contenders.

Everton’s progress was certainly seen throughout the 2004-05 season. Astonishingly, the club finished above eventual champions league winners Liverpool and managed to take 4 points off United throughout the campaign. The club finally qualified for the CL qualifiers but were unfortunately eliminated by a polished Villarreal side. Fixtures between both sides continued to be exciting and nailbiting at the same time. It would take a late second half rally for United to beat Everton at Goodison Park in 2007 (4-2) to almost clinch the league title and games between both sides became agonisingly close. United would win 1-0 at Goodison Park in 2008, draw 1-1 in 2009 and beat United 3-1 in 2010.

David Moyes and Everton would certainly play a huge part in the title proceedings throughout the 2011/12 season. With United comfortably in control in a crucial league game against Everton, the Blues fought back to draw 4-4 costing United the title. Sir Alex would later admit that this game proved critical in swaying the momentum towards the Blue half of Manchester. Ironically, Moyes was appointed as Ferguson’s successor in 2013 but could not prevent Everton from beating United at home (for the first time in 20 years) 1-0. Moyes was dismissed soon after his former club repeated the feat at the reverse fixture at Goodison Park (2-0). It would take United 4 years to finally register a win at Merseyside when Van Gaal and co. emerged 3-0 victors in the 2015/16 season.

Whilst few fans would consider both clubs to share a genuine ‘rivalry’, it is still interesting to explore the tussles between both clubs. With Everton constantly seeking improvement both on the field as well as off it, we could certainly see the Blues fighting for the top prizes in English football sooner….rather than later!

VOL 44 - ISSUE 1 - OCTOBER 2016

37

MixedMANCUNIANPlatter

by Karm Galea

and revealed how he called Fellaini after he was appointed manager to reassure him he was staying at Old Trafford.

Local Liverpool supporters were aghast at the way Manchester United won against Hull in the 92nd minute, bemoaning luck, Fergie time, the referee, the Rooney run, the Hull goalkeeper and a multitude of other factors. Doing this showed their abysmal lack of knowledge about their team, even though they say they are the best supporters in the Universe. The reality is that Liverpool lead the table of clubs with most 90th-minute winning goals in Premier League history.

The table shows thus: 1- Liverpool with 28 goals, 2- Arsenal with 21, 3 - Chelsea with 20, 4 - Everton with 19, 5 - Manchester United with 18, 6 - Newcastle and Tottenham with 17, 8 - Aston Villa with 13, 9 - Wigan with 12, 10 - Bolton and Southampton with 11. So, all you Liverpool supporters, do a collective moan. It’s not Fergie time after all, but more likely ‘bin dipping’ time. We do love to hear you moaning and whining, while you crick up your neck watching us, as usual, above you in the league table.



So, despite the phrase ‘Fergie time’, United are a whole 10 goals behind Liverpool. Most probably, the goal that coined the phrase was also the one that all but decided the destiny of the first Premier League title. Steve Bruce’s header in the sixth minute of injury time had Ferguson jumping for joy on the pitch with Brian Kidd acting the clown. It was the goal that beat Sheffield Wednesday 2-1 at Old Trafford on April 10th, 1993. United have netted a number of memorable late, late winners in the Premier League: Michael Owen’s cut 95th minute finish in the 4-3 win over Man City in 2009 and Macheda’s curler in April of the same year spring to mind.



Bailly was tempted to sign on by both United and City. Yaya Toure tried to convince him to go to the Etihad while Drogba hammered home the qualities of Mourinho. Phone calls from Mourinho and a City assistant urged him to make up his mind. Finally Bailly decided to go for someone who works very hard and who personally called him, asking him to come and play for him. Drogba is a friend of Bailly and they played together for the Ivory Coast. His solid advice to go with Mourinho cemented his resolve.

Bailly’s start is the best from a Manchester defensive signing in 19 years. He has adapted to life at Old Trafford better than some of Ferguson’s greatest defensive signings and has justified his £30 million transfer fee.

What makes Bailly’s start so astonishing is how often newly signed United defenders struggled to adjust at Old Trafford. Gary Pallister joined United for a then-British record fee in 1989 but five games into his United career he had suffered three defeats, one being the infamous 5-1 loss to Man City. Jaap Stam, the world’s most expensive defender in 1998, was given a chasing by Anelka in the Charity Shield. Rio Ferdinand, another world record addition for a defender endured an injury-plagued time in his first few months. Vidic got a very bad review after his first Premier League game ended with opponent David Bentley scoring a hat-trick.

Marcos Rojo was a liability at centre-back.









38 VOL 44 - ISSUE 1 - OCTOBER 2016

Fellaini suffered a difficult three seasons at United. He became the scapegoat for disenchanted fans after Moyes’ 10-month ill-fated reign. Even though van Gaal had faith in him, Fellaini’s future was again called into question when Mourinho arrived. But Mourinho insists he always had faith in him

Ferguson tried to sign on Shearer but Shearer preferred to go to his hometown, Newcastle, for a then-world record transfer, languishing there for 10 years without winning a single trophy. That was 20 years ago and to remind us of this, Shearer tweeted “20 years ago I made my biggest and best career decision. I went home to play for my club (Newcastle) and with no regrets”. No regrets he may say as much as he likes, but if his trophy cabinet could speak up it would say “But I have regrets as I would have had five Premier League titles plus the treble in 1999 on my shelf had you gone to Manchester United.” No regrets indeed!

It was 1996. Eric Cantona was the first-choice striker and Shearer was a primary transfer target. A certain Solskjaer was on the radar as one for the future after a number of United scouts had commented on his potential. His first international cap for Norway sparked the club into a swift and decisive action.

Three months after his £1.5 million transfer from Molde, Solskjaer remained something of an unknown quantity, despite scoring on his debut and adding five goals in his first six United matches. Ferguson had expected him to play in the Reserves for the first six months to acclimatise himself to English football. The rest is well-known history.





‘Zlatan’ and ‘Ibra’ are the names one can find

on the internet in reference to Ibrahimovic.

That is until Pogba came along with ‘Thor’.

Will it stick?

It was widely reported that the Ibrahimovic was given a 12-month deal at Old Trafford, but Mourinho came up with this, “We are happy to have him and for two years, probably the last two years of his career”.





The Wayne Rooney testimonial against Everton. Mourinho took charge of United for the first time and did not sit in the dugout but on a chair on the pitch side. Reason? The dugout was packed high with substitutes.

Mourinho was joined pitch side by assistant manager Rui Faria and coaches Ricardo Formosinho and Silvino Louro.



Ferguson said it was right for Mourinho not to appoint Giggs as his assistant manager, as an assistant manager must be one whom the manager knows very well. When Ferguson went to Old Trafford, he brought over Archie Knox because he trusted him 100 per cent. Mourinho has had Rui Faria as his assistant for years and quite rightly so has stuck by his man.



José Mourinho Jr, son of manager José Mourinho is 16 and played as a goalkeeper for the youth sides of Chelsea and Real Madrid.

He has signed a two-year scholarship deal with Fulham.

A latest survey has revealed that Chelsea have overtaken Manchester United as the most hated club in the Premier League. United had won this accolade last year. Liverpool are in third spot, followed by Manchester City and Arsenal. The survey was run by the Manchester Evening News and its sister titles across the UK, including the Mirror.



The friendly game against Wigan. Inside ten minutes of the start of the game, Mourinho was already on his feet barking orders. United fans were falling in love with him in droves.

During his two seasons at Old Trafford, van Gaal was time and time again criticised for refusing to leave the dugout, even when the team was in need of direction. It was calculated that he stood on the touchline for this friendly game for more minutes than Van Gaal did in 2 years.





Mourinho believes the emotional attachment everyone associated with Manchester United feels sets them aside from any other club he has worked for. On taking his place at United he immediately felt that people at the club had passion for the club. That is something he rarely felt at other clubs he managed. He had managed great professionals at other clubs but they were fans of other clubs.

The United plane taking half the team from Shanghai to Beijing was forced to make an emergency landing. Players and staff travelled in two separate planes. The first plane landed as scheduled but the second plane had to make an unscheduled stop in Tianjin due to dangerous weather conditions.

Mourinho said the second plane was unlucky.

Depay said that they were lost somewhere and had to make a quick landing somewhere.



Mourinho was watching Portugal win Euro 2016 at his home when the burglar struck.

A maid was doing the ironing when she spotted the burglar trying to get in through the basement door. A private security guard hired by the local residents first spotted East European Gabor Roman wandering from house to house trying doors to see it they were locked. Then the guard saw him disappear into Mourinho’s basement and alerted the police.



Bobby Charlton and Nobby Stiles are the only two Englishmen to win World Cup and European Cup winners’ medals. Stiles was born in the cellar of 263 Rochdale Road, Collyhurst, on the night of May 18, 1942 during a German bombing raid on Manchester and later survived being run down by a trolley-bus as a toddler. Later on in life he survived a near-fatal car crash when he fell asleep at the wheel on the M6, followed by a heart attack.



VOL 44 - ISSUE 1 - OCTOBER 2016

39

Why hassle!

We’ll deliver straight to your home, office or boat Call before 10 am for same day delivery • Min €35 spend

AL SPECEI R OFF and get 5

s €100 Spend L) soft drink .5 1 f ( o free e packs or 3 fre l water Krista

St. Julians - The Mall, Park Towers • call 2137 8520 or stj@myparktowers.com Santa Venera - Psaila Street • call 2148 0807 or stv@myparktowers.com

MANCHESTER UNITED THE WAR YEARS – 1943/44

by Iain McCartney Part 1

I

t was still something of a traumatic time for families up and down the country, concerned about loved ones involved in the conflict overseas and indeed in some cases as regards to the welfare of their children, removed from the cities that were a target for enemy bombers to a much safer environment of the countryside numerous miles from home.

Thoughts seldom wavered from the hostilities, but football, still in its refined state, created an ideal recreational bolthole for many, even if it was just for a mere ninety minutes.

There was no change to the League set ups, with United participating once again in the Football League North under the continued guidance of secretary/manager Walter Crickmer and chief scout Jimmy Porter, kicking off on August 28th with Stockport County making the short journey to Maine Road. Short in miles it may have been, but heading back home following that opening day fixture must have taken a little bit longer as they contemplated their humiliating 6-0 defeat.

On the team front, there was little difference from the one that had lined up for the majority

of the previous campaign – Breedon, Griffiths, Roughton, Warner, Porter, Whalley, Bryant, McKay, Smith, Bellis and McDonald, with the goals coming from Bellis 2, Smith 2, McKay and McDonald. The players’ reward for their afternoon’s endeavour? £2, their basic pay, with no bonus added extra for the win. It was, however, an increase of 10 shillings (50p) on that of the previous season.

Seven days later in the return match at Edgley Road, there were again six goals, but on this occasion they were shared between the two sides, although it was yet another creditable performance, as the home side had taken a two goal lead before being pegged back.

A 4-1 victory over Everton at Maine Road in the third fixture of the new season continued the promising start, but it certainly wasn’t going to be plain sailing as the weeks and months passed by, as the Goodison Park side, like previous opponents Stockport County, showed what a difference a week could make and on September 18th, hammered United 6-1.

Guest players were still something of the norm and United were not averse to bringing in such players when the occasion arose, with the two fixtures against Everton seeing Ivor Broadis, who had fulfilled a similar role as an amateur with Tottenham, lining up at inside right, scoring in the 4-1 win.

But ‘guest’ players or not, Manchester United’s season continued like the ‘Big Dipper’ at an amusement park, up one minute but down the next. Blackburn Rovers were beaten 2-1 at Ewood Park, only to win 2-1 at Maine Road.

Chester were easily beaten 3-1 in Manchester, but turned things around to win by the odd goal in nine on home turf.

Attendances to date had been somewhat sparse: a mere 2,000 at Stockport, with 5,000 the most that had bothered to make their way to Maine Road. But for some unknown reason, certainly not result wise, there was a sudden increase in bodies through the turnstiles, with 15,000 turning up at Anfield to see United beat Liverpool 4-3, with 13,647 arriving at Maine

VOL 44 - ISSUE 1 - OCTOBER 2016

41

Road for the ‘return’ a week later, when United recorded their first back-to-back victories of the season with a solitary goal from Billy MacKay.

Prior to that return fixture against Liverpool, tributes were paid to Bert Redwood who had sadly died two days earlier at the young age

only 2,000 bothered to head to the Moss Side area of Manchester for the visit of Tranmere Rovers, missing out on Charlie Mitten scoring four and the goal machine that was John Smith chipping in with a couple in a 6-3 win. Due to the poor weather, the referee called a halt to the proceedings five minutes early, but the result was allowed to stand.

While earlier results were unpredictable, with a distinct lack of consistency, United went undefeated between that 4-3 victory over Liverpool on October 23rd and the turn of the year, with the 5-0 victory over Wrexham at Maine Road on December 11 th pushing United into second place in the league table, a point behind leaders Blackpool. Seven days later, they were level on top of what was classed the ‘First Championship’.

of thirty as a result of tuberculosis. A native of St Helens, he had been discharged from the army on medical grounds with his playing career already at an end.

The first two Saturdays in November centred on Maine Road, with the away and home/ away fixtures against neighbours City. Just over 15,000 watched the 2-2 draw in the first segment, while just less than 9,000 watched United win their ‘home’ game 3-0. Strange how there was some 6,000 difference in the attendances between the two weeks.

Goals could certainly be plentiful, giving the paying public value for their hardearned money, but as had been the case during the current season, the highest scoring games were the poorest attended. 3,000 had only been present for the 6-0 win against Stockport, 4,000 for the 5-4 win against Chester, while on November 20th,

42 VOL 44 - ISSUE 1 - OCTOBER 2016

Boxing Day heralded the start of the League Cup Qualifying Competition and yet another goal fest, with eight being scored, six of those by United.

There must have been a few hangovers in the United camp, as the New Year’s Day return fixture in Yorkshire saw the home side hold United to a 1-1 draw.

Despite the unexpected draw, the fine form of the previous months continued with only two defeats between Boxing Day and March 25th.

The first, 3-1, came against City on January 22nd.

The second, against Birmingham City on March 18th, proved to be fatal, as despite the backing of 32,992 at Maine Road, United just could not gain an aggregate advantage to progress in the competition, managing only a 1-1 draw.

There were several telling factors surrounding this run, one certainly being the goals of that man John Smith. Having scored twice in the 5-0 defeat of Wrexham on December 18th, there were only two games in the following twelve fixtures in which he failed to find the back of the net. Notching hat-tricks against Oldham Athletic on February 19th and against Stockport County on January 15th, he was to score a very creditable eighteen goals in those dozen games.

Stan Pearson and Jack Rowley could also be found on the scoresheet on a regular basis, while among the ‘guest’ players in the supporting cast were the likes of Rowley’s younger brother Arthur, who had played for United as a sixteen year old in 1941, while City favourite Eric Brook was another. There was also a host of unfamiliar names to be found in the line-ups, such as Brierley, Fenner, Gallon, Gibson and Norris, all strangely enough occupying places in the front line. Perhaps having something of a settled defence was also

The failure to progress in the League Cup was certainly disappointing, but the alarm bells could have been heard in the first round tie with Wrexham, as United almost let a 4-1 first leg win disappear when they found themselves 2-0 down in north Wales with twenty minutes left to play, but goals from that man Smith and Stan Pearson, playing one of his last games before embarking overseas saw United through. In round two against Birmingham City there was to be no dramatic fightback, as a 3-1 reversal at St Andrews proved to be too big a difference to overcome and as previously mentioned, all that could be achieved in the Maine Road second leg was a 1-1 draw.

So, all that was left was the mundane run of the mill League fixtures, with the only real high point being the 9-0 ‘home’ victory over Burnley on April 15th. “Did Smith score?” I hear you ask.

Yes, of course, another hat-trick.

As in the previous season, the League Championship was split into two, with United being pipped by Blackpool on goal average in the first, while in the second, they were to finish 9th, seven points behind Bath. Yes, that’s right, Bath, who had also made the quarter finals of the League Cup. a big help in achieving those favourable results.

Mentioning Jack Rowley a few lines back, it is worth noting that on the afternoon of February 12th when United were playing out a 3-3 draw against Bury at Maine Road, Rowley was in London assisting Tottenham, scoring seven in their 8-1 victory over Luton Town.

But you haven’t mentioned United playing them I can hear you mutter, and you are correct, but such was the complicity of those wartime competitions, United didn’t play half the clubs involved, as some fifty teams competed for the first championship and fifty-six in the second.

Bath were certainly not the only strange name

to be found in the second, with the likes of Lovell’s Athletic and Aberman also involved somewhere along the line. It is also worth noting that not all the clubs played the same number of games. United played twenty-one, while the likes of Blackburn only completed sixteen. Complicated or what?

VOL 44 - ISSUE 1 - OCTOBER 2016

43

Situated on the Sliema seafront, L’Aroma restaurant is tucked away

tering fresh fish, fine meat cuts and pasta dishes all at a great value for

from the hustle and bustle of Malta’s shopping centre. L’Aroma

money. One of the house specialities, the traditional rabbit dish, is

prides itself in the preparation of traditional Mediterranean cui-

regarded by many locals as the best in town. Whether for a relaxed

sine using recipes passed down through the generations. The menu

dinner or a lazy lunch L’Aroma is a great spot to sit down, unwind and

comprises a selection of mouth-wa-

watch the world go by.

L’Aroma, 17 Ghar il-Lembi Street Sliema t. 2131 7633 e. laroma.restaurant@maltanet.net

CAR ALARMS CAR ACCESSORIES SOUND SYSTEMS TINTED WINDOWS ALLOY WHEELS PERFORMANCE PARTS WHEEL REFURBISHMENT CAR WRAPPING COMPUTER CUT STICKERS

source-rautostyling.com Triq il-Ghajn Mriehel BKR 3000. Tel: 7984 3204 info@source-rautostyling.com

The Season So Far..

by Michael Gatt

T

he focus so far this season has been on Mourinho due to the revamp of the squad that took place over the summer. There have been four new signings and fresh blood was always going to be required, especially since the fact that Mourinho wanted to get the old operating methods of Louis Van Gaal out of the players’ minds.

especially since there is an international break which means that it will be difficulty to expect consistency and continuity from the players, as some players, especially the likes of Valencia and Bailly, return from international duty and expect to clock up the miles along the way.

Looking back at the season, the opening game of the campaign was as perfect as it could be as United beat Bournemouth 3-1.

José Mourinho began his Manchester United reign in the Premier League with a 3-1 victory over Bournemouth as Zlatan Ibrahimovic caught the eye and got himself on the score sheet once again for his new club.

men dispatched the visitors in a comfortable fashion that continued to fuel the belief that the team can challenge for the title this season.

The first game at home of the season is one of the most important, as usually a good performance will send the fans home happy and raise expectations. The first home match of the season is always a special occasion for fans, yet this much-anticipated Old Trafford outing was elevated beyond the traditional sense of excitement in light of Pogba’s first appearance since returning to the club following a fourseason spell at Juventus. The world-record signing’s every touch was cheered, particularly throughout the opening exchanges, and the

In Ibrahimovic, Bailly, Pogba and Mkhitaryan, not many could argue with their quality because they where all big successes in oneway or another for their respective club and country in the previous season.

The Special One came flying out of the blocks with his new club, but two straight Premier League defeats in September meant that not all things are rosy at Old Trafford. Starting with the game against Manchester City, where I was present, the bottom line is that this particular game has already raised some doubts and put in lots of speculation as to whether Mourinho will get it right or not. To be fair, Guardiola on the other side has already inserted his fingerprints on his City team and I see them as heavy favorites to land the title in May. United were totally dominated that day, especially in the first half and I cannot recall another game where the first half was so one-sided. Rather than the 2-1 loss, it was more the manner in which we lost against City that really upset United fans. At the time of writing this article United now sit six points behind league leaders Manchester City and the October calendar seems to be very tough,

It was Juan Mata, who put the Reds ahead after capitalizing on a defensive error just before the break. Wayne Rooney headed a second after the interval, before the impressive Ibrahimovic drilled home from 25 yards. An Adam Smith strike was a mere consolation for Bournemouth.

stadium would have erupted had his shot from Ibrahimovic’s pass beaten Fraser Forster on 13 minutes.

United followed up the opening day success with a fruitful outing against a decent Southampton team. Paul Pogba may have been the star attraction beneath the Friday nightlights, but Zlatan Ibrahimovic stole the show at Old Trafford after his brace secured a 2-0 win over Southampton that kept Manchester United top of the Premier League table.

The Swedish striker scored either side of halftime, firstly with a well-taken header and then from the penalty spot, as José Mourinho’s

VOL 44 - ISSUE 1 - OCTOBER 2016

45

After such a positive start United, then went on a run which saw us lose three consecutive games. The first of these was already mentioned earlier, where we lost to Manchester City, where we were by far second best on the day. Then after that another defeat followed where we lost 1-0 to Feyenoord, where the fans were expecting much more.

José Mourinho made eight changes to the side that started against Manchester City in the derby five days earlier.

After the Saints game, United signed off for the international break with another victory to keep up a 100 per cent record in the Premier League, and it came in dramatic fashion as Marcus Rashford came off the bench to net a deserved winner for the Reds against a stubborn Hull City.

It was a match United totally dominated, but it took until injury time for the breakthrough to arrive when some superb and dogged play from Wayne Rooney on the left flank teed up Rashford to slot home after dominating possession for nearly the whole game. It is also worth mentioning that in the dugout for Hull was a familiar face with some present United players – Mick Phelan – who was Ferguson’s assistant manager for a considerable number of years and someone who was always very highly respected by the players, always being praised for his innovative training methods.

Some players, including Wayne Rooney, Luke Shaw and Antonio Valencia, stayed at home after being granted a rest, while two other regular starters for Mourinho’s United, Marouane Fellaini and Zlatan Ibrahimovic, were named on the bench as others were given their chance. Indeed Matteo Darmian, Chris Smalling, Marcos Rojo, Ander Herrera, Morgan Schneiderlin and Marcus Rashford all made their first competitive starts under the new manager.

As expected against Leicester City, José Mourinho reshuffled the pack following the win over Northampton Town in midweek, with the likes of David De Gea, Eric Bailly, Pogba and Mata all restored to the starting XI. Zlatan Ibrahimovic began the game up front, with club captain Wayne Rooney on the bench.

United came into this fixture against the Champions knowing that only a win would do following two successive Premier League defeats and started on the front foot, looking to boss proceedings with the lion’s share of possession. On the day, Mata, Ibrahimovic, Herrera and Pogba were brilliant, especially in that first half where United put four past the Foxes. In the second half, United tried to control the result and the game to a certain degree and did so in a professional manner.

It was amazing to see Manchester United play some great attacking football, unlike the previous years of Van Gaal.

Going forward, in October United have some important away fixtures coming up against Liverpool and Chelsea. It is important that around December, the gap between us and the top is less than six points, if we are to have a realistic chance of fighting for the league title.

However, I do not think that any of these players grabbed this opportunity with both hands and now United face must-win scenarios at home in the Europa league competition if they are to progress.

The last game of the week was against Watford, where United disappointed all throughout the game and were lucky not to lose by a bigger margin. United looked out of all sorts on the day and never got going. The usual Rashford was the goal scorer for United on that day.

VOL 44 - ISSUE 1 - OCTOBER 2016

47

FIXTURES 2016-2017 FA Community Shield

19/08/16

– Bailly – Lingard – Pogba – Ibrahimovic –

07/08/16

Manchester United 2 – 0 Southampton

Rooney – Mkhitaryan

Manchester United 2 – 2 Leicester City

De Gea – Valencia – Shaw – Fellaini – Bailly –

Sub(s) – Herrera – Martial – Rashford

Europa League Match Day 1

De Gea – Valencia – Shaw – Carrick – Bailly

Blind – Mata – Pogba – Ibrahimovic - Rooney

Scorer(s) – Ibrahimovic

15/09/16

– Blind – Lingard – Fellaini – Ibrahimovic –

– Martial

Rooney – Martial

Sub(s) – Herrera – Mkhitaryan – Smalling

18/09/16

De Gea – Darmian – Rojo – Schneiderlin –

Sub(s) – Herrera – Mata – Mkhitaryan –

Scorer(s) – Ibrahimovic (2)

Watford 3 – 1 Manchester United

Bailly – Smalling – Mata – Pogba – Rashford

De Gea – Valencia – Shaw – Fellaini – Bailly

– Herrera – Martial

27/08/16

– Smalling – Rashford – Pogba – Ibrahimovic

Sub(s) – Memphis – Ibrahimovic – Young

Hull City 0 – 1 Manchester United

– Rooney – Martial

Scorer(s) -

FA Premier League

De Gea – Valencia – Shaw – Fellaini – Bailly –

Sub(s) – Memphis – Mata – Young

14/08/16

Blind – Mata – Pogba – Ibrahimovic – Rooney

Scorer(s) – Rashford

Bournemouth 1 – 3 Manchester United

– Martial

De Gea – Valencia – Shaw – Fellaini – Bailly

Sub(s) – Mkhitaryan – Rashford – Smalling

24/09/16

Northampton Town 1 – 3 Manchester United

– Blind – Mata – Herrera – Ibrahimovic –

Scorer(s) – Rashford

Manchester United 4 – 1 Leicester City

Romero – Fosu-Mensah – Rojo – Carrick –

De Gea – Valencia – Blind – Pogba – Bailly

Smalling – Blind – Memphis – Schneiderlin

Feyenoord 1 – 0 Manchester United

Rashford – Rojo – Schneiderlin Scorer(s) – Ibrahimovic – Lingard

Scorer(s) – Mata – Pogba – Rashford – Smalling

League Cup 3rd Round 21/09/16

Rooney – Martial Sub(s) – Memphis – Mkhitaryan –

10/09/16

–Smalling – Lingard – Mata – Ibrahimovic –

– Rooney – Herrera – Young

Schneiderlin

Manchester United 1 – 2 Manchester City

Herrera – Rashford

Sub(s) – Fellaini – Ibrahimovic – Rashford

Scorer(s) – Ibrahimovic – Mata – Rooney

De Gea – Valencia – Shaw – Fellaini – Blind

Sub(s) – Carrick – Rooney – Young

Scorer(s) – Carrick – Herrera – Rashford

PLAYER’S APPEARANCES 2016-2017 Bailly

6

0

0

1

1

TOTAL APPEARANCES 8

De Gea

6

0

0

1

1

8

Ibrahimovic

6

0

0 (1)

0 (1)

1

7 (2)

5

Martial

5 (1)

0

0

1

1

7 (1)

0

Rooney

NAME

PREMIERSHIP

FA CUP

CHAMPIONS LEAGUE

LEAGUE CUP

OTHER MATCHES

GOALS 0 2

5 (1)

0

1

0

1

7 (1)

1

Blind

5

0

1

0

1

7

0

Valencia

6

0

0

0

1

7

0

Fellaini

5

0

0 (1)

0

1

6 (1)

0

Pogba

5

0

0

1

0

6

1

Shaw

5

0

0

0

1

6

0

Mata

4 (1)

0

0

1

0 (1)

5 (2)

2

Herrera

2 (2)

0

1

1

0 (1)

4 (3)

1

Smalling

2 (2)

0

1

1

0

4 (2)

1

2

0

0

0

1

3

1

Rashford

1 (2)

0

0 (1)

1

0 (1)

2 (4)

4

Schneiderlin

0 (1)

0

1

1

0 (1)

2 (2)

0

Carrick

0 (1)

0

1

0

1

2 (1)

1

0

0

1

1

0 (1)

2 (1)

0

Mkhitaryan

1 (3)

0

0

0

0 (1)

1 (4)

0

Depay

0 (2)

0

1

0 (1)

0

1 (3)

0

Young, Ashley

Lingard

Rojo

0 (2)

0

1

0 (1)

0

1 (3)

0

Darmian

0

0

0

1

0

1

0

Fosu-Mensah

0

0

1

0

0

1

0

Romero

0

0

1

0

0

1

0

2,000,000 MALTA

FOUNDED 1959

48 VOL 44 - ISSUE 1 - OCTOBER 2016

Thank you

MALTA MALTA

FOUNDED 1959