Still Following the Trawler

There was a strange air about Old Trafford yesterday. I missed the Burnley game last weekend and so for me this was my first home game since the revelations of Glazers controversial plans to refinance the loan. Since then however, as you have probably all heard, they have managed to raise funds, selling bonds in the tune of £504million; however to the fans, whose sole concern is always the wellbeing of their club, that had zero positive impact. Every time the whistle blew, every time a set-piece was being lined up, and surprisingly, after every goal was scored, the same noise and the same angry protest greeted the action. ‘We want Glazer out’, ‘Love United, Hate Glazer’ and ‘Glazer’s gonna die’ were dominating the Old Trafford chorus; so loudly and prominently in fact that at times you completely forgot a football match was being played. And although red was, as always, the main colour on show, there were other, more meaningful colours blended into the sea of red. Green and gold was t...

It’s not even 1pm and I’m just about to head off to Old Trafford for tonight’s game against Wigan …ahh the joys of being a London red. But before I set of for the marvellous 5 hour journey through the snowy midlands, I thought I’d try and highlight a few pointers of how we can, and inevitably should, improve from the Hull game a couple of days ago. Midfield pairing. Ferguson opted for Fletcher and Carrick on Sunday, which was obviously refreshing after seeing those two stuck annoyingly in defence for the 4 games previous (including away to Wolfsburg in the Champions League); however with Anderson presumably fully fit, why was he overlooked as a partner to Fletcher? Carrick’s main strength is his passing, of which is generally impeccable, however I feel Fletcher can also adequately pass the ball, thus allowing Anderson’s pace and resolute, mildly aggressive spirit – traits not entirely shared by Carrick – to develop and strengthen us in the centre. Berbatov. The problem with Berbatov i...

A flattering and at times thoroughly undeserved 3-1 victory at the KC stadium saw us finally  capitalise on Chelsea ’s poor recent form to joyously close the gap at the top to 2 points. However, before we get too carried away with the score-line, let’s bring a bit Scrooge's miserly wisdom into the proceeding as we focus briefly, yet solely, on the ‘flattering’ and ‘undeserved’ parts. The team-sheet encouragingly suggested that our injury woes were rapidly becoming a thing of the past; as the more familiar backline of Rafael, Brown, Vidic and, of course, Evra, took to the field; with Fletcher and Carrick thankfully back to their more natural roles in central midfield. Even our latest potential injury victim – Berbatov, after it was revealed earlier this week he needs knee surgery – played through the pain barrier to start up-front with Rooney and give our attack an utterly intimidating feel. Yet, as was to be expected given our poor run of form (and by ‘run of form’, I mean pretty ...

As the season came to a close at 6pm on Sunday night, I couldn’t help but think that it all ended up a bit anti-climatic. What I’ve realised, this season more than any other, is that the season is not so much about your final position, well, technically it is, but more so than that all important points total, its about the moments that get you there. For the teams who had a memorable season, they will remember the good times (Liverpool: 4-1 against United; Arsenal: Arshavin at Anfield; Chelsea: 4-1 at the Emirates; Fulham: 1-0 Arsenal, 2-0 United; and Everton: the cup final), and for those who have had a season to forget…well, then they will try there hardest to forget it. The season therefore is about those moments: the ones that, as a fan, emotionally effect you, and on the pitch, those crucial victories, powerful team performances and individual strokes of genius. Where you end up is just a culmination and result of these moments. The way you end it may in fact, as was witnessed in ...