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As the clock wandered towards midnight in Rome, fans of Manchester United and Barcelona wandered through darkened streets heading to coaches, trams and shuttle buses with highly differing thoughts. The Catalans were purring over the displays of the talismanic Xavi Hernandez and Andres Iniesta and jovial about their unique achievement of clinching “the treble”, while supporters from the red half of Manchester contemplated on what might have been.
A record run of unbeaten matches in the Champions League which lasted just over two years saw the Red Army invade eight different countries leaving every time never having to taste the bitterness of defeat. As United fans before kick-off milled around the Eternal City soaking in the culture whilst looking for bars brave enough to flout the city-wide alcohol ban, it seemed a few Reds were filled with a misguided sense of superiority and confidence about the game, even when facing an exceptional side like Barcelona. This in turn made last night’s defeat even sourer for these individuals to take.
After Wednesday night’s showpiece, United fans grumbled long and hard about early missed chances and a non-existent midfield whilst also praising some of the opposition. Iniesta, who seems capable of doing things Paul Scholes in his heyday would’ve dreamt about, received a genial round of applause from the United faithful in the Stadio Olimpico during his late substitution. The response was reminiscent of the standing ovation Brazilian forward Ronaldo received after his hat trick at Old Trafford in 2003, which in the process knocked United out of the Champions League.
Barcelona fully deserved to win. They passed the ball beautifully while constantly moving forward whereas United lost their edge after Eto’o’s goal, albeit it coming from their first attempt and against the run of play. Messi will win his plaudits for a fantastically executed header which will probably see him awarded next years Ballon d’Or, while Ronaldo showed flashes of his brilliance and looked United’s only viable get out clause, until his service dried up faster then a puddle in the Sahara. United made mistakes that get punished at any level of football and the team from Catalonia took full advantage. Ferguson’s men have, can and will play better.
In the end we were going for an unprecedented achievement of back-to-back Champions League titles whilst playing in our 66th match of the season, factors not to be taken lightly, but alas it was not to be. So we’ve had to “settle” for four trophies including a record equalling 18th League Title, a League Cup, a Champions League final appearance and an FA Cup Semi.
As the disappointment sank into every fan making the one thousand mile journey home, there was a sense of perspective from those who knew their onions and a genuine overriding feeling that when all was said and done, we’ve had a fantastic season regardless of the team’s final performance of the campaign. We may have gone out with a whimper but in all honesty, what an unbelievable achievement this season has still been.
The league is still any team’s bread and butter so to capture that again was more than enough for many fans including myself. Number 18, it still sends shivers down the spine. My old man still harps on about the dark days (known as the late 1970’s - 1980’s to most) and daring to dream of one title let alone 11.
If last night proved anything it’s never take anything in football for granted. Even if you’re lucky enough to support Manchester United, lifting trophies is something you should desire not expect. Silly talk of quintuples appearing around Christmas time doesn’t help. Right now we have a fantastic, versatile squad and the race to 19 between United and Liverpool next season is something which already makes me feel sick, excited and scared all at the same time.
So the summer will come and the Ashes and the British Lions tour of South Africa combined with endless transfer speculation (“Ronaldo to Madrid shocker”) will try to replace the constant ecstasy/agony of being a supporter, but still come nowhere near.
Roll on August.
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