With 20 English league crowns, 3 European Cup triumphs, 11 FA Cup trophies and 4 League Cup titles to its name in an illustrious 138-year history, Manchester United is one of the most popular football teams in the world.
With a fan base spanning the entire length and breadth of the planet, they have managed to become one of the biggest sporting brands and earn revenues in hundreds of millions of pounds every year.
My love affair with the club began in 2007 or so when I had just begun watching the sport. United won the league that season, with the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Wayne Rooney, Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes, Rio Ferdinand and Edwin van der Sar running rampant and picking up two league titles in a row followed by an unforgettable Champions League victory against Chelsea in Moscow.
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It was not just the trophies that make Manchester United what they are in my eyes. A multitude of factors make the club special and are why it is one of the most supported teams in England and across the world. Here are five reasons why United will always have a special place in my heart!
1) Illustrious history
Different from the red and black that we are used to seeing the Red Devils adorn, the club was founded in 1878 by the Carriage and Wagon department of the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway as Newton Heath, with a green-and-gold-coloured kit. In 1902, following a winding-up order, the club was reinstated as Manchester United and won its first league title in 1908 and another one in 1911.
United then became a yo-yo club, moving up and down the tiers of English football and it was not until 1952 that they won their next league crown under the legendary Sir Matt Busby, who transformed the club into a European giant and won multiple trophies in his 24-year reign despite the Munich Air Disaster of 1958.
The year 1967 saw United win their seventh league title before embarking on another dry run where they had to watch rivals Liverpool sweep up a multitude of trophies. All that changed with the arrival of a certain Scotsman from Aberdeen in 1986 as he transformed United into the world’s biggest football team and knocked the Reds off their perch to take United to an unprecedented 20 league titles.
2) Sir Alex Ferguson
The Scotsman was none other than Sir Alex Ferguson, arguably the greatest manager to have ever graced the beautiful game.
His name is synonymous with United as he changed their course and led them to 13 top division crowns as well as two Champions League trophies, including the treble of the 1998-99 season, where the Red Devils completed the trio of the league, FA Cup and European Cup wins.
He was on the verge of being sacked three-and-a-half years into his job but was saved by victory in the 1990 FA Cup final replay. He never looked back after that, as he built a strong team year-after-year, with a focus on giving adequate chances to academy recruits.
Club legends such as Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes, David Beckham and Gary Neville all emerged under Fergie and formed the core of the United side that was to dominate English football for two decades.
He has the mind of a footballing genius coupled with world-class man-management skills. And yet, my favourite aspect of him is his mannerisms and the way he carried himself and spoke to the press and his players.
Growing up, I have spent countless hours watching him celebrate with utmost joy, get red-faced with anger and also get under the referee’s skin with his trademark ‘pointing to the wristwatch’ routine. He epitomises the club like no other and all football fans are ever grateful to him for his contributions to the sport.
3) The Theatre of Dreams
The Red Devils’ home stadium Old Trafford is one of the most iconic in world football and the largest for any club in England. It was christened as ‘The Theatre of Dreams’ by United great and all-time top scorer Sir Bobby Charlton and has been the club’s home turf since 1910, except in the 1940s, when it was bombed by the Germans in World War II.
Every United fan dreams of visiting the hallowed grounds of Old Trafford some day and witness United strut their stuff on the pitch. Even on television, one can understand why the stadium is so special as the fans chant ‘United! United!’ to spur their team on.
The atmosphere during a game is truly unique and on an important occasion such as a European fixture, it is truly a sight to behold.
4) Attacking style of play
After Sir Alex’s retirement, there has been much hue and cry about United’s style of play under David Moyes and Louis van Gaal. And it’s hard to blame the two too much as, during its peak, United’s attacking displays were second to none.
With Fergie at the helm, United’s attacks were characterised by swift forward passing, efficient wing play and moments of individual brilliance along with an innate ability to generate a blistering counter-attack out of nowhere.
If such is the standard that is expected of United in every game, it is easy to understand why Louis van Gaal has one of the toughest jobs in world football.
5) Never-say-die attitude
Throughout their history, the one thing that has always stayed with United has been their never-say-die attitude and the ability to come back strong from the worst possible situations, both on and off the pitch.
In 1958, eight United first team players lost their lives in a plane crash in Munich and manager Matt Busby along with captain Bobby Charlton were grievously injured in the accident.
The crash not only derailed their title ambitions that year but also destroyed the core of what was to be one of the greatest generations of players that English football had ever seen. However, in true United fashion, Busby rebuilt the entire team in just 10 years at the pinnacle of which the Red Devils lifted the European Cup in 1968 at Wembley.
‘You can never write Manchester United off!’ is one of the best quotes to depict what the team is all about on the pitch. Under Ferguson, it was almost as if it were natural that United would find that winning goal late in the game, so much so that injury time in a United match came to be known as Fergie Time.
Ole Gunnar Solsjkaer’s winner against Bayern Munich in the 1999 Champions League final, Michael Owen’s winner against City, Federico Macheda’s stunner against Aston Villa, Chicharito’s diving header against Newcastle and Paul Scholes’ header at the Etihad are just a few examples of the Red Devils clinching a win in stoppage time.
Glory, Glory Man United!
