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Compiled by 
Barry
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by 
William
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The
Devil's Advocate "REDitorial"
commentary by Alex Paylor "RED
sky at night UNITED delight!"
www.red11.org DAILY NEWS
Date: Wed Aug 25 04:08:11 GMT 1999
Mail: barry@www.red11.org
This Issue:
1. Vierra, ooh ooh ooh oh Vierra!! by OUR SALFORD LASS
2. Arsenal match report - by Craig Stevens
3. RUCK AND BRAWL
4. Goalkeeper's fitness battle for United
5. UNITED IN CHASE FOR A DEFENDER
6. United raid for Helveg mooted
7. Yorke could miss a month for United
8. KEANE NOTHING TO PROVE - FERGIE
++++++=========+++++++========+++++++++========++++++++
Bill's Daily Comment:
I apologize for the delay in sending out OUR SALFORD LASS'
Arsenal Match Report - it slipped my mind (thanks for the
reminder Craig).
Please check the matchreports webpage as well, since
OUR SALFORD LASS' reports do appear there as soon as
we get them from her.
http://www.red11.org/miva/matchreports.mv
Special thanks of course to OUR SALFORD LASS for bringing
these reports to us! You don't realize how great they are
until they are gone (or temporarily forgotten to be sent
out as the case may be).
Let's hope Rai is fit in a hurry (not that Nick Culkin
can't do the job, but I'll feel better seeing Rai between
the posts).
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
*** RESULTS AND ATTENDANCES ON 24/08/99 ***
Middlesbrough 0-3 Leicester City 33,126
Watford 0-1 Aston Villa 19,161
*** CONDENSED LEAGUE TABLE AS AT 24/08/99 ***
Pos Team P W D L F A GD Pts
---------------------------------------------------------
1 Manchester United 4 3 1 0 9 2 7 10
2 Aston Villa 5 3 1 1 7 3 4 10
3 Tottenham Hotspur 4 3 0 1 8 5 3 9
4 Middlesbrough 5 3 0 2 7 7 0 9
5 Chelsea 3 2 1 0 7 2 5 7
6 Leicester City 5 2 1 2 8 6 2 7
7 West Ham United 3 2 1 0 5 3 2 7
8 Leeds United 5 2 1 2 6 5 1 7
9 Arsenal 4 2 1 1 5 4 1 7
10 Liverpool 4 2 0 2 4 4 0 6
11 Watford 5 2 0 3 4 6 -2 6
12 Southampton 4 2 0 2 6 9 -3 6
13 Wimbledon 4 1 2 1 9 9 0 5
14 Coventry City 4 1 1 2 3 3 0 4
15 Bradford City 3 1 1 1 2 2 0 4
16 Everton 4 1 1 2 7 8 -1 4
17 Sunderland 4 1 1 2 3 6 -3 4
18 Newcastle United 4 0 1 3 6 11 -5 1
19 Derby County 4 0 1 3 2 7 -5 1
20 Sheffield Wednesday 4 0 1 3 3 9 -6 1
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
MANCHESTER UNITED STATS v ALL teams on the Web
http://www.red11.org/mufc/stats.htm
MANCHESTER UNITED RESULTS v ALL teams on the Web
http://www.red11.org/mufc/stats/
ALL FIXTURES at: http://www.red11.org/mufc/fix992000.htm
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Subject: First Team Fixtures 1999/2000 [All dates/times subject to change]
Dates of possible cup ties also shown
Date Opposition Score Pos. Attend.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
1/08/99 Arsenal Wembley Charity Shield 1-2 - 70,185
3/08/99 Omagh Town aid of Omagh Bomb Fund 9-0 - 7,000
4/08/99 Wigan Athletic friendly 2-0 - 15.000
08/08/99 Everton Away D 1-1 10 39,141
11/08/99 Sheffield Wednesday Home W 4-0 3 54,941
14/08/99 Leeds United Home W 2-0 1 55,187
22/08/99 Arsenal Away W 2-1 1 38,147
25/08/99 Coventry City away PL 20.00
27/08/99 Monaco - Lazio ESC 19.45
30/08/99 Newcastle United home PL 13.00
11/09/99 Liverpool away PL 11.30 Live on Sky
15/09/99 ? EC
18/09/99 Wimbledon home PL 15.00
22/09/99 ? EC
25/09/99 Southampton home PL 15.00
29/09/99 ? EC
3/10/99 Chelsea away PL 16.00 Live on Sky
*11/10/99 Sir Alex Ferguson's testimonial OT [Cantona + Schmeichel]
13/10/99 ? WC 3
16/10/99 Watford home PL 15.00
20/10/99 ? EC
23/10/99 Tottenham Hotspur away PL 15.00
27/10/99 ? EC
30/10/99 Aston Villa home PL 15.00
3/11/99 ? EC
6/11/99 Leicester City home PL 15.00
20/11/99 Derby County away PL 15.00
24/11/99 ? EC
27/11/99 Sheffield Wednesday away PL 15.00
30/11/99 Tokyo Palmeiras WCC 20.00
1/12/99 ? WC 4
4/12/99 Everton home PL 15.00
8/12/99 ? EC
15/12/99 ? WC 5
18/12/99 West Ham United away PL 15.00
26/12/99 Bradford City home PL 15.00
28/12/99 Sunderland away PL 20.00 Live on Sky
3/01/2000 Middlesborough home PL 20.00
***** 5-14 /01/2000 Brazil WTC ***** [3-4 games]
12/01/2000 ? WC sf i
15/01/2000 Leeds United away PL 15.00
22/01/2000 Arsenal home PL 15.00
26/01/2000 ? WC sf ii
5/02/2000 Coventry City home PL 15.00
12/02/2000 Newcastle United away PL 15.00
26/02/2000 Wimbledon away PL 15.00
27/02/2000 ? Wembley WC f
1/03/2000 ? EC
4/03/2000 Liverpool home PL 15.00
8/03/2000 ? EC
11/03/2000 Derby County home PL 15.00
15/03/2000 ? EC
18/03/2000 Leicester City away PL 15.00
22/03/2000 ? EC
25/03/2000 Bradford City away PL 15.00
1/04/2000 West Ham United home PL 15.00
5/04/2000 ? EC qf i
8/04/2000 Middlesborough away PL 15.00
15/04/2000 Sunderland home PL 15.00
19/04/2000 ? EC qf ii
22/04/2000 Southampton away PL 15.00
24/04/2000 Chelsea home PL 15.00
29/04/2000 West Ham United away PL 15.00
3/05/2000 ? EC sf i
6/05/2000 Tottenham Hotspur home PL 15.00
10/05/2000 ? EC sf ii
14/05/2000 Aston Villa away PL 15.00
24/05/2000 ? EC f
++++++=========+++++++========+++++++++========++++++++
Click On pic - for latest interviews/pics from OT"
Subject: Vierra, ooh ooh ooh oh Vierra!! by OUR SALFORD LASS
One day, Patrick Vierra will get what's coming to him!
Yesterday was very nearly that day but, unfortunately, the
rest of the United side managed (with great difficulty, it
has to be admitted) to drag Stam off him and prevent the
nasty, cheating, vicious **** getting what he deserved!
It's now Monday morning and, as you can probably tell, I'm
still seething. But lets go back to the beginning of the
story, which began with a burning van on the M1 services:
We had left Old Trafford at 9.30am after being serenaded by
some passing cockneys who sped past the car park at about
60 mph, hanging out of the car window, singing "Arsenal,
Arsenal, Arsenal." After my last trip to the capital a
couple of weeks ago, it was nice to be back on coach no 3
with slim and his mates on the back seat and not a
glory-hunter in sight. This being the first time we had
all met up again since Barcelona, there was some
mickey-taking about drunken antics in Palamos as we set off
down the M6 on a bright, sunny Sunday morning. After
reading the Sunday papers (Keane in a Juventus shirt -
aghh!!) to the accompaniment of chanting from the back
seat, we arrived at the services for a comfort stop. As we
descended from the coach, we noticed smoke coming from
under the bonnet of a van parked nearby. As the smoke
turned into flames, and the flames began to rise higher and
higher, we decided that it might be a good idea to move to
a safe distance. The driver moved the coach and we all
stood and watched whilst the whole van was consumed in
flames. Eventually, the fire brigade arrived and spoiled
the fun by putting out the fire, but not before the lads
off the coach had given their opinion as to the cause of
the fire and the action that should be taken by the lads
from the fire services!
We arrived in London early and found ourselves outside the
turnstyles by 2.30pm. We did consider wandering off to the
pub, but the son-and-heir had forgotten which pub the
others were meeting in, and I didn't fancy walking around
the area looking for it, so we went into the ground, had
some chips and spent the next hour admiring the green
carpet that is the pitch at Highbury. Nice pitch, nice
ground, what a shame the team and the fans are such a bunch
of w*****s! We cheered Raimond van de Gorgeous as he came
out to warm-up, and soon afterwards the team arrived to
further applause. The rest of the time was spent watching
all the tourists having their photos taken (where do they
get the tickets?) and returning friendly gestures with the
arriving Arse fans. As kick-off time approached, we began
to think we were in the Throstles Nest! First, we met up
with Tim (who has been a part-timer of late - sorry Tim!).
Then Paul B and mates arrived, only to inform us that he
had never been present at a United/Arse game when we've
won! The next thing we knew, the Sausage Man arrived
behind us, along with Mark R. And just to our left was Pat
and his sister!
From the kick-off, it was obvious that this was (as usual)
not going to be a game for the faint-hearted as both teams
got stuck in. In the paper this morning, one commentator
pointed to the similarities between United/Arse games in
the 90's and United/Leeds games in the 70's and I have to
admit that this was also going through my mind, if only
because the Arsenal players seem to be attempting to take
over the title of "Dirtiest team of the century" from the
fondly remembered sheep-shaggers of earlier years. Those of
you who didn't see the game, must not believe the
statistics - 4 bookings to us and only 1 to them sounds as
if we were dirtier than them - the truth was that we were
booked for everything and they were booked for nothing.
They should have ended up with 9 men but both players who
should have gone off didn't even get booked, let alone sent
off. If I sound angry, that's because I am, and I still
haven't calmed down today! I can accept getting stuck in
(our Keano isn't exactly an angel) but the diving and the
cheating just gets me so angry. Vierra's whole philosophy
seems to be "fall over as often as possible and eventually,
you will get someone booked". On one level, he didn't get
away with as much as he usually does - at one point, the
referee refused to believe his play-acting and made him get
off the ground and play on, but he still didn't book him
for wasting time, pretending to be injured or just being a
cheating *******! Anyway, back to the plot.
Whilst it was all happening on the pitch, with play going
from one end to the other and the United lads looking like
they were getting on top of the game, off the pitch the
atmosphere in the United section was excellent. The best
fun was had bouncing up and down singing "We are the
Champions, Champions of Europe". The son-and-heir did
complain that it made us look like Leeds fans, but I
pointed out that the difference is that we really are
Champions of Europe! Luckily, no-one was tempted to take
off their shirts and wave them over their heads, and we did
it during the game, and not only at half-time! Other
songs which became ever present during the game were
"Giggs, Giggs will tear you apart again" and "Vierra,
Vierra, he gave Giggsy the ball, and Arsenal won f*** all"
(the latter the the tune of Arsenal's own Vierra song). It
was also good fun to sing "Have you ever won the treble,
have you f***" to the nice VIP's on the balconies above us.
The Arsenal fans only managed the occasional chant of
"Arsenal, Arsenal, Arsenal" and "Vierra" (which was
answered with our own version). At one point, they tried a
chorus of "Stand up, if you hate Man U" but soon went quiet
when the whole United section (even those in the quiet
corner) stood up and sang "Stand up for the Champions".
Apart from the living dead in the corner, we stood
throughout the game. The stewards tried to get us sit down
for the first 15 minutes, but then gave up and simply tried
to ensure that the aisles were clear.
For the first 20 minutes or so, it only seemed to be a
matter of time before we scored. Cole and Yorke were
running rings around an Arsenal defence which seemed
vulnerable without Adams. We were attacking the goal at
the other end of the pitch and we thought we'd scored when
Becks took a free kick and Andy hit the bar. Then a
wonderful pass from Becks put Giggs through, but he shot
wide, much to the delight of the Arsenal fans. It was
something like 35 minutes before Arsenal had a shot on
target - Kanu's shot was tipped over the bar by Raimond.
This gave Arsenal some heart and they began to come back
into the game. After a period during which I shut my eyes
every time the play came down our end, it became
increasingly clear that Arsenal would score. Just before
half-time, Bergkamp put through Ljungberg and the ball was
in the back of the net to (I suspect) no-one's surprise.
As we watched in stunned silence, every Arsenal fan in the
stadium found their voice for the first time - the whole
stadium was jumping up and down, screaming and shouting and
celebrating - bringing back some pretty dire memories from
last season! As the son-and-heir muttered "Please not
again, please not again", we tried to raise ourselves for a
chant of "United" and "Champions of Europe". I just prayed
for the half-time whistle as our lads looked within seconds
of going to pieces and Arsenal had what seemed like chance
after chance.
The half-time break brought a chance to calm down for both
fans and players, and a visit from Dr Mark and Dave A., as
well as your reporter making a fool of herself by almost
hugging a complete stranger due to the poor eyesight of the
Sausage Man! If we thought the first half was not for the
faint-hearted, well the second half was the sort of game
that can lead to heart attacks in the vulnerable! Right
from the kick-off, Arsenal (and their fans) were looking
for that second goal. Now attacking the other end, they
poured into our penalty area, over and over again and only
the heroic defending of Stam, Berg and Raimond kept them
out. I spent half of my time watching from behind my
fingers and the other half turning my eyes from the game
until I could tell by the sound of the crowd that the danger
was over! After about 10 minutes, it looked like our hopes
would be dashed as Upson hit the post and the ball bounced
around in our penalty area. I couldn't look away - I just
stood there, not able to breath, waiting for the Arsenal
fans to erupt and that awful sinking feeling in the stomach
- but somehow, we survived and within minutes we had gone
from despair to elation as Cole and Keane exchanged passes,
the Arsenal defence seemed to stop in their tracks and
Keane placed the ball passed Manninger and into the net,
right in front of us! He stood in front of us, with both
hands at his side and his chest puffed out, grinning up at
us as we went mental. The son-and-heir (along with a couple
of hundred others) ran down to the front, within a few feet
of Keane, giving a piggy back to a complete stranger. The
players jumped all over Keane. He just stood there,
looking up at us, with this look on his face that said
"How's that then??" Until now, I have been wavering about
the Keane situation but tending towards believing we'll
lose him at the end of the season, but in that moment, as
we shared the triumph of that goal, it was hard to imagine
how he could leave, how he could want to leave.
Up until that goal, the atmosphere had gone a bit flat in
the United section - not because we didn't care but simply
because we were all so nervy. Now the nerves went in an
explosion of sound as we sang "Keano, there's only one
Keano" and "Naa, naa, naa, nana na naa Keano" and
"Champions of Europe". The Giggs song was sung again, and
the Vierra song, and most songs from the United songbook as
we willed the lads to score again. Sometime in the second
half, I think it was after the second goal but I lost my
sense of timing at some point, the tension that had been
simmering beneath the surface for the whole game erupted as
Vierra assaulted Keane (there is no other description for
what happened - if he had done what he did on a Saturday
night in Manchester, he would have ended up in a police
cell). Before (it seemed) Keane could react, Stam had run
down from the our end of the pitch to the half-way line and
was trying to wreak some revenge on Vierra. This was a
very scary sight! Even from so far away, the sight of Stam
out of control, having to be held back by at least 6
players, certainly frightened me anyway! Of course, then
the atmosphere was electric with "Yip Jaap Stam" being
belted out by the United fans and the Arsenal fans
screaming at the referee in defence of their "innocent"
Vierra.
From then on, it was again, a roller coaster ride! One
minute they were down the other end and I was covering my
eyes, the next minute they were at our end and I was
praying and holding my breath! Teddy came on 10-15 minutes
from the end to "Oh Teddy, Teddy. Signed for Man United
and he won the lot" from us and "Signed for Man United and
he's still a ****" from the Arsenal fans! The Arsenal fans
sang "Teddy is a wanker" and we sang "Teddy is a champion"
and "Teddy is a champion, champion of Europe" Teddy was
thoroughly enjoying the attention! The referee caused yet
more controversy by booking Becks for speaking to the
linesman before he had even found out what he'd said! We
were beginning to think that a draw would be a relief when,
around 10 minutes before time, Giggs decided to "tear them
apart again" by taking the ball from Parlour's feet and
took a shot. The shot was deflected off Keown and fell at
Keane's feet. He didn't hesitate and there was more bedlam
in the United section as the winning goal went into the
net. The son-and-heir went running off down the steps
again, with yet another stranger taking a flying leap onto
his back, whilst I stayed close to my seat trying to keep
my feet as lads fell to the ground all around me in mad
celebrations. The Arsenal fans just sat stunned and silent.
So all we had to do was to survive another 10 minutes and
we had done it at last - beat the Arse! But there was more
drama to come. We sang "Teddy, Teddy what's the score" (he
turned and lifted the correct number of fingers) and
"Champions of Europe", whilst averting the eyes from their
attacks. Seconds before the end it looked like our
celebrations had been a little too optimistic as they
attacked our goal. Down at the other end of the pitch,
there was yet another attack and the ball seemed to have
been caught by Raimond, but then we saw it bulging the back
of the net. For a few seconds, we felt despair - so near
and yet so far. But the teams weren't coming back to the
centre circle, everything seemed to have stopped. For a
while, there was complete confusion in the stadium, as the
Arsenal fans stopped celebrating and we tried to figure out
what was going on. At first, we thought it must have been
off-side, but there had been no sign of a flag being
raised. Then we realised that the goal had been disallowed
and that Raimond was lying very still on the ground. For
the next couple of minutes, we carried on chanting, but it
was half-hearted as we realised that Raimond could be
seriously hurt. All we could see, was the yellow of his
shirt lying still in the goal-mouth, our other players
standing round him and the referee gesturing for a
stretcher. Eventually, he was carried off, still
worryingly still on the stretcher and Culkin came on. He
kicked the ball downfield, the whistle blew, and that was
it - we had beaten Arsenal! "United, United, top of the
league." As we queued up to leave the ground, we sang
"Champions of Europe" and waved to the VIPS on their
balconies.
Arriving back at the coach, we found we were next to the
Milton Keynes Arsenal Supporters Club coach (perhaps the
Sausage Man could get a lift up to OT with them later in
the season!). Of course, no-one could resist a chorus of
"Do you come from Highbury?" Some of the lads on the
Arsenal coach decided to take exception to this and the
levels of testosterone on the coach rose to the point where
us females were able to sit back with amusement and watch
the men make total prats of themselves! Screaming abuse at
each other through the glass, running up and down the aisle
shouting "let me at 'im" - it was hysterical. Then trouble
kicked off down the road and hundreds of police were seen
running down towards the tube station and the main shopping
area. Of course, this raised the testosterone levels even
further as the lads on the bus told the world what they
would do to the Arsenal "crew" if only the steward would
let them off the bus!! By this time, I was having quiet
hysterics (well, I wouldn't want to hurt their feelings,
would I?) which became total and very noisy hysterics
(along with everyone else on the bus) when an Arsenal fan
passing by was so busy gesticulating and screaming abuse at
our lads, that he walked straight into a tree! His
girlfriend just lowered her head with embarrassment and
walked on, pretending she didn't know him!! The amusement
continued all the way out of London. Having sat for an hour
waiting for the trouble to be cleared in front of us, we
set off for the motorway and the lads on the back seat
decided to entertain the female population of Islington by
doing moonies through the back window, having ensured that
there were no fellas around first, of course! I kept my
eyes on my book and made sure I did not look at the back of
the bus, until we were approaching Manchester!
My moment of the match? Stam in a temper - absolutely
awesome!! My man of the match? It could have been Raimond
or Stam but has to be Keane - he took the game by the
scruff of the neck and got it sorted. Come on, Roy - you
won't get anywhere else what you have in Manchester, stay
with us.
Copyright © 1999 by OUR SALFORD LASS. All rights reserved.
Not to be reproduced without permission of the author
Click On pic - for latest interviews/pics from OT"
Subject: Arsenal match report - by Craig Stevens
The tube journey to Arsenal was remarkable only for the amount of
gooners who kept talking about the Charity Shield and how that
would have demoralized United so much that they would be scarred
for the season! Did they not learn anything last season??
Upon entering the stadium it reminded me how nervous I always
seem to get when I visit Highbury. With the exception of Anfield
and Euro aways, Highbury always seems to make me a little
intimidated which is weird as it is a rather small (by OT
standards) stadium that is not even joined together. Maybe it is
because of previous trips here. I always seem to be lucky enough
to get drawn out for a ticket to Highbury and this was my fourth
trip in a row. The last two ending in defeat and the one before
that a very nervous 2-1 victory in heavy winds and rain.
So it was with nervous tension that I took my seat (how I wished
I was behind the goal where the United fans all stood and not in
with the execs who sat) right next to the cocky Arsenal fans. I
was very pleased to see Raimond in goal as he made me feel 100
times more secure last week against the sheep. I have nothing
against Bosnich and I am one for not judging until people have
had time to prove themselves, but I just feel more confident
with Van der Gouw. The atmosphere was good from the start and
got a lot more heated when Keane brought down Viera after a
matter of minutes. I stood up to applaud the referees leniency
and that was the first time I realized that this was going to be
an interesting afternoon as about 20 Arsenal fans told me in
various different ways to sit down and shut up.
The game seemed very fast to me but I couldn't help thinking
that the ball kept falling to them in midfield and that they
were finding a lot of space and time by playing through balls
behind our defence. Fergie described the game afterwards as a
practice game where each team would take it in turns to attack,
and this wasn't far from the truth. Cole came close with a
header and I have to say that as soon as Becks played Giggs
through on goal I turned to my brother and said "Bollocks, it's
on his right foot". Sadly I wasn't made to eat my words as I was
at Villa Park last year when I told my brother that Giggs should
have held possession rather than trying to take on the whole
Arsenal defence.
The Arse fans were reminded of this regularly in the first half
when the Boyle-esque lyrics of "Giggs: Giggs will tear you
apart: Again" worked it's way around the United contingent.
Sadly, it looked like Giggs was going to have another
indifferent game. Attacks came and went and Van der Gouw and
Manninger were both looking like first-choice keepers until
finally the Arsewipe got behind the defence again and this time
converted for the lead. Scenes reminiscent of Anfield in April
were in evidence all around us as the Gooner fans suddenly
thought they had won the European Cup. Those nearest me made a
point of attracting my attention and gesticulating and I have to
admit it was hard not to rise to their bait. I just hoped I
would get the opportunity to do likewise later.
And so halftime came only minutes after Van der Gouw had kept us
in the game with some more remarkable saves. A number of Arsenal
fans walked past us kissing their replica kit and shouting
"You're not singing any more" which always annoys me at away
games as United always sing ten times more variety of songs than
anyone else and it especially annoyed me then as apart from
their staple "Arse-se-nal, Arse-se-nal" tripe, the fans to my
left had not sung all half.
After discussing with many reds at half time how Fergie will
shake them up at half time and probably take Scholes off for
Butt (as Scholes had a yellow card and we really don't want to
play Arsenal again with 10 men), I was only half surprised to
find out that he did neither of these. The shirts looked really
vulnerable at the start of the second half and we nearly went 2
down as the Arse rattled the post. That seemed to wake us up a
bit and we started to keep possession better. During a lull in
the game I responded to the Arse chants of "You're not very
good" by taking out a pre-arranged Cigar, taking a pretend drag
and then singing "Champions of Europe", then another pretend
drag and another "Champions of Europe". This caused bemusement
to the Arse fans looking but I think they got the point that
what we did last year puts anything that happens this year into
perspective.
And then we only went and scored. It was a well worked goal and
I was so glad that it was Keano that scored as I felt that the
crowd were a bit divided on whether to get behind him or not up
to that point. We made a point of making a point to the Arse
fans and things seemed so much better all of a sudden. Standing
on my chair and singing "we shall not be moved" led to a
policeman telling me to sit down and shut up before he turned to
the guy in front of me and said "I have been watching you all
game and if you look over there (pointing to the Arse fans) when
the ball is over there (pointing to the field) one more time you
will be out". What the hell is all that about? Have things sunk
so low that you can't take your eye of the ball anymore at a
football ground and engage in a bit of chit chat with the
opposing fans?
Many renditions of "Championes" , "Who put the ball in the
Germans net" and "Champions of Europe" (this last one was sung
with a great deal of passion by everyone at last) went round and
the Arse were suddenly a lot quieter. My brother and I couldn't
resist one more swipe at the fans around us and chose a quiet
moment to sing at the top of our voices (whilst leaning over the
barriers and looking directly at the Arse fans) "Who put the
ball in the Arsenal net, Who put the ball in the Arsenal net,
Who put the ball in the Arsenal net, half of fucking Europe!".
This was met by laughter from the United fans and a concerted
effort from the Arse fans to have me and my brother ejected from
the stadium. Fortunately the nearest steward must have been a
Spurs fan as he just told me and bro to sit down.
When Giggs dispossessed Parlour and Keane scored I was surprised
to find my brother, who is traditionally the much more sensible
and placid of the two of us at football games, jump onto the
barrier separating the two sets of fans and go absolutely
mental. Risking the wrath of the Policeman I thought it was too
much of a good opportunity to turn down and besides there was
only 2 minutes left (or so I thought) and so I decided to join
him in a very satisfying 60 seconds or so of Arse baiting and
laughing.
The end of the game was made even more satisfying when the Arse
thought they had scored. They all went mental but it was short
lived as realization dawned on them that you must kick the ball
over the line, not the ball and the goalkeeper.
On a very subdued tube it was left for one Arse fan who thought
it funny to change the lyrics of "always look on the bright side
of life" to "always look on the runway for ice" to be reminded
that United fans take particular exception to this type of
barracking and I just wish I had had the nerve to sing to him
"always look on the tube floor for mice" as he lay there
clutching his stomach after one of our 'bigger' supporters had
put an end to his singing.
And so it was that I returned home particularly satisfied with
the result. Not only because if we win the return leg at OT we
will have taken 6 points of Arsenal and that would make a huge
difference at the end of the season (they did the very same
thing to us 2 years ago), but because I couldn't help thinking
of the contrast in reaction of the Arsenal faithful before (with
their Charity Shield stories) and after (in quiet disbelief). I
love being a red.
Craig Stevens
Click On pic - for latest interviews/pics from OT"
Subject: RUCK AND BRAWL
Sunday saw the official unveiling of the new Manchester United
rugby shirt. To celebrate this momentous event, a
celebrity-packed game was staged between United and Arsenal at
Highbury. It was all jolly good fun and, in the best traditions
of rugger, the players indulged in a 'bit of hanky-panky' at the
least little excuse.
After an innocuous challenge, scrum-half Roy Keane took an
air-kick in the direction of flanker Patrick Vieira, who
responded by appearing to butt Keane. Lock-forward Jiip Jaap
Stam added to the gyp by attempting to lump one on the Frenchman
- it took a determined heave by his own pack to stop him dishing
out retribution.
You'd have thought that Vieira - at least - would have received
his marching orders, but wink-and-a-smile referee Graham Poll
decided that rules were neither here nor there and a friendly
chin-wag would suffice instead.
But should these scallywags still be reprimanded? The FA are
uncharacteristically dragging their feet on this one. "As in
every case like this we must first look at the referee's report,"
said an FA spokesman. Surely Arsene Wenger will punish his
errant star. "I will have to look at the tape and see what
happened and then maybe decide what action to take," said the
Arsenal boss, becoming the second person to require more time to
work out what the rest of us understand already.
UGO-ING NOWHERE
Rumours that Manchester United are about to nick yet another
player from Aston Villa appear to be wide of the mark. If you
trust the word of an agent, that is, which of course the Fiver
has no reason not to.
Weekend newspapers had suggested that King of Kings Alex
Selassie, Emperor of Trafford, was about to bid £8m for Villa
defender Ugo Ehiogu. But Ehiogu's agent Steve Kutner today
insisted that Ugo was content to stay with Villa: "There is
nothing going on. We are not looking for a move and do not
envisage anything happening. People are making mountains out of
nothing."
Denying the existence of a molehill didn't stop the agent
looking for a mole, however. "I don't know where all this
speculation has come from but it has certainly not come from
us," Kutner added, in no way adding fuel to rumours that all
this speculation may have come from them.
Click On pic - for latest interviews/pics from OT"
Subject: Goalkeeper's fitness battle for United
By Christopher Davies
RAIMOND VAN DER GOUW, the Manchester United goalkeeper, should
be fit to play against Coventry tomorrow despite being kicked in
the face at Highbury in the last minute of United's 2-1 win.
The Dutchman was caught by Martin Keown's knee as he challenged
for the ball. Van Der Gouw, who had a scan on the injury
yesterday, was carried off and replaced by Nicky Culkin.
Manager Sir Alex Ferguson said: "He's okay. Fortunately it is
just severe bruising which hopefully will die down within a day
or two. We are hopeful he is going to make Wednesday's game, but
I wouldn't say categorically he is going to be ready. He should
be ready for the Super Cup game against Lazio on Friday though."
If van Der Gouw is not risked tomorrow, it would mean Culkin,
21, making his full debut, with England youth international Paul
Rachubka on the bench.
Ferguson said: "If Nicky Culkin has to play he will be okay.
He's a solid young keeper and I know he'll be all right if Rai
isn't fit."
Click On pic - for latest interviews/pics from OT"
Subject: UNITED IN CHASE FOR A DEFENDER
By David Anderson, PA Sport
Manchester United are battling against the clock to a
defender after being told Ronny Johnsen needs surgery on
his knees.
United had hoped that Johnsen could avoid surgery to cure
the tendinitis, but doctors have told the club that an
operation is the only way to clear up the long-standing
problem.
The Norwegian international will be out of action for three
to four months and with Wes Brown and David May also
on the sidelines, boss Sir Alex Ferguson knows he needs to
strengthen the heart of his back line.
Ferguson has already identified his target and is trying to
complete a deal before next Tuesday's Champions' League
transfer deadline.
"Ronny will be out for three to four months now," he said in
the Manchester Evening News.
"We need to sort out the problem completely and then at
least we may get the last three months of the season from
him.
"He has come to accept that something had to be done
over the last few weeks after there had been no
improvement.
"We're working at something, but it's difficult to say which
way it will go. We're not saying who the target is, but
nobody has got the name right yet.
"We're just waiting on the price and it may be a couple of
days before something is sorted."
© PA Sporting Life
Click On pic - for latest interviews/pics from OT"
Subject: United raid for Helveg mooted
Reports are claiming that Manchester United manager Sir Alex
Ferguson is planning a swoop for AC Milan's Danish star Thomas
Helveg.
Helveg, who can operate in several positions in defence or
midfield, was an integral part of the Milan side that won Serie
A last season, as well as helping his country to the
quarter-finals of France '98.
Helveg is rated around the £7m mark, although it is unlikely
that Milan would prepared to sell him at any price unless
another big name defender/midfielder was brought into the San
Siro.
United were represented when Milan took on Parma in the Super
Cup on Saturday night, with the Dane said to be the focus of
their scouting mission.
Bringing in a player of Helveg's stature would prove to be a
massive boost ahead of the club's forthcoming Champions' League
campaign.
Click On pic - for latest interviews/pics from OT"
Subject: Yorke could miss a month for United
Dwight Yorke could miss a month of Manchester United's season if
he decides to play for Trinidad and Tobago in February's USA
Gold Cup.
The United striker could become one of several Premiership
stars, including Arsenal's Kanu, missing for some key battles
during the crux of the season unless he opts not to make the
trip.
United would be powerless to pull their top scorer out of the
tournament as it is a FIFA sanctioned event and viewed by the
organisers as on a par with the European championships.
However, there have so far been no indications from the Trinidad
and Tobago FA that Yorke will be picked or from the player that
he would accept the invitation.
Click On pic - for latest interviews/pics from OT"
Subject: KEANE NOTHING TO PROVE - FERGIE
By David Anderson, PA Sport
Sir Alex Ferguson insists Coventry's £6million new boy Robbie
Keane has nothing to prove to him ahead of Manchester United's
trip to Highfield Road.
During the summer the United boss reportedly said he would not
pay £6million for the teenage striker and that the Republic of
Ireland international would only make the reserves at Old
Trafford.
Ferguson is keen to play down the furore and he insists his
comments, which were made off the record at a dinner in
Fleetwood, were twisted.
He maintains that he rates Keane, who scored twice on his debut
against Derby on Saturday, very highly.
"He's nothing to prove to me," said Ferguson.
"There was all that stuff in the papers saying I didn't rate the
boy, which is absolutely untrue and everyone knows that.
"What I said was if I spent £6million on a player I would need
to put him in my first team.
"And at 19 years of age with Yorke, Cole, Sheringham and
Solskjaer that would be very difficult.
"That's all I said, but of course some smart journalist has
turned it round."
However, Ferguson has a tougher job trying to explain away the
criticisms he made about Sky Blues boss Gordon Strachan.
In his autobiography 'Managing My Life' Ferguson accuses
Strachan of going behind his back to engineer moves away from
Aberdeen and then United.
When Strachan unsuccessfully tried to join Lens in 1988 after he
had promised to stay at Old Trafford, Ferguson said: "I decided
that this man could not be trusted an inch.
"Our lives had been enmeshed for most of a decade, but I knew in
that moment that I wouldn't want to expose my back to him in a
hurry."
Strachan was incensed by these criticisms, which he felt were
unjustified, and their meeting tomorrow should be interesting.
Ferguson, though, is quick to praise Strachan for his managerial
abilities and he was impressed by Coventry's 2-0 victory over
Derby.
"I thought that was a terrific win for them, although Derby have
been toiling a little bit," he said.
"They are the great survivors, Coventry, so we will have a hard
game down there.
"However, these are the games we have to win."
United are certainly not short of confidence following their
terrific 2-1 win against Arsenal at Highbury on Sunday.
Ferguson is anxious that his side maintain this high standard
against the Sky Blues, which will be their second game in a run
of four matches in nine days.
Following the game, United will fly to Monaco to prepare for
Friday's European Super Cup clash with Lazio before they take on
Newcastle at Old Trafford on Bank Holiday Monday.
Raimond van der Gouw hopes to be fit although his right cheek is
swollen and he has a black eye from his collision with Martin
Keown on Sunday.
Nick Culkin, who replaced him for the final seconds at Highbury,
is on standby to make his full senior debut if the Dutchman
cannot play.
Ferguson has received some welcome news on the injury front and
Gary Neville, who has not played yet this season because of a
groin strain, will continue his recovery in a behind closed
doors friendly against Bury reserves at Gigg Lane on Wednesday.
Click On pic - for latest interviews/pics from OT"
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