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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: Thu May 06 05:49:29 GMT+00:00 1999
Mail: barry@www.red11.org
This Issue:
1. Carling Report
2. Ince wounds United : Guardian
3. My thoughts by Roland Lee
4. Irish Red: Late Juventus Trip Account; Encounter with Juve Team
5. Norman Whiteside Interview - The Independent
++++++=========+++++++========+++++++++========++++++++
TODAYS INTERVIEWS
(Real audio files archived at http://www.red11.org/mufc/sound/99)
Interviews after the game Liverpool 2-2 UNITED
http://www.red11.org/mufc/sound/99/99050599_alex_after_liverpool.rm
1.55m 125k Alex
http://www.red11.org/mufc/sound/99/paul_ince_after_liverpool99.rm
1.05m 71k Ince
Martin Edwards on Alex Fergusons NEW contract:
http://www.red11.org/mufc/sound/99/martin_edwards_on _fergie.rm
224k 3m 26secs
**SPECIAL** 25 mins David Beckham profile! pt 1 + pt 2
Download here:
http://www.red11.org/mufc/sound/99/david_beckham_profile_99.rm 11m 716k
http://www.red11.org/mufc/sound/99/david_beckham_profile_99_pt2.rm 13m 876k
++++++=========+++++++========+++++++++========++++++++
Daily RED Trivia Thurs 6th May 1999:
6/5/1937:
Shay Brennan was born in Manchester. After a dramatic debut in the first game
after Munich, scoring twice against Sheffield Wednesday, he won League Championship
medals in 1965 and 1967, and shared in the 1968 European Cup Final victory. Mainly
at Full Back, he accumulated 355 apps between 1958-70. 19 caps for the Republic of
Ireland.
6/5/1967:
United clinch their seventh League title with a devastating 6-1 win at West Ham
United watched by 38,424. Denis Law 2, George Best, Bobby Charlton, Pat Crerand
and Bill Foulkes scored for the Reds. Team was: Stepney, Brennan, Dunne, Crerand,
Foulkes, Stiles, Best, Law, Sadler, Charlton, Aston. United finished 4 points clear
of Nottingham Forest.
*********************
Barry Daily Comment:
Two points lost today we have to win the last three now.
We were unluky to lose Denis for licking the ball away?
This gave him his 2nd yellow and he now misses the FA Cup Final!
That was Alex's 500th League game last night!
His record?
Played 500 W 263 D 142 L 95 Pts:931!
FANTASTIC!!
"RED sky at night Barcelona delight"
QUOTE OF THE DAY from famous Mike Dobbin:
"If United only reach the European Cup Final every 31 years,
you can't really miss it, even if you spent £1,000 on match tickets this
would only be equivalent to less than 9 pence a day over the whole period."
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Latest sound interviews in Real Audio here:
http://www.red11.org/mufc/sound/99
Everyone who wants the goal in Real Time Video 300k now thanks to RED CAFE!
http://www.iol.ie/~redcafe/texts/report98/domestic/arse-fa2.htm
FA Cup Semi Final Replay
14 April 1999
Manchester United 2:1 Arsenal
Villa Park
Download Ryan Giggs Goal! (Real Video: 300K)
http://www.iol.ie/~redcafe/real/giggs-goal.ra
Thanks to the Theatre of Dreams
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
MANCHESTER UNITED STATS v ALL teams on the Web
http://www.red11.org/mufc/stats.htm
Previous News:
BSKYB Takeover news/pics at http://www.red11.org/mufc/bskyb.htm
Brian Kidd Press conference, pic, real audio
http://www.iol.ie/~redcafe/kidd.htm
Peter Schmeichel's last Season at United!
http://www.red11.org/mufc/news/schmeichel.htm
Next games:
ALL Result/Fixture Index:
http://www.red11.org/mufc/fix9899z.htm
If you would like ALL the final fixtures for
UNITED/Arse/Chelsea then go to http://www.red11.org/mufc/fix9899.htm
Next Games:
May
9 Middlesbrough (A) 16.00 PL Live on Sky Sports UK
12 Blackburn (A) 20.00 PL Live on Sky Sports UK
16 Tottenham (H) 16.00 PL Live on Sky Sports UK
22 FAC Final Wembley Newcastle (N) Live on Sky Sports UK
26 European Cup Final Bayern Munich Nou Camp
UNITED Stats v All teams:
http://www.red11.org/mufc/stats/
*** RESULTS AND ATTENDANCES ON 05/05/99 ***
Chelsea 1-0 Leeds United 34,762
Leicester City 1-2 Derby County 20,535
Liverpool 2-2 Manchester United 44,702
Tottenham Hotspur 1-3 Arsenal 36,019
*** CONDENSED LEAGUE TABLE AS AT 05/05/99 ***
Pos Team P W D L F A GD Pts
---------------------------------------------------------
1 Arsenal 36 21 12 3 58 16 42 75
2 Manchester United 35 20 12 3 77 36 41 72
3 Chelsea 36 19 14 3 53 27 26 71
4 Leeds United 36 17 12 7 59 32 27 63
5 Aston Villa 36 15 10 11 48 41 7 55
6 West Ham United 36 15 9 12 42 47 -5 54
7 Liverpool 36 14 9 13 65 48 17 51
8 Middlesbrough 36 12 15 9 48 49 -1 51
9 Derby County 36 13 12 11 39 43 -4 51
10 Tottenham Hotspur 36 11 13 12 44 46 -2 46
11 Leicester City 36 11 13 12 38 45 -7 46
12 Newcastle United 36 11 12 13 47 51 -4 45
13 Wimbledon 36 10 12 14 40 58 -18 42
14 Sheffield Wednesday 36 11 7 18 39 42 -3 40
15 Everton 36 10 10 16 36 45 -9 40
16 Coventry City 36 11 7 18 37 49 -12 40
17 Southampton 36 9 8 19 33 64 -31 35
18 Blackburn Rovers 35 7 12 16 36 49 -13 33
19 Charlton Athletic 36 7 12 17 37 52 -15 33
20 Nottingham Forest 36 5 9 22 32 68 -36 24
*** TEAM RESULTS - MANCHESTER UNITED - AS AT 05/05/99 ***
Date Opposition Score Pos. Attend.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
15/08/98 Leicester City Home D 2-2 11 55,052
22/08/98 West Ham United Away D 0-0 11 26,039
09/09/98 Charlton Athletic Home W 4-1 9 55,147
12/09/98 Coventry City Home W 2-0 5 55,193
20/09/98 Arsenal Away L 0-3 10 38,142
24/09/98 Liverpool Home W 2-0 3 55,181
03/10/98 Southampton Away W 3-0 2 15,251
17/10/98 Wimbledon Home W 5-1 2 55,265
24/10/98 Derby County Away D 1-1 2 30,867
31/10/98 Everton Away W 4-1 2 40,079
08/11/98 Newcastle United Home D 0-0 3 55,174
14/11/98 Blackburn Rovers Home W 3-2 2 55,198
21/11/98 Sheffield Wednesday Away L 1-3 2 39,475
29/11/98 Leeds United Home W 3-2 2 55,172
05/12/98 Aston Villa Away D 1-1 2 39,241
12/12/98 Tottenham Hotspur Away D 2-2 1 36,079
16/12/98 Chelsea Home D 1-1 2 55,159
19/12/98 Middlesbrough Home L 2-3 3 55,152
26/12/98 Nottingham Forest Home W 3-0 3 55,216
29/12/98 Chelsea Away D 0-0 3 34,741
10/01/99 West Ham United Home W 4-1 3 55,180
16/01/99 Leicester City Away W 6-2 2 22,091
31/01/99 Charlton Athletic Away W 1-0 1 20,043
03/02/99 Derby County Home W 1-0 1 55,174
06/02/99 Nottingham Forest Away W 8-1 1 30,025
17/02/99 Arsenal Home D 1-1 1 55,171
20/02/99 Coventry City Away W 1-0 1 22,596
27/02/99 Southampton Home W 2-1 1 55,316
13/03/99 Newcastle United Away W 2-1 1 36,500
21/03/99 Everton Home W 3-1 1 55,182
03/04/99 Wimbledon Away D 1-1 1 26,121
17/04/99 Sheffield Wednesday Home W 3-0 1 55,270
25/04/99 Leeds United Away D 1-1 2 40,255
01/05/99 Aston Villa Home W 2-1 1 55,189
05/05/99 Liverpool Away D 2-2 2 44,702
*** FIXTURES ON 08/05/99 ***
Aston Villa v Charlton Athletic
Blackburn Rovers v Nottingham Forest
Derby County v Coventry City
Everton v West Ham United
Leicester City v Newcastle United
Sheffield Wednesday v Liverpool
Wimbledon v Southampton
*** FIXTURES ON 09/05/99 ***
Middlesbrough v Manchester United
*** TEAM STATISTICS - MANCHESTER UNITED - AS AT 25/04/99 ***
AVERAGE HOME ATTENDANCE: 55,188
HIGHEST HOME ATTENDANCE: 27/02/99 - Southampton (55,316)
LOWEST HOME ATTENDANCE: 15/08/98 - Leicester City (55,052)
BEST WIN: 06/02/99 - Nottingham Forest (8-1)
HEAVIEST DEFEAT: 20/09/98 - Arsenal (0-3)
BEST HOME WIN: 17/10/98 - Wimbledon (5-1)
HEAVIEST HOME DEFEAT: 19/12/98 - Middlesbrough (2-3)
BEST AWAY WIN: 06/02/99 - Nottingham Forest (8-1)
HEAVIEST AWAY DEFEAT: 20/09/98 - Arsenal (0-3)
*****
Champions League:
Group D P W D L F A Pts
Bayern Munich 6 3 2 1 9 6 11
Man United 6 2 4 0 20 11 10
Barcelona 6 2 2 2 11 9 8
Brondby 6 1 0 5 4 18 3
Dec 9 Brøndby 0-2 Barcelona
Dec 9 Man Utd 1-1 Bayern Munich
******
CHAMPIONS' LEAGUE QUARTER-FINALS
Manchester Utd 2 v 0 Inter Milan
Real Madrid 1 v 1 Dynamo Kiev
Juventus 2 v 1 Olympiakos
Bayern Munich 2 v 0 Kaiserslautern
**DYNAMO KIEV 2 v 0 REAL MADRID (Agg:3-1)
FC KAISERSLAUTERN 0 v 4 **BAYERN MUNICH (Agg:0-6)
INTERNAZIONALE FC 1 v 1 **MANCHESTER UNITED (Agg:1-3)
OLYMPIAKOS 1 v 1 **JUVENTUS (Agg:2-3)
Semi Finals
Manchester United v Juventus 4-3agg 1-0 [1-1]
Bayern Munchen v Dynamo Kiev 4-3agg 1-0 [3-3]
UEFA Champions League Final MANCHESTER UNITED v BAYERN MUNICH
Venue Camp Nou (Estadi FC Barcelona), Barcelona, Spain
Date Wednesday 26 May 1999 Kick-Off 20.45 CET (19.45 GMT)
++++++=========+++++++========+++++++++========++++++++
Paul is now RED TV Masterfan 1999: Click on pic for details!
Subject: Carling Report
Liverpool (0) 2 Man United (1) 2 FT
Redknapp 69 (pen) Yorke 23
Ince 89 Irwin 56 (pen)
Paul Ince scored the goal that could just stop his old club
from winning the championship.
Two minutes from time the former Manchester United skipper
scrambled Liverpool's equaliser over the line for a goal
that struck like a dagger through the heart of his old
employers.
Liverpool had been outplayed for well over an hour, but in
a sensational comeback they pulled a two goal deficit back.
For Ince it was a sweet, sweet moment. Back in '92 he had
been a United player at Anfield when Liverpool had stopped
Alex Ferguson's men from winning the title on the last day
of the season.
That day he had to listen to Liverpool hordes chanting
``You've lost the league on Merseyside.''
That anthem battered the ears of United and their fans
again tonight, but this time Ince was a cavorting, air
punching demon.
He'd been branded a `big time Charlie' by Ferguson
recently, and at the end the Kop fans were howling his name
in delight.
United are now three points behind Arsenal, who won at
Tottenham. They must still be marginal favourites with a
game in hand, but it's going to be a mighty close run-in
now.
For Liverpool it was the night their haunted stars found
their pride.
At two down they were dead, and outclassed. But the red
card for Denis Irwin in the 75th minute was a critical
point. It gave Liverpool the belief that they could finally
hurt bitter rivals who had passed and overtaken them in the
last decade.
Now it could be the third time in eight seasons that
United's title dreams have died on Merseyside. First there
was '92, then in '95 and now '99. We will know in a 11 days
time.
United had looked so assured. Back came Jaap Stam, Roy
Keane and Andy Cole for United, but Liverpool - so stripped
of anything like a quality strikeforce - reverted to a five
at the back to counter a fearsome United front line and
left Karlheinz Riedle up front on his own for long spells
as they fought to contain United's machine.
The injuries and suspensions have made things far worse,
but there can never have been a time when there was such a
gulf between these sides, so comfortable did United look.
Liverpool responded to the ferocious wall of sound created
by their fans, they chased, worked and battled. But where
they had effort and commitment, United had class, calm and
composure.
Nobody could question Liverpool's heart, certainly in the
first half, but you wondered how long they could keep up
the toil needed to contain a team who had gone 27 games
without defeat.
Paul Ince's opening minutes were full of sheer intent,
calling cards that a few years back would have struck fear
in opponents...in those days, Manchester United's opponents.
Ince launched himself at Keane in one box, and within
minutes thundered into Dwight Yorke at the other end. The
Kop loved it, but Ince these days can't keep the Guv'nor
image up for long. Liverpool found themselves pushed back
and struggling to keep United at arms length.
Liverpool had some half chances when Rigobert Song juggled
the ball into the middle and Steve McManaman couldn't
direct a header, and then when Ronny Johnsen's half-hit
back pass gave Oyvind Leonhardsen the hint of an opening
until the giant hands of Peter Schmeichel swept up the
danger.
But you could sense United's response was coming. It
happened in the 22nd minute when Riedle and primarily
McManaman failed to stem United's flow down the left some
50 yards out with what should have been a simple piece of
two-on-two covering.
But David Beckham and Keane engineered the gap, Beckham was
played down the right at lightning pace and the superbly
struck cross on the run was met by an equally savage headed
finish by York on the far post.
It was like watching a white hot knife searing through
butter, Liverpool, despite all their intent and proud
defiance, had been cut to pieces.
Beckham managed to upset the Kop by running in front of the
Liverpool hordes as he celebrated, and then he collided
with Jamie Carragher as he raced across the box to
congratulate Yorke, turning to taunt his the Liverpool
defender as he went.
Liverpool strived for the gaps to hit back, Dominic Matteo
down the left on several occasions, and Leonardsen's
industry, did their best.
But Stam was supreme, Keane asserting command, and only a
fine crossfield ball from Jamie Redknapp that almost put
Song away, threatened to unsettle the European Cup
finalists.
In fact, they cut lose again two minutes from the break,
with a lightning attack as a Liverpool attack broke down,
and Beckham again produced the quality cross for Yorke to
send in a diving header that Brad Friedel was forced to
beat away.
Liverpool came out fighting after the break, still their
only real attacking threat was McManaman running from deep,
but they were still plugging away.
Matteo was played clear down the left by the Real Madrid
bound star, and from his laid back cross, Ince hooked over
as he raced into the box.
But any thought that there was a way back looked finished
when referee Elleray awarded a penalty when Carragher's
flying boot had poleaxed Jesper Blomqvist as he raced into
the box.
It took fully two minutes to get the kick taken, Ince got
involved in some pushing and shoving, virtually every
player became involved but cool heads around soon defused
the issue.
Denis Irwin stepped up to drill the spot-kick past Friedel,
and Liverpool were staring in the face their third
successive defeat against United this season.
Gerard Houllier threw on the barely fit Patrik Berger for
Song, and Ince was pushed up front for the second game in
succession. Berger showed his intent with one twisting run
away from Stam and a fierce drive just over, but you still
got the impression that United were playing like a father
playing holding off his young son as he tried to hit him.
United were still not being hurt, and they had Paul Scholes
and Irwin booked inside a minute as they underlined the
steel in their side.
But Berger's influence was having an effect, and when he
pulled a 69th minute cross into the box for Leonhardsen,
Blomqvist pulled the Norwegian's legs from under him, and
Redknapp rapped in the penalty to give Liverpool hope.
They found an extra gear at last, started hurling men
forward and with the better shape to the side with Berger
on, at last started to stretch United.
After 75 minutes Liverpool were given even more belief when
Irwin got himself stupidly sent off for kicking the ball
away after a free-kick had been given.
Ferguson's response to that was to haul off Blomqvist and
Cole and send on more defenders in Phil Neville and Nicky
Butt.
But United were hanging on now, and two minutes from time
Ince battled his way through in the six yard box to force
the ball home after substitute David Thompson and Riedle
had caused havoc.
You could have heard the eruption of noise right back up
the East Lancs Road in Manchester, thunderous waves of
sound as United lost their cool.
Ferguson had to be ushered back from the line by the fourth
official, and he angrily shrugged away the restraining hand.
In injury time an unmarked Carragher arrived in the box to
head a Thompson cross wide as Anfield collectively held
it's head in it's hands.
Somehow Liverpool had come back from the dead, and this
loss of two vital points for United could just be the death
blow to their title hopes.
Liverpool: Friedel, Song (Berger, 56), Staunton (Thompson,
79), Babb, McManaman, Leonhardsen, Redknapp, Riedle, Ince,
Matteo, Carragher.
Subs not used: James, Ferri, Bjornebye.
Man United: Schmeichel, G. Neville, Irwin, Johnsen, Stam,
Beckham, Cole (Butt, 76), Blomqvist (P. Neville, 76),
Keane, Scholes, Yorke.
Subs not used: May, Sheringham, Van Der Gouw.
Booked: Scholes, Irwin, Keane.
Sentoff: Irwin 75.
Attendance: 44,702.
Paul is now RED TV Masterfan 1999: Click on pic for details!
Subject: Ince wounds United : Guardian
By Ian Ross at Anfield Thursday May 6, 1999
Paul Ince dealt his former club Manchester United's title hopes a severe
blow last night when he equalised in the dying seconds to earn Liverpool a
draw
after they had trailed 2-0 at one stage.
It left United, who were reduced to 10 men when Dennis Irwin was sent off
in 75th
minute, three points behind Arsenal and although they have a game in hand the
north Londoners now have the edge in terms of goal difference.
It was a most breathless evening. Anfield has always appreciated thoroughbred
sides and in between the frenzied bouts of Scouse partisanship, there seemed a
genuine respect for United, if not individually then certainly
collectively. It is
called grudging admiration.
Liverpool's coach Gerard Houllier had boxed clever before the game, praising
United for their achievements while reminding his own crestfallen players that
victory would serve to partially absolve them of their more transparent sins.
But for as long as they must perform without Michael Owen and Robbie Fowler,
Liverpool teams will look unbalanced, too heavy at the back, too
lightweight upfront.
New players will likely pour through Anfield's front door in the summer - the
Czech international Vladimir Smicer and Guinea's Titi Camara will head the
queue -
but until then Houllier will continue to pass off fools' gold as a precious
metal.
His approach to what he described as a 'cup final' was admirably cavalier
and by
pushing three men forward he was possibly subscribing to the theory that,
when pitted against superior opponents, it is better to fight on your feet
than die on
your knees.
Although Jaap Stam and Roy Keane were restored to the heart of United's
defence
and midfield respectively, Ryan Giggs's ankle was not risked. Even bigger
tests lie
ahead for United.
The opening was a blur with United, perhaps, a little surprised by the
level of
their hosts' commitment. The problem was, and it is a familiar one, that
Liverpool's football was underpinned by no great intelligence - energy,
yes, guile, no.
Rigobert Song plotted much down the right flank, but even when the United
full-back
Denis Irwin was undone there was no hint of an end product simply because
Liverpool's only recognised striker the German Karl Heinz Riedle who was
wellshadowed by the Dutchman Stam.
The evening was almost brutal in its intensity with a cavalcade of late,
high and
plain nasty tackles coming in from the most unlikely of sources. It had not
yielded a single chance before United moved in front midway through the half
with a sublime goal, an oasis in a desert of mediocrity.
Keane filtered the ball down the right and David Beckham's first-time cross
was
exquisite, sailing over the Liverpool back line and into the path of Dwight
Yorke,
who scored with the cleanest of headers.
The spell had been broken and as Anfield fell silent, Liverpool seemed
likely to allow
all the old uncertainties come to the surface and render them impotent.
Their self-belief punctured, the Merseysiders permitted the pace of their
game to slacken and on a night when sheer physical effort was their best
ally, it
did nothing to improve their prospects.
For all their possession Liverpool did not fashion even a half chance until
early in
the second period and even then it was insufficient to precipitate an
increase in
Peter Schmeichel's heart rate.
Dominic Matteo moved smartly down the left flank and while his cross appeared
misdirected and underhit it Paul Ince, but his volley was wild and high.
It was a costly miss becausewithin minutes United had underlined a growing
supremacy with a second goal. Jesper Blomqvist rounded Song and seemed
likely to score until he was caught in the throat by Jamie Carragher's
desperate
lunge.
After much arguing and no little jostling, Irwin steered home sweetly from the
penalty spot. Thereafter, Liverpool lost their way and their temper.
But, unexpectedly, they moved back into contention after 69 minutes when Jamie
Redknapp whacked home a penalty after Blomqvist was adjudged to have fouled
Oyvind Leonhardsen.
Liverpool (0) 2 - 2 (1) Man Utd
Redknapp (70) pen Yorke (22)
Ince (88) Irwin (57) pen
Liverpool
Friedel; Babb, Matteo, Song, Staunton; Berger, Ince,
Leonhardsen, Redknapp, Thompson; Carragher;
McManaman, Riedle.
Manchester United
Schmeichel; Irwin, Johnsen, Neville, G, Neville, P,
Stam; Beckham, Blomqvist, Butt, Keane; Cole,
Scholes, Yorke.
Referee: D. R. Elleray (Harrow-on-the-Hill)
Attendance: 44,702
Bookings
Liverpool: None
Manchester United: Scholes (58) Irwin (60) Keane (90)
Sent off
Liverpool: None
Manchester United: Irwin (60)
Paul is now RED TV Masterfan 1999: Click on pic for details!
Subject: My thoughts by Roland Lee
What a t**t of a referee. Blomqvist makes a superb tackle (as proven in
TV replay) and he gave pool the penalty. And now Irwin will miss the Cup
Final!
I thought Fergie said bad luck tends to even out in a season but it
does'nt seem to be United's case.
I'm bloody mad. Seeing Charlie run to the United fans after the final
whistle to taunt the fans, and seeing the pool fans celebrate when the
arse score was announced.
But nevermind, Charlie Ince's only possible club achievement these days
is finish mid-table and take two points off a great club in their Cup
Final. Fergie has such astute judgement, letting him go when he knows
what a jerk he really is. And maybe Man Utd fans will celebrate like the
way the scousers did today, on May 26th in Barca.
But amidst all the feeling of dejection over two points robbed, we must
remember that it is still in our own hands. A 1-0 win at Boro and we
will be top of the league.
Face it, with the way things are going, Arsenal will be 'allowed' to win
against Leeds and Villa. We cannot depend on anyone else.
We must now be even more determined to win it, and we can. The players
are very, very angry and Boro, Blackburn and Tottenham will face the
full force of it.
Arsenal is coming at our heels, but like what Tina Arena would sing ....
We'll try and stem the tide, then we'll raise a banner, Send a flare up
in the sky, try to burn a torch and try to build a bonfire. Every signal
that we send, until the very end, WE WILL BE THERE.
This blow is not as decisive as the Arse's win at OT last year.
If Arsenal win their last two matches, we'll win our last three. If
Arsenal win by 10 goals we'll win by 15. Not even Ellery can stop us
when the Red Tide Moves.
Roland Lee
Paul is now RED TV Masterfan 1999: Click on pic for details!
Subject: Irish Red: Late Juventus Trip Account; Encounter with Juve Team
Hello to all Red Devil Fans,
A brief account of a fantastic trip to Red Devils v Juve in Turin. Three
of us travelled to Milan on the Monday prior to the game. We had no
accomodation booked in Italy or match tickets. Visited the San Siro
Monday but it was closed - post match tidying up. Night Life Monday night
- Lolapalusa disco bar after great restaurant meal.
Tuesday, travelled to Turin by train and got accomodation within 5 minutes of
arrival. Room for three - forty pounds. Sampled the night life in Turin
Tuesday night - Rock City Disco.
Wednesday morning got up and walked the five minute trip to train station.
A chap from London offered to sell us match tickets priced eighty pounds
(face value sixty quid) in United section. We were a bit suspicious but
compared them with other tickets belonging to passing fans. The guy
selling the tickets was an Arsenal fan who had been in Copenhagen when
Arsenal triumphed over Parma in 1995; this gave him a bit of credibility
we thought-at least a fan. We bought the tickets.
At five thirty we decided to go back to where we were staying to get ready
for going out to Stadio Del Alpi. Around the corner from our one star
hotel there was a bus with Juventus FC written on it, parked outside a big
hotel. There was a small crowd gathered outside. We stood outside. Anday
Gray and another presenter from Sky Sports walked out hotel front doors
shortly afterwards. Inside we could see Edgar DAvids. About six forty-five
the whole Juventus team filed out in front of us to get on the team
bus.... Conte, Zidane, Davids, Peruzzi, Ferarra etc. We were standing less
than a metre from them. Great Stuff. They all looked nervous.
Went to the stadium and match shortly afterwards. What can I say? At 2-0
down I was philosophical - we got here, encountered Juve team, got into
the game, they are going to lose three or four nil, lets make the most of
it. Then the turnaround. Unbelievable. Thoughts on Keanes booking -
Blomquist gave the ball away and Keane told him so just before it. I think
Blomquist is a good palyer, but he looks as if he is playing with an
injury or not telling someone about an injury he has or something like
that - he lacks fire in taking on defenders.
Wednesday night,to hotel after game. Back to Milan Thursday, bought some
Marco van Basten videos. Back to Dublin Friday after another night on the
town in Milan. We were so tired in Milan airport we forgot to get boarding
passes for the plane - got home anyway.
A Fantastic Trip,
Diarmuid Hayes.
Paul is now RED TV Masterfan 1999: Click on pic for details!
Subject: Norman Whiteside Interview - The Independent
The Brian Viner Interview - Whiteside. Hard man with healing touch.
Norman Whiteside is still a couple of days away from turning 34, which is
incredible when you consider that it is nearly a decade since he last
played League football. Indeed, it is so long since he reached the height
of his formidable ability that his wondrous extra-time goal for Manchester
United in the 1985 FA Cup final denied Everton the League, FA Cup and
European Cup-Winners' Cup treble - that's the Everton now known for
annually clinging to the precipice leading to the Nationwide First
Division. Ironically, he later played for them, and as an Evertonian I tell
him I am not sure whether I want to kiss him or kick him. In truth, neither
would be a good idea. He then recalls that Cup final goal with distressing
clarity, how he used Pat Van Den Hauwe to shield the ball from Neville
Southall before whipping it in with his left foot. "Big Neville was
probably the best goalkeeper in the world at that time, which made it even
more special. Basically, I bought an extra yard by using the defender.
Bergkamp does the same thing every week now." We meet at the Griffin, the
pub in leafy Altrincham where in the good old, bad old days, Whiteside was
known to have a pint or seven with his buddies Paul McGrath and Bryan
Robson. "We'd have a fair few pints of Guinness at Paddy Crerand's pub,
too," he says. "But to be fair, we did it at the right time. On a Saturday
night or Sunday lunch. Sometimes on a Wednesday after the game. Never on a
Thursday or Friday." From more or less the time he made his United debut at
the tender age of 16 - not that there was ever anything particularly tender
about him - Whiteside's reputation was three-pronged. In reverse order, he
was known to be a heavy drinker, a heavy tackler, and a footballer of rare
ability. Let's concentrate on the rare ability, which developed in the
ultra-loyalist back streets off Belfast's Shankill Road. In fact, the
family lived next door to the headquarters of the Ulster Defence
Association, and Whiteside credits his parents with the fact that neither
he nor his two brothers got involved in paramilitary activities, like many
of their contemporaries. Not that their hands stayed exactly spotless.
Whiteside now has a kind of footballer emeritus role at Old Trafford,
meeting and greeting corporate guests on match days, and recalls
introducing himself to a couple of Belfast fellas who looked up with awe
and said, "We used to throw stones at each other, big man, remember?" Most
of the time, though, the Whiteside boys played football, grudgingly
interrupting kickabouts to go to school. "I had tunnel vision. I didn't do
my homework, I didn't go out with girls, I just wanted to be a footballer,"
says Whiteside. When he was 12, his dedication paid off. He was spotted by
an Ipswich Town scout, but the Ipswich manager, Bobby Robson, thought he
was too young. By then, Manchester United had already swooped, and at 14
Whiteside signed schoolboy terms, declining offers from Liverpool,
Tottenham and Arsenal. The United manager, Dave Sexton, asked if he would
consider finishing his education in Manchester, but Whiteside chose to
commute several times a week from Belfast. "And now that I've seen what an
English education did for Paul Gascoigne, I'm sure I made the right
decision," he says. He has an engaging wit, and wonders what the
pin-stripes on the Belfast-Manchester shuttle made of the young lad in a
duffel coat and a skinhead haircut. "They must have thought I was selling
gear." Whiteside made his United debut towards the end of the 1981/82
season - at Brighton of all places, another reminder that we've all passed
a lot of water since then. He came on as substitute for Mike Duxbury and
Ray Wilkins nicked the winner, so the £16-a-week teenager copped a £600 win
bonus. Does he remember what he spent it on? "A sheepskin coat, I think."
It was a magical time. And when, that summer, he pipped Pele as the
youngest player ever to play in the World Cup finals, the comparison with
another Belfast prodigy who dazzled the Stretford End became irresistible.
Norman Whiteside did not exactly evoke George Best physically, though. He
was big, unflinching in the tackle and even at 17, impossible to
intimidate. "Graham Roberts at Spurs was the only guy who gave me stick,"
he recalls. "He said, 'do you want to play next week or do you want your
leg broken?' But I tackled him before he finished the sentence, and that
was that." Actually, Whiteside - who surprisingly was sent off only once -
believes that his reputation as a bruiser is undeserved. "I think the media
made too much of the hard man issue, and neglected my passing abilities and
my leadership qualities," he says. Certainly, in Alex Ferguson's
estimation, "If Norman Whiteside had had one more yard of pace, he would
have been one of the greatest players ever produced in British football."
Whiteside admits that had he been quicker, he would also have had fewer
bookings. "The report always said 'intent to endanger player' but nine
times out of 10 it was because I was too slow. Funnily enough, I was a
sprint champion at school, but when I was about 15 I had a groin strain and
I went to see a physio in Northern Ireland, who played around with my hips
and joints. My hips still clunk to this day because of what he did, and I
lost all my speed. I could near enough put it down to that but I have never
really spoken about it." With speed, as Ferguson said, he would have been
exceptional. Without it, he was merely very, very good - sufficiently good
for Milan to offer United £1.5m for him, then considered a staggering sum
for an 18-year-old. They offered to stick a further million in his back
pocket, and if he knew then what he knows now, he might have taken it. As
it was, he thought he had too much yet to prove at Old Trafford. "I wanted
to stick around until I was about 26, then go abroad, like McManaman."
Instead, Alex Ferguson sold him to Everton, and at 26, his career was
cruelly abbreviated. He was playing five-a-side in training - "I'll never
forget the date, it was September 20, 1990" - when his knee buckled in a
challenge with an apprentice. The club surgeon told him that he could
continue playing for a year or two, but he would be bringing up his kids in
a wheelchair if he did. Fortunately, Whiteside's mentor at Old Trafford,
Bryan Robson, had persuaded him to insure himself against the possibility
of career-wrecking injury. "As a 17-year-old, it was very hard to get that
£2,000 out of your pocket every year, but I'm glad I did. I would have been
very disappointed with football if I hadn't got anything out of it." All
the same, he hated hanging up his boots. "I loved all the dressing-room
banter, and it was pretty upsetting waking up with no dressing-room to go
to. I was pretty low." So he formulated a scheme to keep him within the
game. "I was always interested in medicine because I was in the medical
room so much. I had 12 operations in my career - appendix, feet, ankles,
Achilles, knees - and while I was at Everton I did an FA diploma course to
be a physiotherapist." He then went to college to gather some A-levels, and
on to Salford University, which he left as a fully qualified podiatrist,
specialising in the area between the hip and the big toe. Last year, with
the backing of the Professional Footballers' Association, he worked at 10
clubs, screening the youngsters for lower-limb abnormalities. "This year
I've travelled to 33 clubs, from Carlisle to Torquay, and I heard last week
that I've been given provision to do the whole 92. The PFA fund it, which
is magnificent. Some of the lower League clubs are so grateful for the free
services of a podiatrist that it's unbelievable." Do the youngsters know
that the guy fiddling with their feet has scored the winning goal in a Cup
final? "If they don't, I soon tell them." As for the Premiership clubs,
most have their own podiatrists, and even though it would be almost
poetically fitting, Whiteside does not want to tread on any toes. "But they
mostly look after the first-team players, building insoles for them and so
on. I want to concentrate on the kids," he says. Meanwhile, if his podiatry
career should run out of puff, he is also a fully qualified FA coach. In
several Northern Ireland prisons, he has coached convicted terrorists from
both sides of the political divide. Once, Republican inmates threatened his
safety, but he won them over on the pitch and then took a
question-and-answer session. "Someone said, 'what's it like to score in a
Cup final?' Someone else said, 'How much money did you make out of
football?' And then this fella at the back said, 'Do you remember when you
and me robbed that post office, Norman?' I couldn't stop laughing. That was
my mate, who went to prison aged 17, when I went to the World Cup."
Whiteside's knack with an anecdote serves him well, for he is much in
demand as an after-dinner speaker, and also, with fellow ex-United
stalwarts Stuart Pearson and Wilf McGuinness, as a meeter-and-greeter at
Old Trafford. Sometimes he bumps into Alex Ferguson, who recently told him:
"I used to lie awake, son, thinking 'what am I going to say to that
Whiteside tomorrow?'" Ferguson was referring to his late-night tip-offs
that "Stormin" Norman was out on another bender. "But I was always in first
the next morning, and I would always tell him straight what had happened.
The media have tried to build up this big thing between me and Fergie, but
the truth is we got on well right up to the day he sold me. Right up to
this day, in fact. A tabloid offered me £50,000 to slag him off, and others
have, but I wouldn't. I have too much respect for the guy." And vice versa,
I am sure. For as he limps back to his Jaguar, it strikes me that there is
something hugely admirable about the way big Norman Whiteside goes about
his business.
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