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Walking down the Wembley sidelines for what must be the umpteenth time already for Sir Alex Ferguson, thoughts of a fruitless summer spent deflecting reporters away from Ronaldo rumours and also a painstaking striker search must have gone through the wily Scotsman's mind as the minutes ticked towards the curtain-raiser to the Premiership season - the Charity Shield.
As he embarked on his 22nd full season in charge of the Red Devils, the doubters once again vultured around Ferguson thinking "surely he can't do it again this time?" especially after an illustrious career proving his critics wrong and yet, winning in style while he was at it.
The final whistle blew.
United were victors again – albeit through a penalty shootout.
And yet again, the trophy cabinets just down Sir Matt Busby Way had a new addition.
They say that one thing constant in life is change. The same could be said about Ferguson’s United teams over the years. From Robson to Ronaldo, Ferguson had always been one to re-invent and revamp when the need arose. And now with what seems to be the twilight of Sir Alex’s managerial career – following the announcement of his retirement plans in 2 to 3 years, the football world gauntlet seems to have thrown another challenge to him. Still without a recognized target man in his squad and his 42-goal ace out till October, Ferguson sets out the 08/09 season looking to clinch his 11th BPL title, an elusive 5th FA Cup and also accomplishing what no European manager has been able to achieve in the current UCL format – back-to-back UCL trophies. The challenge however lies beyond the lack of a striker and one Ronaldo, it stems out to the notion by many that this could be the strongest threat yet that United’s rivals could make for that coveted domestic crown.
Rivals making a strong push
The Russian riches at Chelsea have brought in Felipe Scolari, a world-class manager who knows what it takes to win at the highest level and a manager who now has at his disposal some of the best talent in the continent in the form of players like Deco and Bosingwa. Over at Anfield, Rafa Benitez’s Liverpool side showed the rest of the Premiership why they could be the force to be reckoned with last season. And, with the arrival of a Robbie Keane, they have found a striker finally fitting of a formidable partnership with Fernando Torres upfront. Elsewhere, clubs such as Tottenham and Aston Villa have also given a strong case as to why they could break into the “Big 4” in the coming season having made some strong signings in the summer.
Year of the “Fledglings”?
All is not bleak however over at Old Trafford. United are, after all, THE defending European champions and record 10-time winners of the BPL. Fans and pundits alike who have monitored United’s pre-season progress would be quick to tell anyone that the ‘Red Army’ is still marching on strong and also that the future does indeed look bright across the normally grey skies of Greater Manchester. Youth seemed to be a theme of the pre-season campaign as Ferguson gave a good amount of games to the likes of Evans, Simpson and Gibson to mention a few. Having been tipped to make the grade a couple of seasons ago, some of the performances shown by the youngster showcased in United’s games showed that they have truly come of age and could somewhat figure in a portion of senior team games in 08/09. Of course, there has been one name that has been on everyone’s lips this summer (not Ronaldo).
Enter, Rafael Da Silva. The plucky 18-year old full back from Fluminese has been nothing short of explosive this pre-season and has fast become a fan favorite with his aggression and enterprising runs down the right wing. So much so that he has even left a cool, composed man such as Ferguson singing praises even before his first competitive senior appearance. In Rafael it seems, United have found a real South American gem. We cannot even begin to imagine the kind of ability his twin brother, Fabio, is going to display once he begins to get games under his belt too.
The missing piece to the puzzle
As he embarked on his 22nd full season in charge of the Red Devils, the doubters once again vultured around Ferguson thinking "surely he can't do it again this time?" especially after an illustrious career proving his critics wrong and yet, winning in style while he was at it.
The final whistle blew.
United were victors again – albeit through a penalty shootout.
And yet again, the trophy cabinets just down Sir Matt Busby Way had a new addition.
They say that one thing constant in life is change. The same could be said about Ferguson’s United teams over the years. From Robson to Ronaldo, Ferguson had always been one to re-invent and revamp when the need arose. And now with what seems to be the twilight of Sir Alex’s managerial career – following the announcement of his retirement plans in 2 to 3 years, the football world gauntlet seems to have thrown another challenge to him. Still without a recognized target man in his squad and his 42-goal ace out till October, Ferguson sets out the 08/09 season looking to clinch his 11th BPL title, an elusive 5th FA Cup and also accomplishing what no European manager has been able to achieve in the current UCL format – back-to-back UCL trophies. The challenge however lies beyond the lack of a striker and one Ronaldo, it stems out to the notion by many that this could be the strongest threat yet that United’s rivals could make for that coveted domestic crown.
Rivals making a strong push
The Russian riches at Chelsea have brought in Felipe Scolari, a world-class manager who knows what it takes to win at the highest level and a manager who now has at his disposal some of the best talent in the continent in the form of players like Deco and Bosingwa. Over at Anfield, Rafa Benitez’s Liverpool side showed the rest of the Premiership why they could be the force to be reckoned with last season. And, with the arrival of a Robbie Keane, they have found a striker finally fitting of a formidable partnership with Fernando Torres upfront. Elsewhere, clubs such as Tottenham and Aston Villa have also given a strong case as to why they could break into the “Big 4” in the coming season having made some strong signings in the summer.
Year of the “Fledglings”?
All is not bleak however over at Old Trafford. United are, after all, THE defending European champions and record 10-time winners of the BPL. Fans and pundits alike who have monitored United’s pre-season progress would be quick to tell anyone that the ‘Red Army’ is still marching on strong and also that the future does indeed look bright across the normally grey skies of Greater Manchester. Youth seemed to be a theme of the pre-season campaign as Ferguson gave a good amount of games to the likes of Evans, Simpson and Gibson to mention a few. Having been tipped to make the grade a couple of seasons ago, some of the performances shown by the youngster showcased in United’s games showed that they have truly come of age and could somewhat figure in a portion of senior team games in 08/09. Of course, there has been one name that has been on everyone’s lips this summer (not Ronaldo).
Enter, Rafael Da Silva. The plucky 18-year old full back from Fluminese has been nothing short of explosive this pre-season and has fast become a fan favorite with his aggression and enterprising runs down the right wing. So much so that he has even left a cool, composed man such as Ferguson singing praises even before his first competitive senior appearance. In Rafael it seems, United have found a real South American gem. We cannot even begin to imagine the kind of ability his twin brother, Fabio, is going to display once he begins to get games under his belt too.
The missing piece to the puzzle
If its one thing that the Pompey game blatantly pointed out to everyone watching, it was that despite all the invention and industry in their play, United were clearly needing someone to put away the chances upfront. The good news for United fans however is that it is a work-in-progress as Ferguson has publicly signaled his intent to bring in someone before the BPL kicks off against Newcastle on Sunday. Depending on the paper you read, sources have so far suggested either Frenchman Thierry Henry and want-away Dimitar Berbatov as the favorites to walk through the Old Trafford gates before the week is through. Players who would clearly complete the masterpiece that is Manchester United for the 08/09 season.
We do know however that signing or not, Sir Alex Ferguson will never battles without a game plan. And with the promising performances of the young ones in pre-season combined with the increasingly likely arrival of a quality striker upfront, only a fool would bet against the chances that come May, the Old Trafford faithful witnesses a repeat of the “that” one magical night in Barcelona in ‘99 – The Treble.
We do know however that signing or not, Sir Alex Ferguson will never battles without a game plan. And with the promising performances of the young ones in pre-season combined with the increasingly likely arrival of a quality striker upfront, only a fool would bet against the chances that come May, the Old Trafford faithful witnesses a repeat of the “that” one magical night in Barcelona in ‘99 – The Treble.
