Farewell Fergie: thanks for the memories

One early November morning in 1986 I was sitting down having breakfast at the Beechwood, the hotel that my mother would look after every year for three weeks whilst the owners went on holiday to Australia, when I discovered, via the radio, that the team I supported would be having a new manager.

Following an embarrassing League Cup defeat at Southampton, the previous incumbent, Ron Atkinson, had been sacked and the club were about to embark on the most successful period in its history. Well, I say about to, we had to wait a few years for things to click into place but when they did, boy did they!

I remember the bad times during those early years, particularly the home cup defeat to Nottingham Forest in 1989. Even more painful was the that the league seemed even further away than it had done during Atkinson's tenure. This prompted the infamous message towards the end of 1989 that simply said:

At least Pete Molyneux accepts he was a little premature in unfurling this banner.

The first significant step towards success came at the County Ground, again Forest were the opponents, but this time with a very different result. Thanks to a Mark Robins header from an often forgotten sumptuous Mark Hughes pass (a part of Sparky's game that is frequently overlooked). We were on our way to Wembley. And what a road that was, including some memorable games against Oldham in the semis and Palace in the final.

Then came Rotterdam a year later and Barcelona were overcome in the European Cup Winners' Cup final, largely thanks to the inept goalkeeping of Carles Busquets, standing in for the injured Andoni Zubizararreta. Another slice of luck, admittedly, but Hughes took full advantage to win us our first European trophy since 1968.

Everything was beginning to look good until the culmination of the 1991/92 season. A 2-0 defeat at Liverpool on 26 April 1992 was, and still is, the most painful defeat in all my time as a United fan (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EfehJzVT7-w). Why oh why?! We'd blown it. Fergie still remembers the shouts of "fuck you" from the home dressing room and the most galling moment of all for a young Ryan Giggs: outside the ground a Liverpool fan asked for his autograph and then laughed as he tore it up in front of the Welshman's face.

The tears flowed and flowed as I went to bed that night. Once again, the title seemed as far away as ever. It is funny to think that back then I genuinely wasn't sure if I would ever see us win the league.

The next twist was to come once again whilst I was staying at the Beechwood Hotel, in November 1992. When I picked up one of the resident's newspapers to discover the signing of Eric Cantona for a mere £1.2 million.

This was the catalyst.

The first league title was secured following the Frenchman's arrival and then came the next objective. The European Cup. That was the thing with Fergie, once one goal had been achieved, there was always the next one.

A steep learning curve in Europe was to follow but, in 1999, the holy grail was achieved in spectacular style, in 'Fergie time'. "And Solskjaer has won it," screamed Clive Tyldsley incredulously as the Norwegian prodded home to complete a remarkable injury time turnaround.

More domestic success followed but then came the dark years, between 2003 and 2007, when more questions surfaced over whether Fergie was still up to it. He's lost the plot, he's over the hill, the critics claimed.

As a result, winning the title in 2007 was one of the sweetest.

Winning the Champions League in 2008 was monumental and one of the things that sticks in my head the most, as I stood there in the Luzhniki Stadium on that rainy night, is the image of Sir Bobby Charlton leading us up the steps to collect the trophy, 50 years after he survived the Munich air crash, unlike several of his less fortunate teammates. Once again I began to well up.

If there is anything that illustrates the difference between United and the beaten finalists it was seeing Peter Kenyon lead Chelsea up the steps to collect their runners up medals. United chose a legend who embodied the club like no other, Chelsea chose a Chief Executive and supposed lifelong Man United fan. Fake.

No more success on Europe's biggest stage. A couple of finals where we were well beaten by Barcelona and then there was this year's campaign.

Little did I know back in March when the pain of defeat at the hands of Real Madrid meant I had to go for a long walk, late at night, to try and clear my head. That shock and disappointment pales in comparison to the news of Ferguson's imminent departure. Once again tears were apparent. Especially during his speech at Old Trafford last Sunday, but I wasn't alone in doing this. Emotional.

It was hardly surprising that Ferguson's retirement has provoked such strong emotions. This man, after all, has been responsible for some of the best moments of my life, from the Nou Camp to Moscow, from the Stadio Delle Alpi to Old Trafford. This man has caused me to travel the continent at great expense. But it has been worth it. Every single penny. Thank you Sir Alex.

7. Scotland in the sun: How La Liga’s problems are more than just skin deep

La Liga is in fine fettle - the arguments against

There is, of course, a strong case to suggest there is no need to be concerned about the health of the Spanish league.

For a start, Javier Tebas stated that he is confident of a resolution to the television deal. Currently, Real and Barca enjoy a 49% share of the money from broadcasting, although Tebas is optimistic that their portion will diminish to 34% by the 2014/15 season.

Tebas said: “We’re working towards a similar situation to that in England.”

In England the governing body, the Premier League, deal with the money from broadcasting rights and then distribute the monies in a more even manner. “In three or four years it will be like that in Spain,” Tebas affirmed.

Mind you, Tebas would say that. No lawyer would admit to having little chance of winning his case. Acknowledging the chances of victory are slim would only hinder his argument.

The former LFP vice-president also claimed that this period of dominance from the big two is nothing new. Historically, they are Spain’s two most successful clubs with 51 La Liga titles between them.

Tebas said: “It’s been 60 years that these two clubs have been at the top in Spain so it is not just because of the television money. Even throughout these years there have been occasions when the competition has been good and that someone else (other than the big two) have been at the top.”

Their supremacy is nothing new, but the distance between them and the rest has reached an unprecedented level. Never has the gap been so wide and it is showing no signs of abating. In the 2009/10 season they both recorded a record points haul and last season was more of the same.

In addition, they both reached the last four of the Champions League and, arguably, would have met in the final had they been kept apart in the draw. Of the three major trophies on offer to the top Spanish clubs (the Champions League, the Copa del Rey and La Liga), all ended up in the hands of Barcelona or Real Madrid.

Phil Ball, author of Morbo: the story of Spanish football, argues that Tebas will succeed as the rest of Spanish football demands it and, therefore, Barca and Real will have to respond to that demand. In turn, the fans will demand it too.

He said: “I think Tebas is right. In three or four years from now the money from television will be more evenly spread.

“Barca and Madrid can argue that, given that they generate all this (TV) money anyway, that they should have that amount (49%) of the pie. (But) I don’t see how you can sustain that argument over a long period because if the league continues, if the bridge continues (to widen), then by the nature of logic the league becomes less competitive and it messes up those who are at the top of it – Barca and Madrid. In the end they have a vested interest in the league being competitive.”

This would ring true in most other countries but in Spain things are a little different. Not least because the fans tolerate the dominance of the big two far more than in any other country due to what has been termed ‘second club syndrome’. This is where many Spaniards support one of Real or Barca in addition to their local club. And this devotion is evenly split which enables them to tolerate the lack of competitiveness within La Liga.

When asked to confirm the theory of ‘second club syndrome’, Grimsby fan Ball concedes: “That’s an interesting point. I had not thought of it like that because that’s definitely true. You can go to any pueblo (small town) in Spain and knock on the door and say: ‘who do you support – Barca or Real?’ and they’ll give you an answer. And the answer they give you is not always football based. It is a political, cultural answer. A lot of Spanish people won’t accept this argument but a lot of them do.”

Ball recognises that things have changed in recent years. He added: “Since the whole ‘galactico’ thing at the beginning of the century the face of Spanish football has changed. It was never like this (the gap between the big two and the rest) before. There was a feeling of democracy before but not now. You’ve got a three-tier league. There’s Barca, Real. Then there are those teams who aspire to reach the Champions League placings. Then there’s the rest.”

There is an equally strong argument that suggests it is just two tiers – Barca/Real and the rest. It is more conceivable that any of the other eighteen Primera Liga clubs reach a Champions League spot (finish in the top four) than it is that Real or Barca fail to finish in the top two. This is quite a statement. Could you imagine Norwich City or Wigan Athletic qualifying for the world’s most prestigious club competition? No? Well this illustrates just how unlikely it is that Barca or Real will finish outside the top two this coming season and for the foreseeable future.

Tebas argues that it is only the last two years. More importantly, he adds, Barcelona are dominating with an exceptional team that has been made largely through an astonishingly successful youth scheme and good management, not through spending huge amounts of money on transfer fees.

He said: “Looking at Barca, their big stars were not bought, they were made in Barcelona.”

However, this is ignoring the massive signing on fees Barca pay and a world record in the history of sport on wages.

For the first time in history a football team, or make that two football teams, have topped such a list. The average wage for a first team player at the Nou Camp is £4.94m annually, and at Madrid £4.6m. The average Yankee earns £4.2m a year. So it is not just impeccable grooming that keeps Barcelona on top.

Finally, Barcelona crushed Manchester United at Wembley this year to be crowned Kings of Europe. Surely this augments the belief that Spanish football is in rude health.

However, Pep Guardiola is constantly linked with a move to English football due to a craving for the competitive nature of the football and Mourinho regularly refers to the Premier League in wistful tones. In addition, Arsene Wenger urged Cesc Fabregas to ignore the overtures of the Spanish giants if he is a competitive footballer.