Post by Scott on May 31, 2008 17:39:40 GMT
So another season is over and done with. As much happiness and excitement came with the close of this season, relief is the overriding feeling for me. All the stress and pressure of not just this season, but all the years since 1999 really, seemed to be released.
The whole country wanted to believe our decline had come back in 2005, with our manager and team being written off time and again.
I looked at Chelsea and just couldn't see the end of their reign. Whilst I fully believed we would get better than we were, I couldn't see how it would be possible for us to compete with the machine at Stamford Bridge.
We fought them off last season to win the league, claiming it convincingly. To do it again this season, although later that we'd planned, was the moment I'd been waiting for since Roman Abramovich bought Chelsea. But winning just the league wasn't going to be enough.
This season was utter redemption. We showed the decline talk was nonsense, Fergie proved he was still top dog, Ronaldo was rewarded for having the balls to stay after the World Cup, Giggs and Scholes showed why we're still paying their wages, but most importantly, of all the things our team showed this season, we honoured the Babes in the best and only way we really could.
So much had been made of the 50th anniversary of Munich and it all seemed for nothing after our dreadful performance on derby day. I can honestly say I've never felt so totally gutted and disappointed and upset. I just felt so let down. I can handle losing, just about, but don't fucking do it today lads. Of all the days you're going to put on such a shite performance, don't fucking do it today.
The only way that day could have been forgiven was through winning the European Cup. Sure, win it for Fergie, win it for the fans, win it for yourselves...but win it for the Babes. Getting to see Sir Bobby Charlton walk up the steps with the winners to claim their medals and lift the trophy was perfection. So much of our club fits in to the category of magic and make believe, too good to be true, and 2008 was just another example of this. Long may it continue!
RoM News
The forum has been packed over the past fortnight or so, with us regularly having over 120 members logging on in a day which is brilliant. So cheers to all of you who have been helping with the forum activity.
This increased activity has of course brought a few knobbers along with it, so the current staff have agreed it's time to bring new mods on board to help out. The forum has grown so much, there just simply is too much for the current staff to sort out. So, join me in congratulating RaisnHell and Chris83 to the staff team.
The Euro 2008 board will be opened today, for all news relating to the competition as well as match day talk. Portugal will be the adopted team of the forum (unless Ronaldo's announcement in "2-3 days" is that he's leaving! lol)
Of course, our achievements of the season have been marked with products in the shop.
MOTM
JigglyMarina is this months winner.
To mark the end of the season and the end of the Voice of Mancunia for a few months, we've got a special bumper edition which reviews the season as a whole. The members who contributed will all be receiving a gift from RoM as a thanks.
So let us begin...
Soapy – gives insight on our player of the season
After the season United has had, picking a player of the season should be a difficult one. A defence that only conceded 22 goals in the league should be able to throw up obvious contenders, and in truth it does but in all honesty the accolade can only really go to one player.
After the World Cup fracas following Rooney’s ill-timed attempt to emasculate Ricardo Carvalho, Cristiano Ronaldo had the nation once again reaching for the scapegoat button on their remote control. His perceived role in the events left him as public enemy number one in England, and with seemingly little choice but to flee to the waiting arms of Real Madrid with his tail between his legs. That he didn’t was testament to both his and United’s determination.
The season that followed showed what an astute decision that was. Player of the Year and Young Player of the Year awards were deservedly won after a season spent plying his trade to a continuous soundtrack of boos and expletives from away supporters. It was reminiscent of the last time Old Trafford saw this phoenix like rise from the flames of hatred, following Beckham’s exit from the world cup in France seven years earlier. He was incredible. Just when other teams thought they had sussed this preening show pony, he confounded them all by becoming the player that we had hoped for following his arrival from Sporting Lisbon three years earlier. By the end of the season, Ronaldo had seen the Premier League trophy once again take its place in the cabinet it likes to call home. The semi final exit in the Champion’s League had robbed him of the ultimate stage with which to display his talents, and Chelsea’s victory in the F.A Cup meant that he had to console himself with just helping to return the league title to a team that many had written off pre-season. His final season tally of 23 goals was a vast improvement on previous seasons, and he had made himself unplayable to the vast majority of the league. Still, that couldn’t continue could it? The following season would see him return to his normal self surely.
The 2007-2008 season could hardly have started any worse. Ronaldo had to watch as Rooney indulged his broken metatarsal fetish in the opening game of the season, and was red carded himself in the following game after rubbing brows with Portsmouth’s finest. After his return though, it took little time for him to return to the goal scoring feats of the previous season. His free role enabled him to continually make himself available for scoring opportunities, and he was taking full advantage of them as well. The multiple stepovers of old were being replaced with a more direct form of attacking football. Lightning fast direction changes and newly learned trickery were being inflicted on opposition teams on a regular basis. It seemed at one point as though Ronaldo had taken on the goal-scoring mantle himself, such was the regularity with which he was finding the back of the net.
Before long there were a few question marks being thrown in Ronaldo’s direction though. The accusation that he couldn’t play against the big teams was the most common. In truth, it’s a little disingenuous to suggest that a player with his capability somehow can’t cut it against harder opposition. He is as much a slave to the tactics of Sir Alex Ferguson as any other player in the team, and as such the free role that had seen him treat Old Trafford like a blank canvas was naturally tempered when faced with the tougher games. He still managed to score against all of the remaining big four by the end of the season, although critics were quick to suggest that it’s not all about scoring goals. Maybe it isn’t but since they are the currency that any successful team deals in, only a fool would seriously use that as an argument against him now.
Our season finished in absolute glory. The Premier League trophy was once again retained and Ronaldo was, as ever, involved till the last. After scoring the opening goal in the Champions league final, a stereotypical Ronaldo header, he went on to miss his penalty in a shootout that will now enter into folklore. It mattered not because a moment of comedy from John Terry and a woeful penalty from Nicholas Anelka ensured that our season ended in the best way possible. I’m not a believer in destiny but even I allowed myself a few indulgent moments to think back on the fifty years since our dream had started, and the forty years since its fruition. That Ronaldo was instrumental in its reclamation is beyond doubt.
Player of the season can mean all things to all people but I think even the most blinkered opposition fan would struggle to conjure up a satisfactory argument against Ronaldo winning it this year. Whatever speculation rears its head in the summer, and there is already an abundance of it, nothing can take away the impact this young Portuguese has had on the game this season. He has been as immense as the figures below suggest.
31 Premier League goals (Top scorer and equal all time Premier top scorer)
8 Champions League goals (Top scorer)
3 FA Cup goals.
Premier League winner’s medal
Champions League winners medal
So there you have it. My player of the year. Cristiano Ronaldo dos Santos Aveiro. Shame he never turned up for the big games eh?
BusbyBoy – offers a different perspective to player of the season, whilst giving everyone a big, fat I told you so
2008 has been the year where we have seen Rio Ferdinand come of age.
This has been the year when I've been able to say ''I told you so!" after publicly supporting the player since he joined United.
Joining United on the 22nd of July 2002 for a world record fee for a player in his position (the second time he held this title) and becoming the most expensive British football player in history would put a lot of pressure on most players. But this player has had a lot more on his plate to deal with - most of it, admittedly, being of his own making but nevertheless he has overcome all of that.
An unfair eight month ban for missing a drugs test meant he missed the end of the 2003-04 season and the beginning of the 2004-05 season as well as the European Championships in 2004.
Add this to his long, debated contract talks which resulted in him being booed by some sections of United's support meant he didn't get off to the best starts at United, despite winning the Premier League title in his first season.
Goals against Liverpool in both 2005 and 2006 in front of the Stretford End could bring the adoration of the United faithful back to Rio but this season has done a lot more for his reputation both in England and worldwide.
50 games, 3 goals, picking up only 5 yellow cards as a defender and captaining United on numerous occasions including the Champions League final in Moscow has meant Rio Ferdinand has enjoyed his best season of his career yet but what has impressed us more is the maturity he has shown - both on and off the field.
Manchester United have had the best defensive record in the Premier League and the Champions League and although Brown, Vidic, Evra and Van Der Sar have been outstanding I believe this is down a lot to Rio's leadership and ability to control the defensive unit.
While Gary Neville has been out of the team and with Ryan Giggs used less and less Rio Ferdinand has been the captain of the team - leading many to believe he will be the next United and England captain.
His performances against Liverpool at Anfield, Roma in Rome (knockout stages), Barcelona (both legs) and against Chelsea in Moscow would be the standout performances for me - Rio Ferdinand has shown that not only is he blessed with a natural footballing ability, able to carry the ball out from defence and start attacks, his pace, strength and finesse means he can outwit and outchallenge the best footballers in the World - just ask Fernando Torres and Samuel Eto'o what it's like in Rio's back pocket.
Lifting the European Cup with Ryan Giggs will no doubt be Rio's highlight of his career so far but I'd put my house on it that in the near future he'll be leading United as THE captain and lifting trophies on his own.
For years now, I've said Rio is THE best defender in the World and future United captain and now people are starting to agree - had it not been for a certain Mr. Ronaldo's magnificent record breaking season, I'm sure Rio Ferdinand would have been United's player of the season.
He has though signed on for another five years which means he'd have been at United for over ten years - no doubt he'll have cemented his place in United folklore as a legend by then...
Jak – explores the topic of our best goal this season
April 13, 2008. Manchester United v Arsenal. 72nd minute. Owen Hargreaves’ free kick.
When I look back on the many key moments that shaped this past season, my favourite is this one.
Arsenal were still alive in this crucial game. United were having one of those performances where periods of ragged play were frustratingly highlighted with moments of utter brilliance.
The Gunners had taken the lead through the hand of Emmanuel Adebayor. They had clipped the post after Cristiano's equaliser from the penalty spot. With a thrilling match tied at 1-1, and with little more than 20 minutes left, Arsenal keeper Jens Lehmann blocked a shot from Wayne Rooney, the ball falling to Patrice Evra on the edge of the box. Gilberto fouled the Frenchman, and then came the end of Arsenal’s season.
Cristiano Ronaldo and Owen Hargreaves stood together over the dead ball. I can’t guess what Hargreaves must have said to convince Ronaldo to be allowed to take it. Whatever it was, it took supreme confidence. But when United needed to deliver a killing blow, it was Hargreaves who stepped up.
The ball was placed about 25 yards out. Hargreaves took three steps before his right foot came through, arcing the ball in. Every Arsenal player in the wall had a look of horror on his face as they watched the ball whip just over their heads and beyond.
It was a beauty: curling and dipping just over the wall and fading away into the corner of Lehmann's goal. The Arsenal goalkeeper, if he even saw the ball, could do nothing.
For Manchester United, it was one of those "name on the trophy" moments.
Coming on the heels of Hargreaves’ awesome attacking performance against Roma earlier that week, it was as if a theatre curtain had been drawn back to reveal the man, who yes, was absolutely worth the £17million paid for him.
This was only Hargreaves' 15th start in the Premier League in the 2007-08 season, and only his second goal since his move from Bayern Munich in the summer. Owen’s early months with the club had been stop-start due to niggling injuries and competition for starting places in the midfield. Embarrassing Jens Lehmann, an old foe from Hargreaves’ Bayern Munich days, must have been sweet for our midfielder. And demonstrating that, yes, United now possessed a lethal counterpart to Ronaldo in dead ball situations was the icing on the cake.
The result? United's 25th win of the season put them six points ahead of Chelsea. Arsenal were nine points off the lead and, having been knocked out of the Champions League on the previous Wednesday, were spiralling downward to a third losing season in a row. And all thanks to Owen Hargreaves.
Keano16 – offers a different perspective for our goal of the season
This season I ate some humble pie. That humble pie, including a large cherry on top, was delivered by one Cristiano Ronaldo.
A few weeks before the game against Portsmouth on 8th March, I was becoming increasingly frustrated with him regarding his Free Kicks. He had no variety and whilst we could respect him for trying again and again, what he was trying to do was simply not working for him. I was beginning to ask myself why Sir Alex Ferguson let this young boy from Portugal carry on taking our set-pieces when we had other players on the pitch who could quite clearly do what was asked of them.
So, here we were, 12 minutes in and United got a free-kick. Again, like numerous times before, Cristiano Ronaldo stands above the ball with his posture and body language stating clearly: “This is my ball. I’m going to take this. The rest of you who want to take this? You haven’t a hope in Hell!” I was shouting at the TV at this point. “Ronnie, move away from the ball. Face it son, you’re a great player, but you’re not a Juninho, you’re not a Beckham, and you’re not a………” and then I was stunned. “how the fuck did he manage that?”
12 minutes into the game against Portsmouth on 8th March, Cristiano Ronaldo scored the goal of the season.
Cristiano has scored 42 goals this season and he has declared he wants to score 50 goals next season. FIFTY GOALS? IS HE FOR REAL? I for one have learnt my lesson regarding Cristiano Ronaldo. I shall never doubt him again.
Chris83 – looks at the contribution of our new signings in this brilliant season
Owen Hargreaves, Carlos Tevez, Nani and Anderson were all purchased last summer and they bedded into an already top class team. However, they managed to give us that depth that saw us win the league, as well as taking that all important step in Europe, after our failings in the semi finals of the Champions league in the previous season.
That 3-0 defeat against Milan in the away leg was evidence that we’d been pushed too far in 06/07, with our team absolutely exhausted. We needed more squad depth, but decent squad depth. Darren Fletcher played in both games against Milan, and whilst he isn't the worst player to grace our club, you struggle to believe that teams like Milan and Barcelona will be worried when they see his name on the team sheet. The players we brought in our still fairly young and we're building for the future. The players we have got now makes me feel that we are nowhere near our potential. Not bad for a team who have just won a Premier league and Champions league double. The futures bright and these players are the corner stone…
Anderson: Good player to start. What a season for the Brazillian. Nobody expected him to play as many games as he did this season, but Paul Scholes was injured and this gave him a chance. His first few games for United were not great and there were a few groans with certain fans questioning what we had spent £18 million on. Most have faith with Fergie's choice and I certainly did.
When we announced our double signing of Anderson and Nani, it was Anderson I was most excited about. His confidence and stature grew and it was a game against Wigan where we all stood up and took notice. Vidic came off early in the game and Anderson took centre stage with an exciting display, ending up with an assist for Tevez. He continued to grow. Keeping big name players like Gerrard and Fabregas quiet in our games against their teams which earned him the best new song of the season!!
Once Scholesy came back, he was limited to few appearences. The game at Stamford Bridge was a good one for Anderson. We were drawing 1-1 when Anderson went off for O'Shea. Our tactics went tits up and we ended up losing.
He ended the season by scoring in the shoot out in the Champions league final with his only touch of the game. We await his first proper goal and his celebration, and it could be memorable when it happens.
Nani: He was bought to replace Ryan Giggs when he finally calls it a day. Nani has had an up and down campaign in 07/08 and he needs to develop, but I think he can. It took another certain Portugese youngster time to find his feet and look where he is now. Nani just needs to think before he acts when he's on the pitch and start making the right decision. Too often he goes for the spectacular when all it needs is the simple.
He made his debut against Reading where he was brought on when it was 0-0. He had a good effort which almost broke the deadlock, but the score remained the same. When we played Spurs in the 4th game of the season we still hadn't won. Up stepped Nani in the 68th minute and produced a cracker. Great goal. First win of the season and vastly important, thanks to his goal.
A better goal against Middlesbrough followed and another strike against Arsenal in the Cup (with wonderful showboating later in the game which had Gallas crying). Thats the good side of Nani. With every good side, there is also a bad one. Nani needs to stop being selfish with the ball and work on his final delivary. He was stupidly sent off against West Ham after a headbutt on Lucas Neil and it could have cost us. Its a good job we were already 3-1 up against a team thinking of their summer holidays. Average season for him all in all, but I think he will improve, vastly!
Owen Hargreaves: Took us a long time to buy the England man, and years earlier he was slated in the media and by England fans for poor performances. Sir Alex Ferguson had always been a fan and had tried for some years to buy him, as a replacement for Roy Keane. A good World cup tournament changed the perception of him in England and a year after we bought him. £18 million after Bayern Munich played hardball.
His debut came on derby day where he put out a very strong performance. He was commanding and in control and seemed every bit the player we’d desperately been searching for.
However, he was hampered by injuries, leading him to several months of inconsistent form, but towards the end of the season he was among our best players.
When Vidic was injured, he covered very well at right back, showing off his versatility. He gave us that stability when he played in midfield and even supplied some good final balls. A dab hand at free kicks too. His only 2 goals were both from free kicks, denying the brilliant Ronaldo both times. He broke the deadlock against Fulham, but it’s the winner against Arsenal which put Owen into our hearts. It was 1-1 with Arsenal when he stepped up with a wonderful freekick that Lehman had no chance of stopping. 2-1 United. Bye bye Arsenal for another season. A well placed penalty in the shoot out against Chelsea topped off a good season for the midfielder, who certainly is the closest we’ve ever come to replacing Keano.
Carlos Tevez: Saving the best till last. It took a lot of time and bullshit before we got him, due to the West Ham vs Sheffield United case, but he proved well worth the wait. He saved West Ham from relegation with well timed, important goals, and he scored the same goals for us, however the prize was so different. He was born to be the saviour of big games.
His first goal was against Chelsea, who were trying to recover following the departure of the (un)special one. A diving header in a game we went on to win 2-0. A goal against Wigan followed and his partnership with Wayne Rooney blossomed. A goal against Middlesbrough, where the two combined, was my favourite goal of the season. Tevez ended the season with 19 goals, but it’s the timing of those goals that stood out most.
An equaliser against Spurs with the last kick of the game, an equaliser against Lyon late on preserving our record of no loses in the Champions league and he also scored our most important goal of the season. An equaliser against Blackburn we desperatly needed. Without that goal, it would be Chelsea as Champions right now.
For all the important goals he scored, none provided us with as much happiness as one he got back in December. A trip to Anfield with half time approaching and Tevez secures his name amongst the much loved United players, those who have scored against the dippers, which left our fans delighted.
His goalscoring, his energy, his love for the club, what a player. It’s strange to believe that he's still on loan! And he's only 24!! Get him bought permanently Fergie!!!
There is a lot of talk about who we should bring in for 08/09, but it will be hard to match the four players we bought last season. They all brought a little something special to the team and did what they had to do. Who's going get reviewed at this point next season??!!
The whole country wanted to believe our decline had come back in 2005, with our manager and team being written off time and again.
I looked at Chelsea and just couldn't see the end of their reign. Whilst I fully believed we would get better than we were, I couldn't see how it would be possible for us to compete with the machine at Stamford Bridge.
We fought them off last season to win the league, claiming it convincingly. To do it again this season, although later that we'd planned, was the moment I'd been waiting for since Roman Abramovich bought Chelsea. But winning just the league wasn't going to be enough.
This season was utter redemption. We showed the decline talk was nonsense, Fergie proved he was still top dog, Ronaldo was rewarded for having the balls to stay after the World Cup, Giggs and Scholes showed why we're still paying their wages, but most importantly, of all the things our team showed this season, we honoured the Babes in the best and only way we really could.
So much had been made of the 50th anniversary of Munich and it all seemed for nothing after our dreadful performance on derby day. I can honestly say I've never felt so totally gutted and disappointed and upset. I just felt so let down. I can handle losing, just about, but don't fucking do it today lads. Of all the days you're going to put on such a shite performance, don't fucking do it today.
The only way that day could have been forgiven was through winning the European Cup. Sure, win it for Fergie, win it for the fans, win it for yourselves...but win it for the Babes. Getting to see Sir Bobby Charlton walk up the steps with the winners to claim their medals and lift the trophy was perfection. So much of our club fits in to the category of magic and make believe, too good to be true, and 2008 was just another example of this. Long may it continue!
RoM News
The forum has been packed over the past fortnight or so, with us regularly having over 120 members logging on in a day which is brilliant. So cheers to all of you who have been helping with the forum activity.
This increased activity has of course brought a few knobbers along with it, so the current staff have agreed it's time to bring new mods on board to help out. The forum has grown so much, there just simply is too much for the current staff to sort out. So, join me in congratulating RaisnHell and Chris83 to the staff team.
The Euro 2008 board will be opened today, for all news relating to the competition as well as match day talk. Portugal will be the adopted team of the forum (unless Ronaldo's announcement in "2-3 days" is that he's leaving! lol)
Of course, our achievements of the season have been marked with products in the shop.
MOTM
JigglyMarina is this months winner.
To mark the end of the season and the end of the Voice of Mancunia for a few months, we've got a special bumper edition which reviews the season as a whole. The members who contributed will all be receiving a gift from RoM as a thanks.
So let us begin...
Soapy – gives insight on our player of the season
After the season United has had, picking a player of the season should be a difficult one. A defence that only conceded 22 goals in the league should be able to throw up obvious contenders, and in truth it does but in all honesty the accolade can only really go to one player.
After the World Cup fracas following Rooney’s ill-timed attempt to emasculate Ricardo Carvalho, Cristiano Ronaldo had the nation once again reaching for the scapegoat button on their remote control. His perceived role in the events left him as public enemy number one in England, and with seemingly little choice but to flee to the waiting arms of Real Madrid with his tail between his legs. That he didn’t was testament to both his and United’s determination.
The season that followed showed what an astute decision that was. Player of the Year and Young Player of the Year awards were deservedly won after a season spent plying his trade to a continuous soundtrack of boos and expletives from away supporters. It was reminiscent of the last time Old Trafford saw this phoenix like rise from the flames of hatred, following Beckham’s exit from the world cup in France seven years earlier. He was incredible. Just when other teams thought they had sussed this preening show pony, he confounded them all by becoming the player that we had hoped for following his arrival from Sporting Lisbon three years earlier. By the end of the season, Ronaldo had seen the Premier League trophy once again take its place in the cabinet it likes to call home. The semi final exit in the Champion’s League had robbed him of the ultimate stage with which to display his talents, and Chelsea’s victory in the F.A Cup meant that he had to console himself with just helping to return the league title to a team that many had written off pre-season. His final season tally of 23 goals was a vast improvement on previous seasons, and he had made himself unplayable to the vast majority of the league. Still, that couldn’t continue could it? The following season would see him return to his normal self surely.
The 2007-2008 season could hardly have started any worse. Ronaldo had to watch as Rooney indulged his broken metatarsal fetish in the opening game of the season, and was red carded himself in the following game after rubbing brows with Portsmouth’s finest. After his return though, it took little time for him to return to the goal scoring feats of the previous season. His free role enabled him to continually make himself available for scoring opportunities, and he was taking full advantage of them as well. The multiple stepovers of old were being replaced with a more direct form of attacking football. Lightning fast direction changes and newly learned trickery were being inflicted on opposition teams on a regular basis. It seemed at one point as though Ronaldo had taken on the goal-scoring mantle himself, such was the regularity with which he was finding the back of the net.
Before long there were a few question marks being thrown in Ronaldo’s direction though. The accusation that he couldn’t play against the big teams was the most common. In truth, it’s a little disingenuous to suggest that a player with his capability somehow can’t cut it against harder opposition. He is as much a slave to the tactics of Sir Alex Ferguson as any other player in the team, and as such the free role that had seen him treat Old Trafford like a blank canvas was naturally tempered when faced with the tougher games. He still managed to score against all of the remaining big four by the end of the season, although critics were quick to suggest that it’s not all about scoring goals. Maybe it isn’t but since they are the currency that any successful team deals in, only a fool would seriously use that as an argument against him now.
Our season finished in absolute glory. The Premier League trophy was once again retained and Ronaldo was, as ever, involved till the last. After scoring the opening goal in the Champions league final, a stereotypical Ronaldo header, he went on to miss his penalty in a shootout that will now enter into folklore. It mattered not because a moment of comedy from John Terry and a woeful penalty from Nicholas Anelka ensured that our season ended in the best way possible. I’m not a believer in destiny but even I allowed myself a few indulgent moments to think back on the fifty years since our dream had started, and the forty years since its fruition. That Ronaldo was instrumental in its reclamation is beyond doubt.
Player of the season can mean all things to all people but I think even the most blinkered opposition fan would struggle to conjure up a satisfactory argument against Ronaldo winning it this year. Whatever speculation rears its head in the summer, and there is already an abundance of it, nothing can take away the impact this young Portuguese has had on the game this season. He has been as immense as the figures below suggest.
31 Premier League goals (Top scorer and equal all time Premier top scorer)
8 Champions League goals (Top scorer)
3 FA Cup goals.
Premier League winner’s medal
Champions League winners medal
So there you have it. My player of the year. Cristiano Ronaldo dos Santos Aveiro. Shame he never turned up for the big games eh?
BusbyBoy – offers a different perspective to player of the season, whilst giving everyone a big, fat I told you so
2008 has been the year where we have seen Rio Ferdinand come of age.
This has been the year when I've been able to say ''I told you so!" after publicly supporting the player since he joined United.
Joining United on the 22nd of July 2002 for a world record fee for a player in his position (the second time he held this title) and becoming the most expensive British football player in history would put a lot of pressure on most players. But this player has had a lot more on his plate to deal with - most of it, admittedly, being of his own making but nevertheless he has overcome all of that.
An unfair eight month ban for missing a drugs test meant he missed the end of the 2003-04 season and the beginning of the 2004-05 season as well as the European Championships in 2004.
Add this to his long, debated contract talks which resulted in him being booed by some sections of United's support meant he didn't get off to the best starts at United, despite winning the Premier League title in his first season.
Goals against Liverpool in both 2005 and 2006 in front of the Stretford End could bring the adoration of the United faithful back to Rio but this season has done a lot more for his reputation both in England and worldwide.
50 games, 3 goals, picking up only 5 yellow cards as a defender and captaining United on numerous occasions including the Champions League final in Moscow has meant Rio Ferdinand has enjoyed his best season of his career yet but what has impressed us more is the maturity he has shown - both on and off the field.
Manchester United have had the best defensive record in the Premier League and the Champions League and although Brown, Vidic, Evra and Van Der Sar have been outstanding I believe this is down a lot to Rio's leadership and ability to control the defensive unit.
While Gary Neville has been out of the team and with Ryan Giggs used less and less Rio Ferdinand has been the captain of the team - leading many to believe he will be the next United and England captain.
His performances against Liverpool at Anfield, Roma in Rome (knockout stages), Barcelona (both legs) and against Chelsea in Moscow would be the standout performances for me - Rio Ferdinand has shown that not only is he blessed with a natural footballing ability, able to carry the ball out from defence and start attacks, his pace, strength and finesse means he can outwit and outchallenge the best footballers in the World - just ask Fernando Torres and Samuel Eto'o what it's like in Rio's back pocket.
Lifting the European Cup with Ryan Giggs will no doubt be Rio's highlight of his career so far but I'd put my house on it that in the near future he'll be leading United as THE captain and lifting trophies on his own.
For years now, I've said Rio is THE best defender in the World and future United captain and now people are starting to agree - had it not been for a certain Mr. Ronaldo's magnificent record breaking season, I'm sure Rio Ferdinand would have been United's player of the season.
He has though signed on for another five years which means he'd have been at United for over ten years - no doubt he'll have cemented his place in United folklore as a legend by then...
Jak – explores the topic of our best goal this season
April 13, 2008. Manchester United v Arsenal. 72nd minute. Owen Hargreaves’ free kick.
When I look back on the many key moments that shaped this past season, my favourite is this one.
Arsenal were still alive in this crucial game. United were having one of those performances where periods of ragged play were frustratingly highlighted with moments of utter brilliance.
The Gunners had taken the lead through the hand of Emmanuel Adebayor. They had clipped the post after Cristiano's equaliser from the penalty spot. With a thrilling match tied at 1-1, and with little more than 20 minutes left, Arsenal keeper Jens Lehmann blocked a shot from Wayne Rooney, the ball falling to Patrice Evra on the edge of the box. Gilberto fouled the Frenchman, and then came the end of Arsenal’s season.
Cristiano Ronaldo and Owen Hargreaves stood together over the dead ball. I can’t guess what Hargreaves must have said to convince Ronaldo to be allowed to take it. Whatever it was, it took supreme confidence. But when United needed to deliver a killing blow, it was Hargreaves who stepped up.
The ball was placed about 25 yards out. Hargreaves took three steps before his right foot came through, arcing the ball in. Every Arsenal player in the wall had a look of horror on his face as they watched the ball whip just over their heads and beyond.
It was a beauty: curling and dipping just over the wall and fading away into the corner of Lehmann's goal. The Arsenal goalkeeper, if he even saw the ball, could do nothing.
For Manchester United, it was one of those "name on the trophy" moments.
Coming on the heels of Hargreaves’ awesome attacking performance against Roma earlier that week, it was as if a theatre curtain had been drawn back to reveal the man, who yes, was absolutely worth the £17million paid for him.
This was only Hargreaves' 15th start in the Premier League in the 2007-08 season, and only his second goal since his move from Bayern Munich in the summer. Owen’s early months with the club had been stop-start due to niggling injuries and competition for starting places in the midfield. Embarrassing Jens Lehmann, an old foe from Hargreaves’ Bayern Munich days, must have been sweet for our midfielder. And demonstrating that, yes, United now possessed a lethal counterpart to Ronaldo in dead ball situations was the icing on the cake.
The result? United's 25th win of the season put them six points ahead of Chelsea. Arsenal were nine points off the lead and, having been knocked out of the Champions League on the previous Wednesday, were spiralling downward to a third losing season in a row. And all thanks to Owen Hargreaves.
Keano16 – offers a different perspective for our goal of the season
This season I ate some humble pie. That humble pie, including a large cherry on top, was delivered by one Cristiano Ronaldo.
A few weeks before the game against Portsmouth on 8th March, I was becoming increasingly frustrated with him regarding his Free Kicks. He had no variety and whilst we could respect him for trying again and again, what he was trying to do was simply not working for him. I was beginning to ask myself why Sir Alex Ferguson let this young boy from Portugal carry on taking our set-pieces when we had other players on the pitch who could quite clearly do what was asked of them.
So, here we were, 12 minutes in and United got a free-kick. Again, like numerous times before, Cristiano Ronaldo stands above the ball with his posture and body language stating clearly: “This is my ball. I’m going to take this. The rest of you who want to take this? You haven’t a hope in Hell!” I was shouting at the TV at this point. “Ronnie, move away from the ball. Face it son, you’re a great player, but you’re not a Juninho, you’re not a Beckham, and you’re not a………” and then I was stunned. “how the fuck did he manage that?”
12 minutes into the game against Portsmouth on 8th March, Cristiano Ronaldo scored the goal of the season.
Cristiano has scored 42 goals this season and he has declared he wants to score 50 goals next season. FIFTY GOALS? IS HE FOR REAL? I for one have learnt my lesson regarding Cristiano Ronaldo. I shall never doubt him again.
Chris83 – looks at the contribution of our new signings in this brilliant season
Owen Hargreaves, Carlos Tevez, Nani and Anderson were all purchased last summer and they bedded into an already top class team. However, they managed to give us that depth that saw us win the league, as well as taking that all important step in Europe, after our failings in the semi finals of the Champions league in the previous season.
That 3-0 defeat against Milan in the away leg was evidence that we’d been pushed too far in 06/07, with our team absolutely exhausted. We needed more squad depth, but decent squad depth. Darren Fletcher played in both games against Milan, and whilst he isn't the worst player to grace our club, you struggle to believe that teams like Milan and Barcelona will be worried when they see his name on the team sheet. The players we brought in our still fairly young and we're building for the future. The players we have got now makes me feel that we are nowhere near our potential. Not bad for a team who have just won a Premier league and Champions league double. The futures bright and these players are the corner stone…
Anderson: Good player to start. What a season for the Brazillian. Nobody expected him to play as many games as he did this season, but Paul Scholes was injured and this gave him a chance. His first few games for United were not great and there were a few groans with certain fans questioning what we had spent £18 million on. Most have faith with Fergie's choice and I certainly did.
When we announced our double signing of Anderson and Nani, it was Anderson I was most excited about. His confidence and stature grew and it was a game against Wigan where we all stood up and took notice. Vidic came off early in the game and Anderson took centre stage with an exciting display, ending up with an assist for Tevez. He continued to grow. Keeping big name players like Gerrard and Fabregas quiet in our games against their teams which earned him the best new song of the season!!
Once Scholesy came back, he was limited to few appearences. The game at Stamford Bridge was a good one for Anderson. We were drawing 1-1 when Anderson went off for O'Shea. Our tactics went tits up and we ended up losing.
He ended the season by scoring in the shoot out in the Champions league final with his only touch of the game. We await his first proper goal and his celebration, and it could be memorable when it happens.
Nani: He was bought to replace Ryan Giggs when he finally calls it a day. Nani has had an up and down campaign in 07/08 and he needs to develop, but I think he can. It took another certain Portugese youngster time to find his feet and look where he is now. Nani just needs to think before he acts when he's on the pitch and start making the right decision. Too often he goes for the spectacular when all it needs is the simple.
He made his debut against Reading where he was brought on when it was 0-0. He had a good effort which almost broke the deadlock, but the score remained the same. When we played Spurs in the 4th game of the season we still hadn't won. Up stepped Nani in the 68th minute and produced a cracker. Great goal. First win of the season and vastly important, thanks to his goal.
A better goal against Middlesbrough followed and another strike against Arsenal in the Cup (with wonderful showboating later in the game which had Gallas crying). Thats the good side of Nani. With every good side, there is also a bad one. Nani needs to stop being selfish with the ball and work on his final delivary. He was stupidly sent off against West Ham after a headbutt on Lucas Neil and it could have cost us. Its a good job we were already 3-1 up against a team thinking of their summer holidays. Average season for him all in all, but I think he will improve, vastly!
Owen Hargreaves: Took us a long time to buy the England man, and years earlier he was slated in the media and by England fans for poor performances. Sir Alex Ferguson had always been a fan and had tried for some years to buy him, as a replacement for Roy Keane. A good World cup tournament changed the perception of him in England and a year after we bought him. £18 million after Bayern Munich played hardball.
His debut came on derby day where he put out a very strong performance. He was commanding and in control and seemed every bit the player we’d desperately been searching for.
However, he was hampered by injuries, leading him to several months of inconsistent form, but towards the end of the season he was among our best players.
When Vidic was injured, he covered very well at right back, showing off his versatility. He gave us that stability when he played in midfield and even supplied some good final balls. A dab hand at free kicks too. His only 2 goals were both from free kicks, denying the brilliant Ronaldo both times. He broke the deadlock against Fulham, but it’s the winner against Arsenal which put Owen into our hearts. It was 1-1 with Arsenal when he stepped up with a wonderful freekick that Lehman had no chance of stopping. 2-1 United. Bye bye Arsenal for another season. A well placed penalty in the shoot out against Chelsea topped off a good season for the midfielder, who certainly is the closest we’ve ever come to replacing Keano.
Carlos Tevez: Saving the best till last. It took a lot of time and bullshit before we got him, due to the West Ham vs Sheffield United case, but he proved well worth the wait. He saved West Ham from relegation with well timed, important goals, and he scored the same goals for us, however the prize was so different. He was born to be the saviour of big games.
His first goal was against Chelsea, who were trying to recover following the departure of the (un)special one. A diving header in a game we went on to win 2-0. A goal against Wigan followed and his partnership with Wayne Rooney blossomed. A goal against Middlesbrough, where the two combined, was my favourite goal of the season. Tevez ended the season with 19 goals, but it’s the timing of those goals that stood out most.
An equaliser against Spurs with the last kick of the game, an equaliser against Lyon late on preserving our record of no loses in the Champions league and he also scored our most important goal of the season. An equaliser against Blackburn we desperatly needed. Without that goal, it would be Chelsea as Champions right now.
For all the important goals he scored, none provided us with as much happiness as one he got back in December. A trip to Anfield with half time approaching and Tevez secures his name amongst the much loved United players, those who have scored against the dippers, which left our fans delighted.
His goalscoring, his energy, his love for the club, what a player. It’s strange to believe that he's still on loan! And he's only 24!! Get him bought permanently Fergie!!!
There is a lot of talk about who we should bring in for 08/09, but it will be hard to match the four players we bought last season. They all brought a little something special to the team and did what they had to do. Who's going get reviewed at this point next season??!!
