Terrace Talk: Man United - 'One of the greatest United awayday derbies of my lifetime'

Your correspondent spent the eve of the derby in north-eastern France, enjoying some December 6th Saint Nicholas celebrations with various drunken Flems. I marvelled at the locals’ luck; in effect, they get two Christmases.

The very next day, we Reds all got to experience that same joy. In fact, none of us will receive better than that on the 25th, will we? Ignore the threat of being accused of hyperbole – that was one of the greatest United awayday derbies of my lifetime, both on its own terms, and because of what it might come to signify.

Come on, then; let’s wheel it out. Was this The Turning Point? Or, to be precise, was the whole week? Because the Spurs game played a vital preparatory role for Saturday and was also a tremendous evening in its own right. Not just because we all enjoyed sending José off to cry on his own-brand pillow, but because the players proved something. Simply put: that they want Ole to stay, and will ‘play for him’ in order to further that aim.

This had been in doubt, to be honest, such has been the state of some of them in various games thitherto. Before the match, The Sun ran an already-notorious back page claiming Ole had told the players he feared the sack if they didn’t dig him out of the hole versus Spurs and City.

The Times later ran a story claiming players had subsequently made their feelings known to the United hierarchy: Ole must stay.

Their performances on Wednesday and Saturday then backed up that demand.

Of course, you might well interject “about bloody time too”. Martial, for example, was electric at Wastelands — but where’s that enthusiasm been since the spring? But let us not carp or reflect on past misdeeds. Cometh the hour, cometh the men united, and it would appear their concerted efforts have saved Ole from any immediate theoretical threat.

I say “theoretical” because United, as a club, went ballistic after The Sun story appeared. Ed Woodward had earlier spent the weekend briefing various hacks that Ole would be safe “no matter what”, and there was great displeasure inside O.T. at this undermining of the approved corporate line.

It’s all moot now; Ole is obviously not getting sacked this week, and Senor Pocchettino can put away his Manchester A to Z. Unless he fancies succeeding Pep, perhaps…

Heh: I wanted to be classy and not gloat but it’s so hard not to. Guardiola looked broken in his postmatch interviews and you do have to wonder what’s on the cards for him if City don’t win the European Cup this season. Reds have been patiently waiting for him to, umm, ‘do a Pep’ and let his head explode for a couple of seasons now; could our nail-biting teeth-clenching wait finally be over soon?

Something else we’ve been waiting for – an opportunity to issue an apology to Fred. Readers may be forgiven for thinking that most Reds have always decried his €60m signing and laughed at his brainless football. Well, titter ye not and no more. At long last, his undoubted boyish enthusiasm has translated into effective action on the pitch, with two admirable (if not entirely error-free) displays in four days. Yabadabadoo!

Poor Fred was promptly rewarded for his heroics at City with an array of monkey noises from one of the neanderthals in the Blue stands. As I write, both police and employers are getting involved, and one suspects it’ll be a while before the perp gets to watch a football match at City again.

SkyNews and the BBC both reported that the incident had “overshadowed” the actual football, and one begs to suggest this is playing into the hands of scumbags. Nothing should be allowed to ‘overshadow’ the fact the Fred was a star performer in a potentially epochal win. That is what the history books will remember, not the brainless actions of some nitwitted nobody.