Dimitar Berbatov was again left out of the Spurs side that traveled to Stamford Bridge today – fueling the speculation even more that the grumpy Bulgarian is on his way out of the North London club. Along with the circus style transfer saga of Cristiano Ronaldo to Real Madrid with the jester, Ramon Calderon, providing extensive comedy material throughout the summer, the Berbatov transfer has driven both set of fans mad. It’s obvious that Berbatov wants a move to Manchester United, it’s obvious that Manchester United want the player (having bid over 20 Million pounds is usually a good sign) and it is obviously clear that Tottenham want to get as much money for their star man as possible – and why not!? We ridiculed Real Madrid for their approaches towards Ronaldo since the Champions League final, especially after Calderon had stated that United should be ‘honoured to be involved in such a historic transfer’ whilst also trying to comically set the transfer fee of the player that he is after – so Tottenham are correct in their stance on the valuation of Berbatov.

The thing is, with players getting more and more power nowadays (and with the head of FIFA not helping with crazy inaccurate comments) it is harder to take a harsh stance and banish the player to the reserves. The introduction of the Webster ruling has also helped those players wanting to make a move away from a club or negotiate a new contract with the club. Reports have suggested that Berbatov could even leave the Premier League for good and sign for Barcelona, something that Spurs would surely favour.

This blog isn’t about investigating whether or not players should be able to take advantage of a ruling that gives clubs even less power over their players – it’s about whether or not the proposed Dimitar Berbatov deal will actually aid Manchester United’s attacking options this season. So far we have scored two goals in two Premier League matches – hardly scintillating form – however one must remember the amount of goals we’d scored at the same point last season – one! We were in an even worse position in the league having drawn with both Reading and Portsmouth – so I don’t really see the need for panic stations just yet.

Anyone watching United last season would know that the attacking play was based upon extremely good movement from the front four that was backed up by sublime creativity of the centre two. Rooney and Tevez have the capability of dropping deep which as a defender is a nightmare. You do not know whether you must push up or hold your position, which allows the player more space to turn and create havoc. Wayne Rooney has had a torrid time in the press lately, which I would argue is quite harsh. His work rate and movement enabled Cristiano Ronaldo to utilise the space and score a number of those 42 goals. Now not many teams play with a pass and move style similar to United’s in the Premier League – the reason is you need good technical players that can combine intelligence/awareness with exceptional athletic ability.

In Rooney, Tevez, Ronaldo, Giggs, Nani and sometimes Park – United have that, although in order to play this high level pass and move game it needs time to develop and it is no surprise that some of the games so far have been flat at times. Ronaldo didn’t score his first Premier League goal till the end of September, which although came through a mistake by the full back rather than the movement i’m talking about, shows that it can take time to click and I don’t agree with the ‘United need a target man‘ comments I read in most newspapers. Berbatov has much more to his game that simply being someone who can hold the ball up and allow the midfield to push up, but how will his inclusion in the side affect the style of play that we now adopt that was so pivotal in the success of the club last season?

In 2003 Carlos Alberto Parreira left the coaching conference stunned with his prediction that 4-6-0 would become the next big tactical innovation. Five year ago I would have been equally as stunned by the comments of the World Cup Winner who ironically was in charge of a side that is renowned for its creative flair, self expression and extreme hard work. 4-6-0 sounds an extremely negative line up – which you would expect teams visiting Old Trafford to adopt not United. If Parreira is right and 4-6-0 becomes common in our domestic game but more likely in the European game then why do we need to have a target man?

The blogger, Jonathan Wilson, has written a superb book on the evolution of tactics throughout the history of football. It highlights the forward thinking of the Eastern Europeans, which actually relates to this movement section, with the withdrawn forward which brought England to its knees in the 6-3 humiliation at Wembley in 1953. As you may be aware, the English aren’t the most liked nation throughout the world and this opinion doesn’t change when analysing the footballing philosophy. The Peter Crouch and Jermaine Defoe partnership is the latest strikeforce that would have the old fashioned critics drooling at the mouth. ‘Find the big man up front and the little lad will feed off the scraps’ is common amongst the discussions of our local publics houses up and down the country – a view I do not subscribe to.

Football, well good football, is about movement and intelligent players who are able to find space and receive the ball, with the confidence that they keep the ball even when under pressure. A high pressing tempo game is useless when playing against a side that can keep the ball under pressure – a factor that has been found out by the England national team over the years. The movement of the ‘front four’ last year was sublime at times – this wouldn’t have been possible had United adopted a more rigid system that was evident in the season prior to the transfer of Ruud VanNistelrooy to Real Madrid. United looked a much better outfit at the end of the 2005/06 season with Louis Saha partnering Wayne Rooney in attack. The comparison to what followed the next season was immense with United playing a much more fluid and quick brand of football that was non existent in the latter years of VanNistelrooy’s career at United. Don’t get me wrong – I hold fond memories of VanNistelrooy but the evolution of football over the past five years combined with his injuries meant that United could no longer incorporate the Dutch striker in the starting lineup.

So where does Seba Veron fit into this? Veron, unfairly, is usually amongst the worst transfer of all time due to the enormous price tag that accompanied his move to Old Trafford. Veron was a world class player who was capable of pure genius, especially in the Champions League but mainly failed to adapt to the high tempo games in the Premier League – most noticeable his lethargic performance against Chelsea when United went down 3-0 at home. Was Veron right for United? Looking back no, of course he wasn’t.

United won the 2003 title, however did so without Veron in the 2-2 draw at Highbury against Arsenal and the 4-0 victory over Liverpool at Old Trafford in the title run in. He did make an anonymous appearance in the 4-3 thriller against Madrid at home – which saw David Beckham putting in a superb performance having coming on to replace Veron in what would be his last Champions League game for United. Depending on what you read Veron was the second choice transfer target for Fergie in the summer of 2001 with United reportedly wanting to controversially recruit the then Arsenal captain Patrick Vieira. For one reason or another the deal didn’t come off and United turned attentions to the Argentinian midfielder who was a key member of the Lazio squad. The signing of Veron was exciting at the time – considering United had also signing Ruud VanNistelrooy for 19Million – and a new five man midfield with Paul Scholes adopting a role just behind the striker. Anyone that saw the early part of the 2001/02 season would remember how the five man midfield, with Scholes looking uncomfortable out of position, didn’t work and Fergie tried to find a balance whereby his existing midfield of Beckham, Keane, Scholes, Giggs and sometimes Butt and Neville could accompany the vision and creativity of Veron. Of course the transfer of Stam to Lazio didn’t help matters, considering United had been linked to Thuram that summer also, with the aging legs of Laurent Blanc coming into replace the Dutchman – but United had more than enough quality to win a fourth successive Premier League title, however were beaten by an unfancied Arsenal side – who were brilliant at times that season.

So will the signing of Berbatov, regardless of the unique gifts the Bulgarian has, jeopardise United’s chances of securing another double? What will happen if Berbatov, Tevez and Rooney are fit to play? Will Fergie try and play all three in the same way Veron was played in an already established midfield? There is no doubt that he is a class act and I do like watching him play but is he really what is needed at Old Trafford? Too many English journalists believe United are ‘crying out’ for a target man in the mold of Berbatov to finish off all of the chances United are creating. I don’t agree with this and generally believe that, like last season, United will start to get their flow back and start to destroy teams with good movement, intelligence and overall effective passing that will leave defenders not knowing who to pick up. We had the same criticism last season – lets hope we finish the same way too.

Other than, ‘Welcome to Old Trafford Mr Djemba Djemba – i’m sure you’ll enjoy your football here’, there is rarely anything else that I disagree with Fergie with. This transfer is no exception either. In Saha we are losing a strong, quick striker with a good left foot – when he is fit. Today Saha decided to leave his injury nightmare behind him and join Everton and see if he can stay fit for more than 2 and a half games. You think i’m joking – have a look at the amount of Premier League games he has started compare to Rooney who signed eight months later. Saha started, in four and a half seasons, 52 games, compared to Rooney who has made 118. Ok you may argue that Rooney is a better player than Saha and obviously deserves a starting berth over the Frenchman – but Fergie splashed out £12.8Million back in 2004, and i’m sure he expected a greater return alongside Ruud VanNistelrooy.

Saha’s best run in the side probably came in the first half of the 2006/07 (and I suppose towards the end of the 2005/06 season with the decline of Ruud) season where he was a first team regular for the first time since his move from Fulham. He scored on the opening day against Fulham and then bagged two goals against Celtic at Old Trafford. He failed to convert a penalty at Celtic Park, which left United needing a win against Benfica – which was achieved…eventually. He also played a part in the 2-0 victory over Chelsea, last season, at home, winning and scoring a penalty in the final minutes. It’s such a shame that he couldn’t have kept himself fit for longer and played more of a part in the teams fortunes. After all, no one is questioning his ability – it’s just whether he can stay fit for long enough. He was never the best of finishers and would sometimes be very erratic in front of goal, but I always felt he tried and wasn’t lucky with injuries. You may suggest he suffered from the same bout of footballphobia that Arjen Robben did but then remember Bryan Robson’s injuries that he suffered throughout his career – I guess some people are just unlucky??

So with Saha out the door are we going to settle for a strike force of Tevez, Rooney and Campbell, with Manucho in the wings when he returns from injury or with the transfer of Pavlyuchenko to Tottenham does this free up a move for Berbatov? Also, how will you remember Saha? A good player that helped us to the 2007 Premier League title? Or as a injury plagued sick note player who wasn’t actually quite good enough for Manchester United?

On behalf of every Manchester United fan;

Dear England supporters,

Please continue to identify Wayne Rooney as the reason the national team are rubbish. Please continue to classify him as “crap”, and please continue to demonstrate your lack of football knowledge in the process.

We all remember what happened the last time you made a United player the scapegoat, ridiculing his “supposed technical superiority”. You wanted Frank Lampard at the expense of Paul Scholes, you got him with Scholesy on the left wing. Scholes had enough and you spent the last 4 years begging for the Ginger Prince back and the last 1 booing FFL. In the time since, Scholes had barely misplaced a pass for United while Lampard has rarely completed one in the national team. Scholes can still outplay any midfielder in the league, and has just won a European Cup.

I’m sure Wayne himself will be dismayed by the misdirected criticsm, clearly being one of the very few players who actually plays with the heart you want in a 3 lions shirt – almost twenty goals and just as many assists in an injury ravaged season, despite playing out of position for most of the campaign, and despite not taking any goal-scoring set-piece opportunities, may seem to some as a pretty decent return, but not to all-knowing England fans. We Manchester United fans recognised him as perhaps the most vital component of our successful Premier League and European Cup campaign, and as such, we’d like it if he wasn’t taken to World Cups with broken feet then portrayed as costing England the trophy. I’m sure in time young Wayne himself would come to terms with it. And in time, the ones who lose out are the morons who pathetically singled out the most naturally talented domestic footballer since Scholes simply because he plays for United.

In closing, please be satisfied with Joe “most technically gifted Englishman” Cole, please be satisfied with Stevie “hero” G (who’s going to set up all his shots when the hopelessly un-creative Rooney is forced to retire?), we’ll make do with Wayne Rooney scoring those everyday 30 yard chips against David James. Just like every English player can. Oh… wait..

Sincerely,

Stretford-End.com

By Yolkie

August 25th 1996 – a nice sunny day in Manchester and the Champions are up against fallen rivals Blackburn Rovers. The game isn’t going to plan with United trailing 2-1 to the 1995 English league champions; three games in and a home defeat is not a possibility. Enter a young Norwegian who latches on to a big punt up the field which is flicked on by Jordi Cryuff smashing a shot at Tim Flowers who parries before slotting home the rebound. Who is this man who’s name you can’t pronounce? How old is he? Cue the start of a legend being born.

Fast forward just over tens years later and he’s doing again in a vitally important game against Blackburn Rovers at Old Trafford. His final goal for Manchester United coming in the 4-1 victory that spurred United on to their first Championship in four years. The ten years in between were ten glorious years for the club in which Ole Gunnar Solskjær played an enormous part.

Signed for £1.5Million by Sir Alex Ferguson in the summer of 96 along with fellow countryman Ronny Johnson, Dutch international Jordi Cruyff and Euro 96 superstar Karel Poborsky (Raymond Van Der Gouw in there aswell!) – he proved to be one of the managers greatest purchases in terms of impact he had in front of goal. Not the quickest of strikers but one of the most accurate in the whole of Europe. Solskjær operated best as a striker in front of someone like Cantona or Sheringham but was such a good professional that he never objected to the boss playing him out of position wide right – for a time keeping David Beckham out of the side in 2003.

No red will ever forget May 26th 1999 when Solskjær came off the bench to hand Manchester United the European Cup on what would have been Sir Matt Busby’s 90th birthday. His instinctive flick of the right boot from a Sheringham flick on, will live always in the memory of the Old Trafford faithful. Solskjær really was a manager’s dream that helped him achieve immortality at Old Trafford.

The Stretford End has worshiped some incredible players and managers over the years including Sir Matt Busby, Duncan Edwards, George Best, Denis Law, Eric Cantona and one Ole Gunnar Solskjær. The 20legend flag has been a distinctive part of the Stretford End for a number of years in respect for the man. The chants still ring around to the tune of ‘you are my sunshine’ and no we wouldn’t have swapped him for Alan Shearer.

Solskjær will forever remain in Manchester United fans hearts for that faithful night in Barcelona but he helped himself to some more great memories in a glittering Old Trafford career. Who could forget the late goal he scored past Liverpool in the January of the treble winning year? Or the four goals against Nottingham Forest the next month? Or the late goal against Aston Villa in the FA Cup in 2007? Solskjær deserves all the plaudits he will get on Saturday against Espanyol as Manchester United fans say goodbye to a legend or should I say 20legend.

So Robbie Keane has signed for Liverpool for a £19Million fee that could rise to £20.3Million with regards to appearances – has this blown our opportunity to lure Berbatov to Old Trafford? To be honest, I don’t know – Yolkie raised an issue yesterday morning about both potential transfers and it’s funny that Liverpool’s one comes off first without any trouble.

We’ve blogged before about the talented Bulgarian, but this transfer really has dented our hopes of capturing the front man. This will surely raise his price even more so in the bid to boost our strike force. Levy has, as Fergie did actually say, embarrassed himself over this transfer as those words didn’t come out of the gaffer’s mouth as suggested by his reporting of ther club to the Premier League.  If Levy’s Tottenham lose both Keane and Berbatov they will be left with out of sorts Darren Bent to man the front line on his own – something I can’t see Ramos doing.  With only 18 days till the start of the 08/09 campaign things will have to move pretty quickly.  The irony is that 12 months ago Spurs’ front line was the pride of the Premier League apparently – four great strikers in Keane, Berbatov, Defoe and Bent that would push the club above Arsenal.

Carlos Tevez, every defenders nightmare with his low centre of gravity, exquisite movement and his relentless closing down makes him a fans favourite.  Over the past five seasons, United have been linked to a whole host of strikers including Torres, Huntelaar, Agüero and Benzema to name a few.  Tevez was also one of those players, a man who wore the United strip three years before kicking a ball for the club in a press conference for Corinthians .  Few fans would argue against the work rate of the little Argentine and also his intelligent movement that complements Wayne Rooney so well.  I guess we all forgot that he is still owned by Kia Joorabchian and will now command a £32Million fee making him the most expensive player to play in England.  I agree with the Premier League regarding third party ownerships and I don’t like the way in which he was brought to England but this process in a common day occurrence in South America and also a bit closer to home in Russia.   So our transfer spending could rise to £63Million by the end of August if the captures of Berbatov and Tevez are complete.  I’d be more happy if the Tevez deal was finalised over the Berbatov deal due to the amount of important goals Tevez scored last year – that in my memory was only ever replicated by Eric Cantona (sure Ronaldo scored 42 goals but Tevez’s late goal were a reminder to the goals that Eric scored in that 95/96 season).  Tevez scored past Lyon to make it 1-1, against Liverpool in a 1-0 win, against Spurs to capture a point and against Blackburn again to save a point.  Fergie has also commented on his knack of scoring vital goals and I believe this would be £32Million well spent.

So, Jovan Kirovski, some of you may be anticipating a new Manucho signing that could go on to play a key role in the forthcoming season – you’d be wrong.  Jovan Kirovski is a 32 year old American currently playing alongside Darren Huckerby in the MLS for San Jose Earthquakes and a former youth team player of Manchester United.  I end up doing this quite often when I have to research players (was research Huckerby – for my job i’ll have you know) and then coming across ex-reds or ex-United youth team players, I did the same the other day for Alex Notman (scored in the Munich memorial game in August 1998).  Does anyone even remember Kirovski?  He had work permit issues and then went onto Dortmund to become the first American to score in the Champions League and then win it.  That was probably the highlight of his stop start career but much more than some players could ever do.  Anyhow, just wanted to see if you’ve come across any former Reds, be it youth team, ressies or first team – that you were surprised to see?  I heard Ben Thorley is now driving a taxi?

I thought, in my teenage years, that Jovan Kirovski could go on to partner Eric up top and become a European class striker after his successful stint in the reserves – sadly in my naive years that didn’t materialise and we bought Ole instead, every cloud.

Good old Football365.

After having various emails doctored when published to encourage replies from brainless halfwits “shooting me down” from a point that was implied through the edit, only to have my subsequent email to F365 ignored, seemingly on the grounds no-one likes a Man Utd fan to be right, recent mailboxes have been a hoot, and Monday’s mailbox (“A Mailbox packed full of anger and hate”) further strengthened my view that while there may be no agenda, there’s definitely a tendency to unfairly paint United fans as irrational megalomaniacs (that’s Manchester United), while the countless mails they publish from patronising and totally myopic supporters (generally Arsenal fans, strange that) always seem to be the usual suspects. They know who they are, too.

The kind of fan who hates Gary Neville because he has face hair but fawns like a raging homosexual over Sagna’s dreadlocks. It’s as far away from football as you can get but if it gives you a reason to hate United rather than just admit you’re stinking jealous of the fact they have been a better team for the last generation, then fair enough. I think publishing a mail from a supposed football fan all but accusing Fergie of being racist in his comments about Levy is pushing the boat – instead of removing said comment in case of offence, Football365.com decided to accompany it with an article that is apparently supposed to prove Levy’s point, about what they perceive to be immoral dealings by Fergie in the past. (This was only marginally more jaw-dropping than their decision to print, without a hint of irony, an email from a Scouser defending Benitez’s transfer dealings – naming Josemi, Kromkamp, Nunez, Sissoko, Bellamy, Arbeloa, Kuyt, El Zhar, Plessis, Hobbs, Anderson all as successes.. yeah I know, I don’t know who the last few are either).

I look forward to what I presume to be a forthcoming piece on their crusade against the evils of football, the snaring of 15 and 16 year old boys from other countries with sky high wages by Arsene Wenger and co at Arsenal. The connotations are there for all to see and I can’t help but feel that if Ferguson had conducted his transfers in the same way Wenger has then he would be subject to even more irrational hatred. That’s not a problem with Ferguson or Wenger, it’s a problem with the system and the way the news is presented to people who believe what they read. There is a moral obligation for any source of news and fan interaction to at least be fair in their presentation. Sir Alex himself took issue with a similar principle with the BBC, and does not speak to them – football365 is probably small fry for Fergie, but for news hungry fans like myself (starved in pre-season), though admittedly I have the option of not reading the website, morbid curiosity always wins as I stare open mouthed at the depths to which some people will sink.

Anyway, back on point.

An issue I raised in an email that was published about the tendency of tabloids to get their information from a source as obscure as the neighbours dog (re: the Brazilian website ‘quoting’ Ronaldo) was disregarded as paranoid nonsense – one of the letters I seem to recall quite categorically insisted on defending the morality of these journalists. Untruths don’t get published in newspapers, do they? Two examples recently that question that opinion have been Hleb supposedly slagging off Fabregas only to have to release a statement denying it, and now, the Ferguson/Sun incident, which “inspired” the aforementioned incredibly witty article. I don’t need to point out to anyone that tabloid newspaper journalism is sketchy at best but I do find it a little confusing that a website that occasionally derides the Sun, posts mails from people defending its honour in an attempt to make a United fan look daft.

Of course we all know that after the Madrid/Ronaldo fiasco that it was the end of Man Utd’s days as a buyer in the transfer market. Because they would be hypocrites, right? United could never make another bid for a player without being subjected to the same comments from ill-educated fools as they had given Madrid. Football365.com, indeed, shot down a Utd fan who made the point (several, actually, all reasonable and intelligent enough) that the Berbatov and Ronaldo situations couldn’t be more different, by ‘triumphantly’ appending a link to their marvellous article at the end of his mail.

An article that, as I stated, attempts to paint Fergie’s dealings as immoral – listing Paul Ince and even saying “No question of any wrongdoing from Ferguson here”… that’s like me calling someone a murderer, naming someone they killed, then saying “well he didn’t kill them but”.. maybe it’s not exactly the same, but the principle is.

So because Real Madrid never bid for Ronaldo but told everyone who would listen how it would be a “honour for him to play for them”, reserve a car park seat, tell sportsmen and their own players that he’s already signed, and United were unhappy with that (some might say understandably.. but eh, what do I know?), that has somehow put United into the situation where any bid for a player will make fans call Fergie and the club hypocrites. No clubs are forced to sell their players (well, maybe, but wait for that)- Berbatov didn’t move last summer, Spurs rejected a bid (and he played a full season, pretty well by all accounts), exactly the same thing has happened this summer but because United have been in the spotlight some nobody tries to make himself look big by questioning Fergie. It’s clear for anyone with any common sense to see, alas, the masses seem to be lacking in that fundamental. They can’t even see the hypocrisy in Levy’s statement considering that despite it being very rare, he actually committed as close as it gets to football theft when poaching Bostock from Palace. Of course, there must be a reason why that topic was not favoured by football365 and the Fergie one was.

In my last blog I clearly stated my despair for the modern game but when this is the way it’s being reported to the fans, with agenda, misrepresentation and provocation to appease the idiotic majority, is it any wonder?

By Yolkie

You’ve just finished that third and final pint in your local boozer before heading off into the afternoon sunshine to watch your side take on your biggest rival. In England, it doesn’t come much bigger than Manchester United v.s Liverpool for sheer passion, hatred and high tempo football match. So it did come as a surprise that the Manchester United v.s Liverpool derby was only considered the 28th greatest derby in the world by World Soccer magzine, behind the mighty Kaizer Chiefs v.s Orlando Pirates.

Seriously though, how can the United Liverpool match be ranked at 28th in the world? I’ve never seen such a hostile environment which is driven by the desire to be considered the best team in the land. Of course hatred doesn’t just make a derby exciting to watch; you need to have the whole package – which does include history. Historical statistics provide an insightful view into the understanding of what it means to win a match against Liverpool. The two clubs have contested 175 football matches to date, the first being a 2-0 defeat in 1894 – when United were known as Newton Heath. Since that game, United have won 68 of those 175 games whilst Liverpool have won 57 – a statistics that summarises the record Manchester United had over Liverpool in the 1980′s when Liverpool were at their most powerful. So its clear to see how much this game means to the fans in terms of tradition and historical value, then there is the bragging rights.

There is no doubt which set of fans can claim to be the best football team in Europe at the moment, although when this is brought up the Scouse cry’s of “18-5″ ring out. To be honest, this isn’t a post about comparing triumphs (or past triumphs in Liverpool’s case), it is merely looking at the history of achievements to add weight to the fact that this derby should be much higher than 28th. Manchester United, three times European Cup winners and the first English side to lift trophy against Liverpool the five times European Cup winners. Add the domestic success and you can see clearly how successful both sides are. The article comments on Ferguson’s loathing for Liverpool but also his respect for them in terms of European achievements.

So looking up the list, a task that Liverpool fans should find quite familiar, you see a wide range of games spanning from all over the world. Now, this is not a narrow minded view to not accept the quality, history and tradition behind other big derbies. Of course they mean a lot to their fans and of course there is wide spread interest in the football world when these matches are played – but my argument is that United against Liverpool should be much higher than 28th. Barcelona v.s Real Madrid is ranked the greatest derby in the world, followed by River against Boca and then predictably Celtic v.s Rangers. To be honest, I wouldn’t disagree with either of those choices. Barcelona v.s Real Madrid is a massive, massive game that is watched by millions throughout the world. Two top footballing clubs that offer some of the greatest players in the world, is only one aspect that makes this game fascinating. No other game in Europe mixes both politics and football to such an extent as these two. Barcelona – the oppressed Catalonians against the centralism ruling of Franco’s Real Madrid. I won’t dwell too much on this as there really is just too much to cover – but the documentaries i’ve seen on the history of these two clubs is quite extraordinary. The conspiracy theories of refs favouring Madrid, the transfer saga of Di Stefano and the rivalry that even involved the Spanish civil war that started in 1936. The second in the list, Di Stefano’s old club River Plate and Maradona’s Boca, is again a fascinating football spectacle that battles the working class Boca Juniors and slightly stuffy River Plate. The first official game played was in 1908 – across the dockyard apparently. Boca have always had the aura of ‘working class boy done good’ with outstanding players over the years such as our very own Carlos Tevez, Diego Maradona , Claudio Caniggia, Gabriel Batistuta (having played for both River and Boca) and Juan Román Riquelme. River Plate, who have always been referred to as the better footballing side, constantly mock Boca in terms of achievements (River lead by 33 to 22) and Boca immigrant roots. Lastly, the Celtic v.s Rangers match that whether the Old firm like it or not remains inexorably linked to Northern Ireland politics. Whenever religion is involved there is always going to be fireworks and there are similarities with the Barca Madrid matches with one side showing loyalty to the nation and another’s struggle with oppression. I would not argue with WS about the top three.
Below is the list above Manchester United v.s Liverpool and I have highlighted the games in which I believe should not be higher:

1. Real Madrid vs Barcelona (Spain)
2. Boca Juniors vs River Plate (Argentina)
3. Celtic vs Rangers (Scotland)
4. Galatasaray vs Fenerbahce (Turkey)
5. Ajax vs Feyenoord (Netherlands)
6. Lazio vs Roma (Italy)
7. Shalke vs Borussia Dortmund (Germany)
8. Al Ahly vs Zamalek (Egypt)
9. Betis vs Sevilla (Spain)
10. Partizan Belgrade vs Red Star Belgrade (Serbia)
11. Marseille vs Paris St. Germain (France)
12. Juventus vs Fiorentina (Italy)
13. Flamengo vs Vasco da Gama (Brazil)
14. Olympiacos vs Panathanaikos (Greece)
15. Milan vs Internazionale (Italy)
16. Athletic Bilbao vs Real Sociedad (Spain)
17. Benfica vs Porto (Portugal)
18. Coirinthians vs Sao Paulo (Brazil)
19. Racing Club vs Independiente (Argentina)
20. America vs Guadalajara (Mexico)
21. Nacional vs Penarol (Uruguay)
22. Pirouzi vs Esteghlal (Iran)
23. Spartak Moscow vs CSKA Moscow (Russia)
24. Steaua Bucharest vs Dinamo Bucharest (Romania)
25. Kaizer Chiefs vs Orlando Pirates (South Africa)
26. Slave Prague vs Sparta Prague (Czech Republic)
27. Corinthians vs Santos (Brazil)
28. Liverpool vs Manchester United (England)

I do believe that more weight should be placed on games that are played in Europe and South America. Some people may find that quite arrogant but when assessing the history and tradition of football you see how important Europe and South America are to the development of the game. As mentioned before historical achievements in quality tournaments is also a bench mark – so therefore the Champions League and Libertadores Cup are head and shoulders above any Asia or North American competition. For these reasons, I find it hard to see why the game is not ranked higher. A lot of discussion on the forums and blogs have suggested that the game should not even be included due to the fact that the game doesn’t constitute to a derby because both clubs are not from the same city. A derby is a game in which two teams from a specific area play rather than a specific city. Liverpool and Manchester are 33 miles apart – from Sir Matt Busby Way to Anfield Road – and rivalry is fierce between the two cities. So this factor doesn’t really come into it.

So to conclude, the game should be ranked higher than it currently is. 28th position slightly belittles the match and placing the Cairo derby in 9th is hard to believe. We all think our club is the best in the world and we’re all proud to belong to the club, but this isn’t a argument to promote how great Manchester United is. It’s a argument to state that the Manchester United v.s Liverpool rivalry should be considered one of the most fierce and passionate games in the world. It may not have the political mashup of Barca and Madrid or the battle of the classes like Boca and River but in terms of history, tradition, achievements and standard of football – the game should be ranked much higher.

So what do you think? Make sure to leave a comment if you disagree or agree with the argument. Am I naively writing off these games? Should I experience these games live before commenting on the derbies?

Boca and River, Manchester United and Liverpool? Bollocks to that we’re off to Cairo.