Stretford End Awards 2007/08
Season Review
The 2007-2008 season was always likely to be an important one in the history of Manchester United, though few could have predicted the number of chapters that would be added to the record of the most followed club in the world.
A season that started and ended with penalty shoot out wins over Chelsea - success-wise, the second best in the history of Manchester United, though if you were easily swayed by the tabloids or Sky you would be forgiven if you believed that they won two trophies because Arsenal couldn't find the finishing touch, because Chelsea had too many injuries, or refereeing decisions costing both of them.
The truth of the matter is United consistently played better football, consistently played the better football against better teams, and - crucially - Sir Alex Ferguson got almost all of his tactical decisions spot on. The Reds had made major waves in the close season, signing long time target Owen Hargreaves and West Ham saviour Carlos Tevez, while making a sudden unpredicted swoop for Nani and Anderson. And after a Community Shield spot-kick victory over Chelsea, excitement was pumping for the opening league game of the campaign.
Reading, however, came with only one thing in mind, and when Rooney went down injured late in the first half the writing was on the wall - with no fit striker, the home side were never likely to score, and the creativity was further stifled in the subsequent game when Ronaldo was sent off in a draw at Fratton Park. A 1-0 defeat at City followed, and 1-0 wins over Spurs and Sunderland did little to dampen the spirits of rival fans - Arsenal supporters were already crowing about how home wins over Fulham and Derby had made them the best team in the league, and City fans were expecting their resurgent side would finish above United for the first time in a generation.
Even a 2-0 win over Chelsea did little to excite the fans, and things hit a low when Coventry won 2-0 in the league cup at Old Trafford. Anderson did not impress, nor did Nani, our optimism over these prodigies was deemed ill-founded. Rival supporters mocked "another" error by Ferguson, he was finally past it.
It wasn't until an injury early in the Wigan home game in early October forced Fergie to play a makeshift central midfield of Scholes and Anderson - and it was the Brazilian's form that sparked United's season into life, 4 goals in 4 consecutive games against Wigan, Villa, Kiev and Boro followed, and finally the Theatre of Dreams was given cause for renewed optimism. Anderson's performance in dominating Fabregas at the Emirates was a highlight, before an injury to Rooney looked to have put paid to not only United's title challenge but also England's Euro 2008 qualification hopes. The latter came true, and when Rooney missed the winter defeat at West Ham, a worrying trend appeared - whenever Rooney was absent, United seemed to lose.
All the while, a certain Portuguese number 7 was making his presence felt but in an almost understated sense. Rooney's return from a virus coincided with a little R n' R combination at Villa Park in the FA Cup - both scoring. And Ronaldo made a real statement of intent with a hat-trick in the sensational 6-0 demolition of Newcastle - this was no temporary run of form, as the rest of the country, and indeed Europe, was about to witness.
Wins against Reading and Tottenham were followed by a home game against Portsmouth on the January deadline day. An unremarkable setting for a remarkable goal - Ronaldo scoring probably the best free kick goal in Premier League history and make everyone who wasn't already aware sit up and take notice. Ronaldo was not a one-season wonder.
But any grumbles that United were now a one man time were quickly dispelled when Carlos Tevez scored a last minute equaliser at White Hart Lane to save United when defeat was staring them in the face. As with Solskjaer's last minute goals in 1999, this served as a mark of things to come. Rooney was booked in the Spurs game and that meant he missed both Manchester derbies - and City completed an unlikely double at the Munich memorial game.
With 4 defeats, United knew that by the time they played Newcastle they could be 8 points behind. But Arsenal visited Old Trafford in the FA Cup and were quite literally shell shocked when they were demolished 4-0 - a result that was to have a telling effect on the Gooners' confidence. And when Carlos Tevez scored his second last minute equaliser, this time at Lyon in the Champions League, United were full of confidence - displayed thoroughly at Newcastle, where the Magpies shipped 5 goals. Progression in the Champions League was marred by another home domestic Cup exit, this time in controversial fashion to eventual winners Portsmouth.
The defeat only spurred United into life, and a win over Bolton (in which Ronaldo overtook George Best's record for goals for a winger in a season) and thrilling victories over Liverpool, Aston Villa, Roma (in Rome!) and Arsenal at home, with Ronaldo in sensational form, put the Red Devils firmly in charge of their own destiny - for the first time in the season. Yet again, though, a Blackburn team inspired by the brilliance of Brad Friedel looked to have put a nail in the coffin of the title push.
But Carlos Tevez, by now feeling like the 2008 Ole reincarnation, justified the moniker with a valuable point rescuer at Ewood Park, to put United in good spirits ahead of a crucial triple header - two semi final dates with Barcelona in the Champions League sandwiched a crucial League clash against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.
A scoreless draw in the Nou Camp (which could have been better but for a Ronaldo penalty miss) would eventually be a tactical victory for Sir Alex, but injuries to Vidic and Rooney were to prove costly as United put up a brave effort, only to be denied a draw at Chelsea by a late Ballack penalty.
Chelsea were now level on points, behind only on goal difference, and had also gotten a draw in the Champions League, with the prospect of England's two current top clubs facing off in the Champions League final.
Barcelona, with the magical Messi, were always going to be a threat but a magnificent Paul Scholes goal could have been added to by Nani on two occasions and Tevez - United were worthy winners of the tie and headed to Moscow.
With sights firmly concentrated on the league crown, the Reds hammered the Hammers at Old Trafford, Ronaldo's brace followed by two long range goals by ex-Irons Tevez and Carrick.
It was now time for fate to take over. United were leading in the final game against Wigan, a Ronaldo penalty giving them to goal they needed to match Chelsea's goal lead against Bolton. Ryan Giggs was introduced to make his record equalling appearance for Man Utd, and scored the goal that made it 2-0 and seal the clubs 17th title.
Giggs could have been forgiven for thinking that was all fate had for him, but there was more.
Onto Moscow, and the biggest club game in English football history. A head to head featuring the top two English clubs for the last 4 years. Billed as the beautiful game vs the bland game, beautiful looked to be on top in the first 40 minutes - United dominated Chelsea and could have scored 4 goals, but in the end, had to settle for one, a brilliant Ronaldo header that was his 42nd of the season. But Chelsea and Lampard typically took advantage of two fluke deflections to steal an equaliser right on half time.
Both teams played to win after, and both had unbelievably close shaves, but it seemed destined to head to penalties - Ronaldo stepped up as the Reds' 3rd taker, but saw his shot saved. All John Terry had to do was convert his sides final spot kick, but he struck the post - Ryan Giggs' sudden death penalty put all the pressure on ex Arsenal, Liverpool and City striker Anelka, who saw his shot spectacularly saved by van der Sar, meaning Giggs had secured both Premier League and Champions League victories on his record equalling and setting appearances - in the 50th anniversairy year of the Munich disaster, to become the most decorated player in the history of the English game, and possibly stake his claim as the greatest player in Uniteds history, while another winger, Ronaldo, was starting to lay the foundations for a possible claim in years to come.
It was a remarkable achievement, but the fact that United scored 4 or more goals on 12 occasions, lost only one of their 11 games against Liverpool, Chelsea and Arsenal and finished the Champions League campaign unbeaten spoke for itself.
Manchester United are truly deserved Champions of England, and Champions of Europe.
Goal of the season
So, 15 different Manchester United goalscorers scoring 108 goals, and 2 opposition players netting own goals (thank you Billy Gallas).
But which one was the best? There have been some crackers this season, and above you will find Stretford-End.com's pick of them.
If you don't agree with the selection, simply state what you believe was the best goal and that will be taken into consideration.
Here are the goals described in full, accompanied by video - click on the scorer of the goal to view.
26 Aug 2007 - Nani v Tottenham Hotspur - some initial controversy asto whether or not this was Nani or Tevez's first goal for the club, however, Nani was credited with a 30 yard rocket that sensationally flew past Paul Robinson to give United their first win of the season.
23 Sep 2007 - Tevez v Chelsea - when the diminuitive Argentine did register his first goal for the Reds it too was a cracker, throwing a diving header at the most sublime pass from Ryan Giggs, steering it into the near post at the Stretford End.
2 Oct 2007 - Rooney v Roma - fantastic shot from 20 yards that cannonned in off the upright.
27 Oct 2007 - Nani v Middlesbrough - never one to do things by half, Nani made a great run from the halfway line, evading 3 challenges before unleashing a 30 yard drive to leave Schwarzer helpless.
27 Oct 2007 - Tevez (1st) v Middlesbrough - great football, this flowing move involved a great pass from Anderson, a classy backheel from Rooney, and a simple finish for Tevez.
30 Jan 2008 - Ronaldo (2nd) v Portsmouth - simply, THAT free kick.
23 Feb 2008 - Rooney (2nd) v Newcastle - the Magpies were on the rack, and when the ball fell to Rooney 20 yards out, he took a took, then brilliantly curled it into the corner through a ruck of bodies. (Nice view from the stands for this one, too - Goal)
29 Mar 2008 - Ronaldo v Aston Villa - from a corner, Cristiano backheeled the ball through a Villa defenders legs and past Carson - a goal to signify the arrogance that sometimes characterises the United no 7 shirt.
13 Apr 2008 - Hargreaves v Arsenal - with the clock ticking in a must win game at the top of the table, regular taker Ronaldo stepped aside to let Owen Hargreaves have a pop - and the ex-Bayern man didn't disappoint, producing the most pinpoint and delicious free kick.
2 Apr 2008 - Paul Scholes v Barcelona - keen to erase the memories of Turin, and keen to push United forward to Moscow, Scholesy picked up on a loose clearance 25 yards out to unleash a half volley that left Valdes with no chance.
-- Special mention should go to this goal -
20 Oct 2007 - Rooney (2nd) v Aston Villa - right in the eye of the storm of United's magnificent Autumn football, this goal was one of the first indications of the great partnership between Rooney and Tevez - Carlos making a brilliant run, finding Rooney who kept his composure to score a great goal.
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Game of the season
Once again Manchester United were involved in a number of great games, though strangely it took until the visit of Chelsea for a performance of real quality to come about.
Yes, it was Avram Grants first game in charge, so yes, obviously they were a club in a little turmoil. But with more than £150m of playing talent in the squad, and only Carvalho, Lampard Drogba missing (the latter with a £31m stand-in, and Lampard had £16m Mikel to take his place), they had a formidable team. Wayne Rooney was making his usual amazingly quick recover from a broken foot, and almost scored in the first few minutes - it set the tone for a pulsating display where United bombarded the Chelsea goal and dominated so much so that the visitors didn't even get a shot on target. Avram laughably tried to blame the referee for sending off Mikel and giving United a last minute penalty - conveniently forgetting that Joe Cole was lucky to stay on after a tackle from behind on Evra in the area (no penalty, no card, no foul), and the same player culpable for a disgraceful tackle on Ronaldo. Carlos Tevez's first goal for the club, a diving header from a magnificent Ryan Giggs pass, opened the scoring, and Louis Saha scored the late penalty to wrap it up.
United always enjoy a trip to Villa Park and their journey there in October was no different. At this point, an injury to Carrick had meant Fergie was forced to use a midfield pairing of Scholes and Anderson, and the Brazilian was proving a revelation. Villa took an early lead but United responded by pounding away at their goal, scoring 4 times but should have got double that - the second Rooney goal summing up a magnificent display.
Newcastle visited Old Trafford just days after sacking Sam Allardyce - however there was little anybody could have done to withstand the Red Devil's second half sensational bombardment that included Cristiano Ronaldo's first ever hat-trick and could theoretically have seen United (in red) score 10 second half goals.
Arsenal's 5th round FA Cup trip to Old Trafford came at a time when they were being hailed as the best footballing team in Europe - Anderson and Nani putting paid to that theory, which led to Wenger labelling our youngsters "disrespectful". In reality a 4-0 scoreline flattered the visitors.
Easter Sunday saw Liverpool make the trip to Sir Matt Busby Way on the back of impressive form that had seen the birth of a partnership between Gerrard and Torres - the Scousers had every belief that they could keep their own fading title dream alive, or at the very least, wreck United's chances. 3 goals and a Mad Masch attack later, they got quite the opposite . The manner of the victory, given the way that Ferdinand and Vidic ensured Torres was anonymous, while Anderson gave Gerrard the same old treatment, made the win all the more special. As a sidenote, Nani's magnificent goal cost me about £50 - I had a few bob on a two nil. Still, I managed to celebrate...
Next up were Villa again in the return fixture. In good form, with some standout players, Aston Villa were making a real push for Europe, so this Manchester United display - a 4-0 crushing, was a severe statement of intent. The quality of the goals reflected the quality of the football played during the game.
The next home game saw Arsenal, too, make their second appearance on this list. For the first time though, this was not a one sided hammering, but a return to the good old days of a tense, tight encounter between these two Premier League heavyweights. Arsenal enjoyed early possession of the ball and made the breakthrough just after half time - Adebayor punching the ball in the net, ironically amid Wenger's comments that refereeing decisions were costing them the season - predictably the "professer" adopted his usual myopia for this incident. The goal merely prompted a super response from United , hitting back almost straight away - Ronaldo twice taking a penalty before scoring, and before Owen Hargreaves struck a magnificent free kick to win it at the Stretford End.
Champions League nights at Old Trafford don't come much bigger (if at all) than the visit of Barcelona in a semi-final. The atmosphere was electric and that alone puts this game in contention for the award - the nervous end almost typical of the hard way United tend to do business. Paul Scholes' goal was just reward for a positive start for United, and after half time they could have scored a couple more, but after 60 minutes it was all Barcelona - though they failed to make any real chance of note, due to some resolute defending.
And so the big one, the Champions League Final - dubbed the biggest game in English football history, between the top two teams of the decade. Pessimists pointed to the FA Cup final in 07 as a negative omen for the possibility of a football spectacle, but a positive selection by Sir Alex meant United intended to play to their strengths rather than counter Chelsea's. Ronaldo's fabulous header was just reward for a flying start by the newly crowned Champions of England, and Chelsea could have been dead and buried before taking advantage of some sub-standard officiating and slack defending to nick an equaliser - inspiring them for a strong second half. Extra time, usually a dull affair as teams try to cancel each other out, was far from it on this night, Giggs having a shot cleared off the line, Chelsea hitting the bar, and Drogba (probably) waving goodbye to English football with a red card for slapping Vidic. The game that seemed to have it all had penalties too - Ronaldo missing, every other penalty scored until John Terry stepped up and smashed the post with the last "regulation" penalty, blowing the chance to score the penalty to win the trophy. Ryan Giggs scored his sudden death penalty, and van der Sar made a superb save to deny Anelka, producing the fairytale moment for which Manchester United are so renowned, and ensuring that the dream of a double came true.
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Moment of the season
In this of all years, we have been littered with so many moments that serve to define and maintain the history, legacy and tradition of Manchester United.
From the free flowing football on the pitch to the impeccable behaviour of a City United in reflecting on tragedy, from the youngsters of today breaking records to the living club legends continuing to stamp their own fateful mark in the United history books, this has been one of the most incredible seasons for the club.
But what stands out as the best moment? Some video selections to help remember and elaborate on the candidates above.
Ronaldo's freekick against Portsmouth on the last day of January was instantly revered as the best deadball shot in Premier League history. The mercurial forward was in a rich vein of form, some questioned the possible longevity of it - in truth, the end never came, and this goal was perhaps the one that made people begin to realise that not only is he a worthy wearer of the number 7 shirt, that he was making claims to be the best of them all. Most, if not all United fans, hope that he stays around long enough to fulfil that prophecy.
The minute's silence in February's game against Manchester City is certainly a real contender for this award. Fears of misbehaviour looked ridiculous afterwards as both sets of fans behaved impeccably to ensure the ceremony and memorial was dignified. City fans got their just rewards as United froze and the Blues took full advantage to claim an unlikely league double. Fortunately though this was just a short stop than a derailing on the track to a little double of our own!
Just a week after this game Arsenal were the visitors to Old Trafford. Playing the best football in the land, we were told. Had the best player in the world, in Fabregas, we were told. Had the most in-form winger in Hleb, we were told (seems even Gooners backtracked on that one). With a European game to follow, both managers rotated - United arguably moreso than Arsenal. And to give a little extra spice, Gooners were not only denying that Anderson rang rings around Fabregas at the Emirates, but were also starting to suggest that it was the other way around.
Well, they were left in no doubt as they were absolutely slaughtered 4-0 at Old Trafford, with our Brazilian starlet giving young Cesc another lesson to the extent where even Wenger had to withdraw him with 20 minutes left after witnessing this - instantly followed by Fergie taking off Anderson a couple of minutes later, as if to rub it in. Then to top it all off, Nani, enjoying his best game for us, decided to showboat, young Hoyte being the unfortunate recipient, and getting so frustrated he lashed out, laughably missed, and was promptly skinned again.
Seems like enough memories to pack a season already - by this point, the old guard, Scholes and Giggs, were being written off as past it... oh wait. Seems like they had a little something to say about that. Presumably fuelled by the shadow of Turin forever darkening his path, old Scholesy decided to rescue a season that was threatening to implode with a trademark goal to put United in the Champions League final, delighting Fergie so much he promised him a place in the team straight after the game.
This must have inspired Ryan Giggs because his substitute appearance in the subsequent game against West Ham was sensational, and he followed this up by coming off the bench to secure the Premier League title on his 758th appearance, equalling Sir Bobby Charlton's record.
Manchester United's history is written and played out in such a way that before the game, knowing in all honesty Giggs wouldn't start, any United fan worth their salt would have said the dream scenario would be Giggsy replacing a tiring Scholes, and going on to score the goal that won the trophy in the game where he made his record appearance. That could never happen, right? Wrong, my friend. Of course it was going to happen. It was written in the stars, if you believe in that stuff. If you don't, then Giggs' winning penalty probably made you a believer. van der Sar's save (see the video) followed and proved to make Giggsy's penalty the winner. But perhaps you think big Ed's save was a better moment than that? I was tempted to pack them in as the same moment, but they both deserve the limelight.
Heck, I was half tempted to chuck in Anderson doing his ridiculous jiggy dance in both celebrations, but what a way to cap it all off than Rio and Ryan lifting the Champions League trophy?
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