Manchester United banter 5

12 Sep 2026 11:25:12
{Ed's Note - Ed001 has posted a new video entitled entitled, C U Next Time - The Seamus Runs The Show Edition}

12 Sep 2026 07:39:01
{Ed's Note - HughesGetPhckd has posted a new article entitled, Liverpool 2 Atletico Madrid 1: A Victory of Character

11 Sep 2026 21:46:41
My first United game was 1979, I was 14 and a bunch of us caught the bus from Longsight. In those days it was pay as you entered, sometimes you wouldn't get in if too many turned up.

It was always the Stretford End, sat on the bar with our legs through the railings (remember that? ) so you felt close to the action. A few years later we moved to above the tunnel in the Stretford End which was often scary with the crush of people in a small space.

It was an FA Cup 4th round replay against Fulham, we won 1 nil, with a goal from Jimmy Greenhoff, I remember it snowed. There were only about 40, 000 in the ground, people forget that Old Trafford wasn't always full in those days.

I went to most most home games for about 6 years before becoming more of an occasional visitor, getting to about 10 games a year. Then when the Stretford End was rebuilt in 1992/3, I bought a season ticket. The year of getting soaked in an unfinished stand was well worth it as we won the title the year after, and man, I can't believe we gave those tickets up as they were in a perfect spot.

When Steve Bruce headed the winner against Wednesday, the ball was heading straight for us, happy days. In those days, people actually sat down for most of the game. We then went home and away thriugh the '94 season, when United fans were dotted throughout most awa grounds. How times have changed.

My most bizarre experience was when I got player complimentary tickets from a friend who knew Sparky, I arrived to find Bryan Robson sat in my seat, a steward quickly found me another seat.

I loved going to games, the hum of the crowd, the expectation of what was to come, applauding Paddy Roche for stopping a backpass, taking the p1ss out of Ralph Milne, applauding Colin Gibson sarcastically after another cross hit row Z, looking after opposition fans who found themselves in the wrong part of the ground, it was such an experience.

Nowadays it is so corporate and money focused and the fun has gone. I still get to the odd game and in the main I don't enjoy it. Winning is all that matters, that's what it's all about, but the fun has gone.

I'm probably an old fart but the game has changed so much, and for me, not always for the better.

12 Sep 2026 00:08:34
Ajh, I think that's just a part of getting older.
I remember my father saying all that to me in the 90s.
Your priorities change as you get older, things that used to excite you don't have the same effect anymore. Nothing is ever like the good old days.
You get older and wiser, more cynical, less tolerant, and more resilient. Back then, the fans could relate to the players, and the players could relate with the fans.
Players now, in the main, couldn't care less about the fans or the clubs they play for.


I now wouldn't cross the street to greet any of them. Very few of them inspire me nowadays. I'm not just talking United, it's footballers in general.
Harry Kane is someone I want to sit and have dinner with and talk to.
Rhodri, Mainoo, Haaland, Martinez would be others that I think I'd enjoy talking to. They all intrigue me for many reasons. I'd like to pick their brains on certain things and learn about certain sides of their character that I admire and identify with.

12 Sep 2026 01:49:11
Haaland is a good shoot, Ken, I think. Very underrated character.

12 Sep 2026 06:55:06
AJH, my story is similar to yours. The difference being, growing up in the late 80's, early 90's, I split my match days between Utd and Hereford Utd (getting to Manchester on Saturdays was sometimes difficult). The gulf between the two clubs was huge, but the matchday experience was pretty similar in terms of atmosphere.
A few years on, I stopped going to both, due to playing myself at a half decent level, and then getting married and having 3 boys.
2 years ago it had been 20 years since I went to watch either team, and my then 13 year old begged me to take him to Old Trafford. After finally getting some tickets, off we went to Manchester, and blimey, how a matchday experience had changed. Maybe I just picked the wrong game, but it was like sitting in a morgue, no atmosphere, people watching through their phones (someone please explain this), more interested in filling their faces, and God forbid anyone did shout and try and start an atmosphere, people just seemed to stare at them like they were from another planet.

Utd lost 2-1 and, somewhere around £250 later, I was left wondering what had happened.
2 years on, I took my now 15 year old to watch Hereford a few weeks ago. As we drove there I wondered what might have changed, and I'm pleased to say pretty much nothing had, apart from buying an e ticket, and my son absolutely loved it.
There's no way I'll ever grow away from following Utd, but that loyal, friendly, local club feel seems long gone, and I know I'm stupid to compare that to Hereford due to the gulf between the clubs, but if I had to pick which team to go and watch, there's only 1 winner.

12 Sep 2026 07:48:21
My feelings and experience as well, AJH. My first game at OT was in 1972/3 when I was living in Ashford, Kent at the time. The only difference is that I never lived in Manchester, so I invested a huge amount of time and money, with like-minded friends, travelling to OT and away games. TV only for me now. Nostalgic? Yes. Sad? Absolutely.

12 Sep 2026 08:25:07
I was over from Australia and got some "dodgy" website tickets. Ended up next to away Liverpool fans for an FA Cup game. Brilliant atmosphere, but I was sat behind a row of people either spending all the time on phones or knitting!!

Last game was the Stretford End, and it was almost exactly where my season ticket of close to 25 years was.

Sadly, just not the same atmosphere. I put it down to the people who had the passion can no longer afford to go to games, and the fans these days are perhaps a little more conservative.

11 Sep 2026 17:22:23
Seems like common sense, methinks!

I do post about Academy issues sometimes and this seems to be worthy of comment.

As we know, we mainly play a 4-2-3-1. There will no doubt be occasions when this is altered, but it is the default set up.

As of now, both the U18s and U21s will be moving to this system, changing from the usual 4-3-3.

This seems a perfectly sensible thing to do, instigating uniformity throughout the club.

It is part of the plan to increase the chances of Academy players succeeding in the transition to first-team player, clearly knowing what is expected of you should significantly smooth the path.

Would not be surprised to see J. J. making a first-team cameo before 24th October! That is the final day for him to be our youngest ever player in a competitive match.

He cannot appear (as yet) in ECL.

12 Sep 2026 00:29:50
He really does look special iwotb.
I don't think he is training with the 1st team regularly, but maybe a League Cup tie if we get past Brighton. If it happens, it happens. It's not a big deal. 5 min cameo and not seen again for months is not how the record was set, and I don't think it should be broken that way.


There is no rush with him, which I'm sure you agree with.
Hopefully we can tie him down with a contract and see him flourish over the next few years. Without doubt the best prospect I've seen at youth level since Ravel Morrison, and id say JJ is even streets ahead of him. He has the world at his feet.

12 Sep 2026 10:05:14
Is there any danger that he will sign for someone else?

12 Sep 2026 11:36:36
There is always that gamer, Patrick. He could decide to do that.
Fingers crossed he stays.

12 Sep 2026 17:51:05
Ken, yes I totally agree, there is no rush. It does seem to matter to some though!

I was told that it is more a case of appearance's sake, and showing JJ how valued he is.

He has been training with the 1st team a fair bit, again, much about making him comfortable in that environment.

Patrick, yes, he could sign for someone else, every big club in Europe is watching him, including Liverpool!! Barcelona in particular are trying very hard.

There is concern at the club that it could happen, indeed the summer before last was his first opportunity to do so and there was genuine worry it would happen. It was down, mainly, to Wilcox and Vivell that he was persuaded to stay.

There will be another opportunity next summer for him to leave on a free transfer.

Clearly we are doing our best to convince him where his future lies and that, in the future, the 1st team could be built around him. Obviously, subject to him achieving expected levels.

I believe his father, obviously, a massive influence on him, has been offered a couple of private boxes, free for life, in the new stadium.

There is also significant effort being put into keeping his feet well and truly on the ground. Imagine being 15 yrs old and having all the talk and expectation he is enduring and not succumbing to some of the pressure.

Remember what happened to Ravel Morrison! Although I do not expect him to go anywhere near that road.

I just hope, for his sake, he manages to navigate a safe passage through it all, and ends up being a Man Utd true great.

11 Sep 2026 15:39:28
{Ed's Note - Ed001 has posted a new article entitled, Ipswich Town v Liverpool - A Quick Liverpool Perspective

11 Sep 2026 14:10:01
Job done last night. Strange Bruno was taken off to rest up. I feel we have great players for when we have the ball and going forward, but you need workers when we don't have it. Hopefully Balaba is that player. Still worried about our work rate and closing down without the ball; it needs to improve all over the pitch.

Been really impressed with Kobbie so far he's just a class act. Wonder will we see a midfield 3 for tougher games, 4-3-3 to be more solid, but who plays in that team?

11 Sep 2026 15:44:00
I could see us playing a 442 diamond midfield with split strikers, especially if Baleba comes in, as he can cover a lot of ground.

Can't see us moving to a more traditional 433 with Bruno in the team, as I don't think he would want to play as one of the wide players, and he is so good as a number 10/second striker role.

11 Sep 2026 15:44:26
He was seen limping leaving the stadium.

11 Sep 2026 16:17:43
I get the impression that Bruno wants to play every minute of every game. Carrick needs to be a bit more proactive in resting him, especially with him being in his 30s.

Last night was an opportunity to start Santos and rest Tielemans. Then Carrick could have brought in Mount for Bruno at halftime.

11 Sep 2026 17:05:39
I thought Bruno could have come off around the 75 or 80 minute mark, once we had the win in the bag, tbh, but he's never been one to be injured or subbed, so not gonna happen.

11 Sep 2026 17:29:40
We do play 433 already.

11 Sep 2026 07:48:20
I spent some time talking to a Newcastle fan this last couple of days and he loved Eddie Howe, gutted he left and said the OT job is too big for him.

I recalled to him that I saw Malcolm McDonald live in the black and white at OT. I believe it was circa 1972 and from the Stretford End I just have this memory he had incredibly bowed legs. Have you seen and noticed something unusual or different about a player?

11 Sep 2026 08:58:17
Yes Onana had very slippy hands.

11 Sep 2026 10:12:24
David Beckham had more hairstyles during his Manchester United career than we have won major trophies since Sir Alex Ferguson left.

11 Sep 2026 10:17:38
He also had sharp studs in his boots apparently. ?

11 Sep 2026 10:32:15
You could drive a bus through the legs of McDonald.

The thighs of Mark Hughes were pretty impressive.

The weirdest of all had to be the comb over of Sir Bobby Charlton.

11 Sep 2026 11:07:55
IWOTB, I was going to mention Mark Hughes's legs. I've never seen such big legs on a man! The joke at after-dinner talks from ex-pros like Lee Sharpe and Ryan Giggs was that opposition players have broken their own legs trying to kick Mark Hughes, and he never needed shin pads; his legs were tougher than the shin pads!

11 Sep 2026 14:11:01
Mark Hughes was my fav player for a long time. Big game expert too.

11 Sep 2026 14:47:37
Ports, Sparky was one of my all time favourites also. It was tragic what happened to his son recently.

Talking of thighs, see if you can find an old picture of the inimitable and true great that was Duncan Edwards. He had thighs to match Sparky.

Don't forget that was the 1950s when training was endlessly running around the pitch, eating steak and chips, yum yum, going to the pub and smoking 20 a day!

Although, I have to say, Duncan did not smoke or drink.

He was a clean living boy. Besty certainly did not use him as an example!

11 Sep 2026 20:28:37
I think it was Sheffield United away in the FA Cup when Sparky lost his temper. After being kicked all over, he lost it and kicked one of them up in the air. We loved Sparky on the terraces. He had big calves, and I think, away at QPR, they kept going through the back of him, but he was immense.

11 Sep 2026 21:06:54
I always felt he was one of us, although later found out he was a Chelsea fan. He typified a United player - tough, no-nonsense, never give up, and he scored some critical goals for us. Cup Winners' Cup Final and FA Cup semi-final spring to mind. Selling him the first time was scandalous.

10 Sep 2026 22:50:29.
Clearly we will face tougher games, but you can only beat what is in front of you. That was emphatically achieved, without having to put huge effort in and considering the upcoming game on Sunday, that was a pleasing aspect.

Some decent performers, Kobbie was excellent and I thought Yoro had a good game, some of his anticipation of danger was good.

Think this could be an important season for him, he needs to step up. He seems to be stronger, both he and Sesko (who also had a good game) have worked hard in the gym over the summer.

A clean sheet, yay!

Atleti away next up, a good result there will certainly put us in good stead for the tournament.

11 Sep 2026 07:21:33
My only comment would be that perhaps Bruno should have been given an early bath. Always a risk of injury when the tackles start flying.

11 Sep 2026 07:59:47
I thought Zirkzee looked very good when he came on. He always looks really good playing against weaker opposition. The problem is he goes missing in games against tougher opposition, but I think he is arguably the best player in the squad for link-up play.



He reminds me of Nani; he either plays really well and is a nightmare for the opposition, or does nothing for the whole game. There is no in-between.

11 Sep 2026 11:12:19
Kurtis, at one point I thought Zirkzee could do the job with Cunha and Mbeumo that Firmino did with Salah and Mane. But for some reason he just isn't up to it in the Premier League, or certainly hasn't shown this yet. He showed his class last night, and I mentioned a while ago, when the discussion was around him, that I think he is a great player, just better suited to Italian football! If we can get that performance last night into the Premier League, he's a great addition to the squad.

It's strange, because he has a good physical presence also.

11 Sep 2026 17:26:49
Silky, but imo, he needs a slower tempo than he gets in the EPL to make the most of his skills.

10 Sep 2026 22:19:44
That was as comfortable a game as Utd will ever get.

When they speed up the passes they look so much better.

Defensively the usual deficiencies weren't punished and City will obviously be a very different proposition. I like Amass but he really needs to fill out physically as he was easily knocked off the ball.


Thought Yoro and Martinez were OK.

My biggest conundrum is Zirksee. Clearly a talented player. Very nimble and high football intelligence but how do you accommodate him and at whose expense?

Overall good night and let's hope the team builds in confidence.

11 Sep 2026 13:40:52
Don't think we need to worry about Zirkzee. I like him as an option from the bench and pleased he's sticking around a little longer.

10 Sep 2026 14:57:20
Champions League back at OT tonight, that's a positive.

10 Sep 2026 17:04:25
Absolutely, can't wait.

We played them this afternoon in the EUFA Youth League. U19s play a mirror fixture of the first team games in ECL.

A good start. We beat Sabah 5-0. A certain 15yr old, JJ, scored a hat trick! We had 44 shots. They had none.

Hopefully a sign of things to come tonight.

10 Sep 2026 18:24:30
Back in the Champions League, but still playing on a Thursday night.
Only us. ??

10 Sep 2026 18:55:22
Sesko starting. Yoro too. Rashford on the bench. Will be interesting to see how Cunha does on the left, because he hasn’t been playing well centrally. But surprised that Santos wasn’t given a start.

10 Sep 2026 19:52:13
The CL theme always sends shivers.

10 Sep 2026 22:45:29
Nice easy win. I doubt they will get a point, but what a story for them to qualify.