Sunday the 13th of May 2012 around 16:44. The champagne was on ice. The Premier League winners medals were safely in their boxes at the Stadium of Light, ready to be handed out to Uniteds victorious players. A replica of the famous Premier League trophy ready to be hauled high
Moses Malone Jersey by Patrice Evra and Manchester United for the 13th time. Millions of United fans around the World poised to roar with joy at the sweetest of title succe ses.This was a moment that every single person a sociated with Manchester United would never forget; but for all the wrong reasons. As a fan it was crushing; our title hopes suddenly increasing, then coming crashing back down to earth in the space of 5 unbelievable added minutes at the Etihad Stadium. We all know what happened next; the unthinkable. A shot. A goal. A title winner to rip up 44 years of hurt for Uniteds arch rivals.The 2011/2012 season couldnt have ended in an any more heartbreaking way made even more tough to take by the fact that this was probably the greatest moment in Manchester Citys history. In fact, the season as a whole couldnt have gone much worse. 89 points was a sensational tally, but Sir Alexs men were nowhere near up to their usual sky high standards;humiliatedin the Champions League group stages and hit for 6 at Old Trafford, by aresurgentManchester City side.There were le sons to be learnt this summer, but as Sir Alex Ferguson has looked to deliver an emphatic response to the season from hell. Im a winnerthe 25 years manager of Manchester United declared just a day after Vincent Kompany joyfully lifted the Premier League trophy at his own expense. Instead of looking to forget the horrors of May the 13th, Ferguson has looked to channel theemotionsin order to spur his men on to reclaim the title. He urged the younger players, both in the dre sing room and in public, to rememberthat faithful day.And remember it they certainly will.United were quick to snatch their summer
Darryl Dawkins Jersey targets, Shinji Kagawa the Bundesliga Player of the Season and young Nick Powell of Crewe came in as soon as June. Kagawa should provide the creative edge moving forward that the Red Devils lacked last season. So often they pre sed and probed teams, but just couldnt quite break through. Last season there was a run of 1-0 victories and winning in this fashion is all well and good, until the league title is won and lost on goal difference.The former Borri sia Dortmund playmaker should create plenty of chances for the new look, mouth-watering front line.Similarly, should Tom Cleverely keep fit through the entire season United will have even more creativity in the final third of the pitch. The Englishman was a revelation in the early weeks of last season playing a huge part in the famous 3-0 and 8-2 victories against Spurs and Arsenalrespectively and put up some good performances for Team GB this summer. A pioneer of the pa s and move style of play he and Shinji should also give his side a larger chance in Europe, once again there would be absolutely no excuses for this side to exit theprestigiousChampions League in the group stages.There have been cries from all quarters of Old Trafford other than the away end for Ferguson to sign up a strong ball winning midfielder, but he has resisted, thus far. Many would argue that United thoroughly mi sed Nemanja Vidics solidity in defense last season but many people underestimate the importance of Darren Fletcher, particularly when the youngdefenseconcededno le s than 14 goals against the 5 sides below them. This figure should decrease with Vidic returning, and Johnny Evans growing in confidence after a good run last season, on top of the rapidly maturing Phil Jones who appear destined to lead out the Uniteddefenseat Old Trafford in years to come. But still it seems to easy to penetrate through the Red Devils midfield, a huge problem in Europe as was shown by the horror shows against Bilbao. The signs for the Scottish midfielder look good, he has returned to training for both his club and country, as well as playing in a friendly last week against Aberdeen. However, it is hard to say, but sadly Fletcher may never reach his high standards again, after losing stones of weight due to his illne s. Michael Carrick is a reasonably good ball winning midfielder, as is the young Ryan Tunnicliffe, and Fergie may prefer to promote through the youth system yet again, although it will be a large step up for the young man who has only had first team experience at Peterborough United in the Championship.Should the midfield create chances, there is absolutely no doubt that there will be goals galore at Old Trafford this season. With last seasons second top scorer fit and ready to go, as well as Chicharito, potentially in the Ole Gunnar Solskjaer mold, and young Danny Welbeck, who performed so well along side Rooney for both his club and country last season.But Uniteds options dont end there. With the addition
Maurice Cheeks Jersey of Premier League top scorer and PFA Player of the Season Robin Van Persie gives Sir Alex Ferguson a wealth of goal scoring options, almost replicating the front four achievedtrebletriumphin 1999. Fergusons rapid shift in transfer policy spending large sums on players over 27 which he swore never to do after Dimitar Berbatov signed is a reflection on the ability of Van Persie, with the man himself declaring the opportunity to sign Arsenals captain as too good to turn down.Can Rooney and Robin Van Persie play together? Who will play as the deep false number 9 type player? What will it mean for new signing Shinji Kagawa? All these questions will soon be answered; there is no question that Ferguson would not put a 24 million investment into an arch rivals star player without a plan in mind. United fans will be desperately hoping that will replicate Eric Cantona at Old
Julius Erving Jersey Trafford, as opposed to Dimitar Berbatov who seems destined to walk away from the club that has deprived him of so many opportunities to shine in the very near future.Goals may beguaranteeddown one end, but Nemanja Vidic and co will be hoping that they dont fly in down the other end. The Serb brings alongside Rio Ferdinand extra leadership and guidance for the likes of Phil Jones, Chris Smalling and Johnny Evans, as well as being po sibly the best center back in the League by himself (although Vincent Kompany may have something to say about that). There is no question that Evans solid form last season was significantly aided by having the experience of Ferdinand alongside him, and Vidic will be looking to pa s on the same advice for the up and coming generation.Meanwhile it would seem that young Rafael could benefit from such experience, down the right hand side ofdefensethere have been flashes of brilliance but equally erratic performances that have put his side in trouble. Sir Alex will have given the Brazilian arollickingafter hishistrionicsin the Olympics Final, and the boy will this season need to become a man if United are to claim the Title, particularly with thedeputizingChris Smalling out injured. Another young man looking to up his performances will be David De Gea in goal; even if he was solid in the final months of the season his side cannot afford another slow start, although he looks now to have adapted to the Premier League and could be one of the players of the season should he pick up from where he left off last season.A relatively new look United have their first test of the season against Everton, away at Goodison in the first edition of Monday Night Football. It will be a revenge mi sion for those who were involved in the infamous 4-4 draw at Old Trafford last season, which ultimately turned the Title Race on its head and handed the initiative back to Manchester City. Personally (maybe with typical supporters pe simism) I can see this being a tough game, Moyes men are always tough to beat and the Red Devils are notoriously slow starters, especially with newsigningsto adapt to the pace of the Premier League and plenty of injury problems to contend with.On the whole however- there is every reason to be positive going into the new season, United have a habit of responding emphatically after losing out on the title, and Sir Alex will be drilling into his players the need to take the title back to the red half of Manchester. Last season the side seemed to be in transition, and that trend will continue this season as Giggs and Scholes are handed le s chances in the first team, and the young potential stars will hopefully step up to the mark and be even more influential. If this can be achieved, and Robin Van Persie can continue his sensation form off the back of last
Ben Simmons Jersey season, then there is a strong po sibility that on the final day of this season the champagne bottles can be opened, and the trophy lifted high.
