Little Book of Manchester United (5 page)

They nearly became the first side to retain the trophy when they were back in the final the following year, when they lost to Barcelona, falling to goals from Eto’o and Messi.

United were drawn against Rangers, Valencia and Bursaspor in the group stages of the 2010-11 Champions League.

Charity Shield

Manchester United have competed in a record 27 FA Charity Shield matches since its inception in 1908 (when Football League Champions United emerged victorious over Southern League Champions Queen’s Park Rangers in a Stamford Bridge replay), winning the trophy on nearly half of these new season curtain openers. They have also shared the Shield on four occasions when the match ended in a draw before the introduction of penalty shoot-outs.

United participated in the highest-scoring Shield match when they beat Swindon Town 8-4 in 1911. Alex Stepney was embarrassed when Tottenham goalkeeper Pat Jennings scored against him with a long kick from his own penalty area at Old Trafford in 1967 in a match that finished 3-3.

*Celebrations following victory in the 2007 Community Shield.

It was FA Secretary Ted Croker who in 1974 proposed that the Shield should be played at Wembley as a curtain-raiser to the new season between the reigning League Champions and FA Cup holders.

In the 1990s, Manchester United appeared in no fewer than seven Shield matches – winning four (including two on penalties, against Arsenal in 1993 and Chelsea in 1997), drawing one and losing two. The Charity Shield was renamed the FA Community Shield in 2001 and United have continued their love affair with seven appearances already in the first decade of the new millennium.

Charlton

Football was in Bobby Charlton’s blood. His mother came from the Milburn soccer family in the northeast with four brothers playing professionally, while her cousin was the legendary Newcastle United centre-forward Jackie Milburn. Not surprisingly, both her sons took up the game and Jack played for Leeds and England.

Born 11 October 1937 near Newcastle, Bobby Charlton joined United’s ground staff in June 1953. As a schoolboy player, it was rumoured that at least 18 clubs wanted to sign him, but he made a promise to join United. His early years saw him score regularly as a reserve, and finally make his debut in October 1956 scoring two goals. He was dropped for the next game to make way for the recently recovered Tommy Taylor.

*Bobby Charlton in action against Spurs.

There was much competition as the Busby Babes started to grow in number and Charlton was only picked to play when various members of the team were injured, notably, Billy Whelan, Taylor or Dennis Viollet. By the end of 1956-57 he was playing more regularly however. With exemplary behaviour both on and off the pitch, Charlton was set to do well with his exceptional eye for the goal. The emerging Babes side enjoyed Championship success with the help of ten goals scored by Charlton during the 1956-57 season. Also at this time he played in the FA Cup team and scored during the semi-final, going on to play in the Final against Aston Villa.

Success eluded the team, but undeterred, Charlton went on to make his European Cup debut against Real Madrid. When their plane crashed at Munich airport on 6 February 1958, eight United players were killed. Charlton escaped serious injury having been dragged unconscious from the wreckage by goalkeeper Harry Gregg. In the following month after the disaster, Charlton returned to action in the FA Cup sixth round. The team reached the Final, but lost to Bolton. Charlton remained a constant player for Busby, while other players came and went.

*Bobby Charlton in action during a match.

The aftermath of the accident was a difficult time for all at Old Trafford and Matt Busby was often in despair. He found in Charlton a great source of inspiration. Charlton, meanwhile, was committed to playing for his club. He made his England debut in April 1958 against Scotland at Hampden Park. He played mostly left-wing and took part in 38 League games, scoring 28 goals, but he didn’t feel involved enough. He found his niche in midfield in 1964 where he was able to unleash his creative skills and contribute greatly to Championship success.

Charlton was instrumental in helping England to the World Cup Final in 1966, belting two fine goals past the Portuguese keeper in an earlier game. England won the World Cup in spectacular fashion and Charlton was then voted Footballer of the Year, European Footballer of the Year and Model Player by the referees. In 1968, at the pinnacle of his career, he helped United to their European Cup triumph over Benfica at Wembley.

Bobby Charlton holds the record for most appearances for the club (753 in all competitions) and is the highest goalscorer with 247. Scoring twice in his last ever game for United against Verona at the end of the 1972-73 season, Charlton, having already been awarded an OBE, went on to receive a CBE in January 1974. He was knighted in 1994.

Coppell

Born 9 July 1955 in Liverpool, Steve Coppell signed for United in 1975. He had slick ball skills that made him a natural choice for both United and England until injury halted his playing career in 1983.

While studying at Liverpool University, Coppell had joined Third Division Tranmere Rovers, but United’s manager, Tommy Docherty spotted his talent and he moved to Old Trafford in early 1975, taking over from winger Willie Morgan. Although his first season ended in losing to Second Division Southampton in the FA Cup Final, United returned to Wembley in May 1977 to defeat Liverpool 2-1, where Coppell picked up the only winner’s medal of his career.

*Coppell motivates his teammates during a match, September 1980.

In 1981, during an England game, Coppell seriously injured his knee in a tackle with Josef Roth of Hungary. This led to three operations from which he never fully recovered and 14 months later, aged just 28, he was forced to retire from playing professional football. He had played 206 consecutive League games between 1977 and 1981, a United record. He later went on to manage Crystal Palace, Manchester City, Brighton and Reading where he resigned after the final match of the season in 2009. He became manager of Bristol City in April 2010.

Crerand

Renowned for being a tough midfielder, Pat Crerand (born 19 March 1939) signed for United in 1962. He had joined Glasgow Celtic in 1957 at the age of 18. Three months after arriving at Old Trafford, Crerand won the first of many medals including an FA Cup winner’s medal against Leicester City in 1963. He quickly established himself as one of United’s most constructive midfielders and was known for being an aggressive tackler.

His vision and ability to send the ball long made up for his lack of goals and he became a key member of the United side that won the League Championship in 1965 and 1967 and the European Cup in 1968. Along with Bobby Charlton and Nobby Stiles, Crerand formed one of United’s finest ever midfield trios. He had an unquestionable loyalty to Matt Busby and the club and was arguably sometimes too committed, allowing his temper to get the better of him. In a match against Partizan Belgrade in 1966 he was sent off for fighting, but two years later won the European Cup with United against Benfica at Wembley.

*Crerand warming up before a game, January 1968.

During the 1971-72 season, he retired from playing and for a brief time was assistant manager to Tommy Docherty, before becoming manager of Northampton Town in 1976. Crerand’s unflinching support for the club and a local radio commentator’s job still earn him high regard with supporters.

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Derbies

The first ever Manchester derby took place on 3 October 1891 when Newton Heath beat Ardwick 5-1 in an FA Cup first round qualifier. There have since been more than 130 League and ten Cup meetings between the two local rivals with the red half of Manchester holding the upper hand as the tables below show. Probably the most famous derby match took place on 27 April 1974 when former United favourite Denis Law scored a back-heeled goal for City that would condemn their more illustrious rivals to relegation. Indeed, Law felt so bad that he left the pitch immediately, watching the remaining few minutes from the touchline, and hung up his professional boots.