Editor's word - Issue 21

With issue 21 on sale today and over the next week’s games (as well as online until it's gone), here's a taster.

This is my editor's piece for the current mag

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Manchester United are flying.

Its been a journey, and not a linear one. Football fans often talk of support through thick and thin, through ups and downs. Utd men’s fans of a certain vintage were lucky to live through very few ‘downs’ for a long time.

Even fans of the women’s team have had it pretty good for the last 7 seasons, though 2023-24 was cause for concern. Even the most patient and tolerant couldn’t confidently defend Marc Skinner’s position. A 5th place finish in a 4 horse race for a top 3 spot seemed untenable, saved by either the FA Cup win or the owner’s indifference.

The one year extension he was gifted was well used, if still showing some of the old concerns around performance, in game management, lack of rotation etc, but 3rd place was achieved.

As per usual, much of that achievement was put down to outside factors. city’s injury list was apparently the main reason we were able to sneak into 3rd place, loathe be the press to give any praise to Manchester United, who did limp to that finish to be fair.

While the 3rd place finish was earned, the prospect of competing with Europe’s best was daunting. A big summer was needed.

3 players. That's all we got. The draw of the biggest name in the sport, European football to offer, World 7s prize money, all should have been enough to attract enough talent to take that next step from knocking on the door of the Champions League to competing, and reaching the latter stages.

The 3 players we brought in were of the highest calibre, but would it be enough?

The answer, in terms of starting XI at least, is a resounding yes. The balance of the team has never been better, the consistency too. Even the iconic, record breaking season of 2022/23, where points were dropped in only 4 matches, had a theme of riding our luck. Last minute winners make for exciting times, but it didn’t feel like a sustainable step forward, and so it was proven with the following season’s capitulation and failure to qualify for the Champions League proper.

This season though, we have an aura. We’ve looked assured against both Arsenal and Chelsea, and could be forgiven for being disappointed with draws in both games. All other league games have seen a minimum 2 goal margin (at time of writing). Even in the game at the Hill Dickinson, where in previous years we may have scraped an equaliser, this time around we made changes that drastically changed the fortunes of the game.

We’re the only team with a goal difference in double figures (at time of writing) after 6 games, that difference of +13 gained over just 4 of those matches.

Yet the credit still doesn't come. Focus is still on flights and lost boots.

Little is made of Liverpool’s lost players over summer, or Arsenal, European champions, currently languishing in 5th. Were Utd sitting in 5th you know there would be inquiries in The Athletic into what was going wrong at Man Utd.

Are you not entertained?

Should we complain? Probably. But, “Us v Them” is a culture drilled into us from Sir Alex Ferguson’s years dominating English football. The ruination of so many childhoods brings that bitterness towards us to this day, even to a team that, in its current form, didn’t exist at the time.

The football world loves and hates Man Utd. Loves us for the interactions, but hates us for the inevitability that Manchester United will dine at the top tables of domestic football.

Enjoy the tears. There’ll be many.