THE
STORY OF
MAn UTDI
n the summer of 1999 I met with Sir Alex Ferguson in his office
at The Cliff training ground, days before his players reported
back for the new season.
At the end of the previous campaign United had become the
first English club to win the treble of the Premier League, the FA
Cup and the Champions League. But the United manager, who
had recently been knighted, was not interested in basking in the
glory of these unprecedented achievements with me; rather, he
was already making plans to win everything all over again.
“Before the last champagne bubble had popped at our
Barcelona celebrations, some people were ready to point out that my
competitive edge was sure to be terminally blunted by winning the
treble,” Ferguson would later say. “I never for a moment saw the
European Cup as the final summit. Having won it, why shouldn’t we
win it again? Having made ourselves club champions of our own
continent, why shouldn’t we set out to become champions of the
world as well?”
Ferguson accomplished this in November 1999 when United
became the first British side to become world champions with a 1-0
victory over the Brazilian side Palmeiras in the Intercontinental Cup in
Tokyo, Japan.
Two months later United had another opportunity to claim this
title in the inaugural FIFA Club World Cup in Brazil, which they wereforced to withdraw from the FA Cup to compete in, but they failed to
progress beyond the group stage.
Back in the Premier League, United strolled to another title that
season, finishing 18 points ahead of second-placed Arsenal, although
they were unable to defend their European title, losing 3-2 on
aggregate to Real Madrid in the quarter-finals.
The following season, Ferguson became the most successful
manager in English football as United finished a comfortable ten
points ahead of Arsenal in the table.
With the French World Cup winner Fabien Barthez now in goal and
a 35-year-old Teddy Sheringham scoring 21 goals and winning the
Footballer of the Year award, United were too good for their nearest
rivals Arsenal, which they comprehensively proved by beating them
6-1 at Old Trafford in February 2001.
However, United could not translate this domestic dominance into
more European success and were stopped again in the Champions
League quarter-finals, losing 3-1 over two legs to the eventual
winners Bayern Munich.
The morning after the first leg of this tie I met with the United
captain Roy Keane, who was already fearing the worst. “We really
have to be careful to think that our success is going to go on and
on. We really have to start dominating Europe as well as the
Premiership. Sometimes you don’t realise it, maybe it’s alreadyTop right
Ronaldo and
Rooney in
action against
AC Milan
Right
Champions
again in 2003
Below right
Van Nistelrooy
celebrates
scoring
including
against
Newcastle in
the 2005 FA
Cup semi-final
Below
A beaming
Ronaldo sports
his winners
medal in 2007DOMESTIC DOMINATION
Manchester United started the new millennium as Premier League
champions, and after a three-year dip roared back to the top of the table
Words Sam PilgerIN THE NEW MILLENNIUM