By Philip Meese
This is a category set up for the sole purpose of taking United’s fans down memory lane. It would be very easy to go through matches like the 1999 Champions League Final, or the 1996 FA Cup Final, and other big games over the years. In time, we will do articles on matches such as those but, in fairness, not a lot of imagination is required as everybody remembers those. But there are lots of matches United have played over the years that were awesome in their own right, but because we didn’t lift a trophy at the end they can pale into insignificance.
BACKGROUND
For those that don’t remember (and those that do), this game was from the 1996 – 97 season. Manchester United were locked in a four way battle for the Premier League title with Arsenal, Liverpool and Newcastle, and had endured a very topsy-turvy campaign having lost 5 – 0 at Newcastle & 6 – 3 at Southampton in October – a month which also saw United beaten at Old Trafford for the first time ever in a European game when Turkish side Fenerbahçe snatched a 1 – 0 victory.
United, despite also losing home and away to European Champions Juventus, had gotten through the group stage winning 2 – 0 away to Rapid Vienna and were handed a Quarter Final tie against F.C. Porto. The Portuguese giants, who had lit up the group stage with some fine football and shocked the world by beating AC Milan at the San Siro (something very few teams did in the 1990’s) were emerging as strong favourites to win the trophy.
The hype surrounding the tie was immense, even gracing the front cover of World Soccer magazine with the headline “United should be afraid – Very Afraid”, and it’s fair to say most Reds were nervous going into this tie, given some of the patchy form shown at times by United already that season.
But Porto, as the first leg of this tie would demonstrate, arrived at Old Trafford with a reputation which was much better than their footballing ability.
THE MATCH
So why THIS match for the first article in the category? Well, apart from the fact that it was a fantastic performance by the Reds, it was also a demonstration of what was to come over the next few years. This young side was not put off by the fact that Porto were a team with several years of European experience, packed with International players – they just went for them.
As the late Brian Moore, the legendary commentator, had said in the first minute of the first half “Porto on form are another Juventus” and broke through on goal almost immediately after Moore had said that, with only a last minute tackle by Pallister preventing Edmilson squaring to Brazilian striker Mario Jardel, who had the whole goal to aim at. In fairness, that was the only time they threatened all evening.
After that early scare, United settled in to the game and attacked their opponents at will. 20 minutes into the game, with Porto on the back foot, David Beckham swung a looping cross into a crowded penalty area which Gary Pallister headed straight at the goalkeeper who parried it into the path of David May, who was lying on the ground having gone for the same initial header as Pally. May stabbed the ball into the roof of the net and Old Trafford erupted. Game on!
I was thinking “OK United, play it simple now. There’s bound to be a reaction to this”. There was – but not from the Portuguese. Andy Cole had gone close with a header which was magnificently saved, but United did not have to wait too long for a second goal – helped by some very erratic defending from their opponents. With 34 minutes on the clock, Brazilian centre back Aloisio slipped and kicked the ball straight to Eric Cantona, who thumped a low shot under Hilario (a name familiar to most Chelsea fans - United fans called him Hilarious, as he could have done better with at least two of our goals) to make it 2 – 0.
The Porto players looked dumbfounded, clearly this hadn’t been in the script. Maybe they thought all they had to do was turn up, and victory would be theirs. United didn’t let up in the second half either, with Ronny Johnsen, by trade a centre back, magnificent in the midfield role, deputising for the injured Roy Keane, and fellow Norwegian Ole Gunnar Solskjær running himself into the ground, sacrificing himself for the team.
As Porto finally mustered up the courage to enter United’s half, they were given a sharp reminder as to why they had been afraid to venture there in the first place. An incredible, outside of the foot pass by Eric Cantona, which threatened to go out of play, found its way to Andy Cole, who ran at Jorge Costa. Somehow, Porto’s other defenders hadn’t noticed a 60 yard run by Ryan Giggs who latched onto a delicate through ball from Cole and squeezed his shot inside the near post. 3 – 0 to United with an hour played, a scoreline which had seemed unthinkable before the match.
As the Old Trafford crowd, by now very confident, sung “are you City in disguise?” United went looking for more goals, determined to wrap this up in the first leg, and in the 80th minute, they did just that. Ronny Johnsen brought the ball out of defence superbly flicking the ball up and laying it off to Cantona who ran at the knackered Porto defence, and played a short pass to Andy Cole who lifted the ball over Hilario, and the night’s scoring was complete. 4 – 0! Have a bit of that!
Every United player had a fantastic game that night, with the exception of Schmeichel, who could have stayed at home and still kept a clean sheet, so little was he required to do. This gave United fans, and everyone else, a taste of what was to come in future years – and it’s not boasting to say that 4 – 0 flattered Porto.
AFTERMATH
Alex Ferguson echoed most United fans’ thought when he said he’d have settled for 1 – 0 before the game – most of us would have. The second leg in Oporto finished 0 – 0, and was more memorable for the treatment United’s travelling fans experienced at the hands of the local police inside the stadium. United faced German champions Borussia Dortmund in the Semi Finals, where two deflected goals saw the Reds go down 1 – 0 in both home and away legs and miss a host of chances. Dortmund progressed to the Final, beating the holders Juventus 3 – 1 in Munich’s Olympic Stadium.
The disappointment for United was alleviated when they retained the Premier League title, their fourth in five seasons. It is also rumoured that the exit at the hands of Borussia Dortmund was the night Eric Cantona made up his mind to retire at the end of the season, having felt this had been his best chance of winning the trophy. We’ll never know for sure.
What is certain, however, is that the 4 – 0 win over Porto was a massive statement of intent. Manchester United’s first few outings in the Champions League, helped in no way by the three foreigner rule, had shown naivety and inexperience. This was the first time United had taken on one of Europe’s better teams, and given them a proper good hiding.
United no longer feared anyone, and this result, in my opinion, was the catalyst for many more glorious European nights over the years that followed.
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