How much do you miss the European Cup

Can cope with those because we did get there in the end.

The two abject surrenders against Barthelona and the Basel Doughnut are worse. And £#%&!ing PSV at home.

Originally Posted by andyroo

Can cope with those because we did get there in the end.

The two abject surrenders against Barthelona and the Basel Doughnut are worse. And £#%&!ing PSV at home.

There was no abject surrender in 2011 I don't think. They were just much much better than us at the time.

2009 was much closer and tbh was more of a surrender. The two goals we conceded were utterly horrific from a defensive point of view.

Originally Posted by Sparky***

There was no abject surrender in 2011 I don't think. They were just much much better than us at the time.

2009 was much closer and tbh was more of a surrender. The two goals we conceded were utterly horrific from a defensive point of view.

Yeah I guess. Didn't like feeling so £#%&!ing powerless though. Freggle shaking with humiliated fury, it was pretty dark

Originally Posted by andyroo

Yeah I guess. Didn't like feeling so £#%&!ing powerless though. Freggle shaking with humiliated fury, it was pretty dark

Well 2009 was an opportunity missed no doubt about it. Barca were lucky to scrape past chelsea in the semis. Sure it was a good laugh watching Drogba throw a hissy fit but it didn't help United out because we'd have beaten that Chelsea team in the final.

2011 was a never going to go any other way. We'd regressed massively after seling Ronaldo and that team we put out against arguably the best side in Barcelona's history was never going to be any threat to them.

Ronaldo's performance in the 2009 final still pisses me off. Not often I accuse a player of playing for himself but that night he did.

the reality is that even if they were better than us by 2011 the margins were not big enough that people had to be so negative about our chances and then give it all the balls about how the defeat itself had always been inevitable (this persists even now)...

barcelona were knocked out deservedly by inter the season before, deservedly (and on their own pitch) by 10 man chelsea the year after and taken apart by bayern the year after that.

it just so happened that they had a purple patch off the scale at times in 10/11, similar to united in 99...

in 2009 united were better than them, although rome signalled the changing of the guard.

at wembley we had a game plan based on a seriously big learning curve built up of many years in europe and were more than capable of executing. but we didn't do it, and then failed to take advantage of our good fortune to go in level by gifting them the lead again after the break. i think our weakness was the one-off games, and by becoming experts in two-legged and group ties we lost our edge in the big one-offs. this trend was noticeable domestically as well by then.

the sight of ferguson humiliated and helpless on the touchline endures, as does the sight of him %@#$&!ing rooney for repeatedly failing to do the job he was given. as ferdinand has said, there was a very well drilled game plan, and it wasn't that it didn't work, it was that they didn't stick to it.

i also remember that they had 2 scabby draws in the group phase that season, were very lucky to get past arsenal at camp nou, and had the referee in their pocket as usual in the semi against real. so yes they were brilliant. but the collective blowing off they got and still get is ridiculous.

Originally Posted by Tumescent Throb

the reality is that even if they were better than us by 2011 the margins were not big enough that people had to be so negative about our chances and then give it all the balls about how the defeat itself had always been inevitable (this persists even now)...

barcelona were knocked out deservedly by inter the season before, deservedly (and on their own pitch) by 10 man chelsea the year after and taken apart by bayern the year after that.

it just so happened that they had a purple patch off the scale at times in 10/11, similar to united in 99...

in 2009 united were better than them, although rome signalled the changing of the guard.

at wembley we had a game plan based on a seriously big learning curve built up of many years in europe and were more than capable of executing. but we didn't do it, and then failed to take advantage of our good fortune to go in level by gifting them the lead again after the break. i think our weakness was the one-off games, and by becoming experts in two-legged and group ties we lost our edge in the big one-offs. this trend was noticeable domestically as well by then.

the sight of ferguson humiliated and helpless on the touchline endures, as does the sight of him %@#$&!ing rooney for repeatedly failing to do the job he was given. as ferdinand has said, there was a very well drilled game plan, and it wasn't that it didn't work, it was that they didn't stick to it.

i also remember that they had 2 scabby draws in the group phase that season, were very lucky to get past arsenal at camp nou, and had the referee in their pocket as usual in the semi against real. so yes they were brilliant. but the collective blowing off they got and still get is ridiculous.

Edwin, as great as he was for us, was awful for the first and second goals barca scored at Wembley.

Villa's goal was a peach, you don't save those, but Messi's strike was straight down the middle of the goal and what the £#%&! he was doing for Pedro's I don't know, he left a huge gap near post and then sort of just sat down.

Originally Posted by Sparky***

There was no abject surrender in 2011 I don't think. They were just much much better than us at the time.

2009 was much closer and tbh was more of a surrender. The two goals we conceded were utterly horrific from a defensive point of view.

We 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂👏👏👏👏👏👏👏

Originally Posted by Buck

Ronaldo's performance in the 2009 final still pisses me off. Not often I accuse a player of playing for himself but that night he did.

Not the way his United career should have ended, for sure. Love the guy but that is undoubtedly a black mark against him.

I don't miss the champions league that much. I think it's dull as £#%&! these days. I'd rather be in the champions league than not, just for the chance of winning it, but the journey to winning is mostly boring. The 99 version of the competition was far more geared for tension and excitement. The greed of those involved with the game has devalued all the cups.