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    Part 1: The Solskjaer story

    Inside United looks back on the life and times of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, in appreciation of his glittering 11-year, 126-goal Reds' career…

    ‘OLE WHO?’FIRST AND LAST
    For Ole and United, it was love at first sight. Little hoopla surrounded his move, but that changed fast. The first indication we’d got ourselves a baby-faced assassin came at Oldham’s Boundary Park, Ole bagging both in a 2-0 win for the Reserves. Then, days later, he came on as a substitute, with United trailing Blackburn at Old Trafford. Entering the fray in the 64th minute, he equalised just six minutes later to preserve an unbeaten 32-game home streak in a 2-2 draw. He hasn’t forgotten either occasion. “Both those matches are firmly stuck in my mind,” he said. “It was a very proud moment to be wearing the Red shirt for the first time, even if it was only a Reserves fixture. To then score at Old Trafford was so special. I’ll always treasure the memory of those two matches.”

    DON’T LEAVE US THIS WAY…
    You don’t become United’s top goalscorer in your first season without having other clubs swarm round you when you’re not in the team. In 1997/98, Ole was linked with a host of Europe’s finest, and our worst fears almost came true. Thankfully, he knows his own mind. "I remember talking to my agent a lot about a move to Spurs and he said I was the most stubborn player in the world," he recalls. "The two clubs had agreed a fee – I’ve still got the fax at home! It would have been easy to be pressurised into something like that, but I didn’t want to go and the manager kept telling me I’d get my chance, and he was true to his word. It was the pride of playing for the best club in the country. I wanted to be part of that.”

    FIRST AMONG EQUALS
    Ole came to win trophies and, after nine months, 33 starts and 18 goals had not only finished the campaign as United’s top scorer (19 all told), he had his first Premiership winners’ medal. “It was the first time I’d won anything in football, apart from an under-11 or under-12 district championship,” he recalls. “That Tuesday was wonderful, when I sat in front of my telly and watched West Ham versus Newcastle and Wimbledon’s clash with Liverpool. Ronny [Johnsen] called after the final whistle – we stood there screaming at each other like madmen. It was marvellous. I wanted more of that wonderful feeling.” And boy, did he get it…

    TAKING ONE FOR THE TEAM
    With just four games left of the 1997/98 campaign, a United win against Newcastle was paramount to keep a Red-hot poker up Arsenal’s backside. Most fans remember the game – a tough 1-1 draw – for another iconic moment fresh from the bench, but of an X-rated variety. Having come close to scoring a dramatic winner, Ole’s goalbound effort beating Shay Given before it was blocked on the line by Ni*** Dabizas, Rob Lee broke free for Newcastle with the game almost up. A goal would have virtually handed the Gunners the title. Ole tracked back with the determination of a greyhound on speed and took Lee out of the game with a challenge best described as agricultural. Out of character, sure, but desperate times call for desperate measures. As Uriah Rennie branished a straight red card, the TV camera caught Ole mouthing the words, “I had to do it,” to David Beckham. He knew what his challenge did for the side’s slender chances of catching Arsenal and retaining the title – and we’ve never forgotten it.

    BACK IN THE WINTER OF ‘99
    “It is my dream to score against Liverpool. My dream would be to score the winner in a 1-0 victory in the 90th minute at Old Trafford.” Ole’s dream came true – if the scoreline was slightly askew – on a memorable afternoon in January 1999 of the Treble-winning season. Liverpool led 1-0 through Michael Owen’s goal and, despite huffing and puffing, we couldn’t bring the house down. As Liverpool’s celebrations began to get into full swing, with two minutes left, Dwight Yorke levelled the scores. Shredded nerves restored, silence in the away end. Then pandemonium everywhere else. The 90 minutes were up when Ole swooped for a late winner – once again he was the opiate of the people, fully five months before repeating the feat in the greatest comeback since Matt Busby and the boys of ‘68.

    FOUR-MIDABLE
    Hat-tricks anywhere these days are about as frequent as long-serving City managers, but Ole could make the task look easier than shelling peas. Against Nottingham Forest on 6 February 1999 he executed as deadly an example of finishing as you’ll see. He not only scored four goals, he did so in the 19 minutes available to him. "Good job they didn't put him on earlier," mused Forest boss Ron Atkinson. So nonchalant was Ole’s performance, he looked almost embarrassed. The 8-1 – yes, 8-1 – remains the Premiership’s biggest away win.

    NOU ORDER
    While the rest of us panicked, crossing what remained of our gnawed fingers, Ole was the calm at the eye of the Nou Camp storm. He was in the know, y’see. “It’s hard to explain, it was just a feeling,” he said of that staggering Treble-clinching climax. “It’s about positive thinking, maybe; you always visualise yourself scoring, so perhaps that’s all it was. But it was a little bit of a stronger feeling. I don’t know why. The goal? It’s one of those that you score one time out of five if you’re lucky, because you haven’t practised that finish. You just do it, you guide the ball on. More often that not it goes over the bar or it's cleared by the man on the far post. There were so many things that could have gone wrong with that finish… it was just instinct.” Killer instinct.

    Part 2: The Solskjaer story

    Part Two of Inside United's look back on the life and times of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, in appreciation of his glittering 11-year, 126-goal Reds' career…

    CAN SCORE FOUR, TOFFEES
    Few players ever score four in a game, fewer do it twice in the space of nine months. United were one down against Everton in December 1999, but levelled quickly through Denis Irwin. Then the fun began. Two minutes after the equaliser, Ole had put United ahead. Racing past David Weir he slid the ball past Paul Gerrard’s despairing dive to watch it trickle over the line. Minutes before half-time and deja vu, Everton let United through again. Solskjaer – one on one, following a brief catnap from Weir – duly made it 3-1. Three became four when he converted Irwin’s cross for his hat-trick – completing the rout when he tidied up the mess Gerrard left behind following Giggs’ run and shot.

    CENTURY BOY
    We’d come a long way from ‘Ole who?’ Seven glorious years, in fact. Ironically, given his precision finishing, there was some doubt about when his 100th goal in Red had actually arrived. “After the Bayer Leverkusen game (November 2002) I was told UEFA wanted to give the goal to me, but took it away because my shot would probably have gone for a throw-in,” he remembers. “Well, it wasn’t that bad, but it wasn’t on target. So officially the one against West Brom [January 2003] was the 100th. To me though, it doesn’t really matter which is the 100th goal or the 99th. A goal is a goal.” Such modesty.

    THE COMEBACK KID
    An emotionally charged scene on a rainswept, south London night in August 2006: the game against Charlton was already in the bag, but United’s travelling fans celebrated the third and final goal like it was 1999. Their hero was back. Ole had scored for the first time since April 2003 (against Panathinai***) and shared the love-in with United’s fans in Charlton’s Jimmy Seed Stand. “After three years out it was great for the fans, for the players and the supporters,” Sir Alex Ferguson said in the post-match after-glow. “Ole is a player who has persevered in trying times and he has never lost faith that he would get his repayment one day.

    OLE HANGS UP HIS BOOTS
    “When my knee flared up in training it made the decision for me, because it means that I wouldn’t be able to play at the level I want to for this club,” Ole admits. “I also have to think about my long-term health as well. When I was out for so long before, it was always my ambition not only to play again and pull on the United shirt, but I also wanted to lift the Premier League trophy. That was my big dream. So, in that sense, last season was a fantastic experience for me and I’m glad I was able to enjoy that.” Amen.

    THE BEST OF THE BEST?
    So many highs, but the Nou Camp aside, which was the peak? Talking to this magazine in 2003, Ole revealed putting one over against the old enemy is always special. “My debut was a big moment, as was the first time we won the league after I arrived. The FA Cup final [in 1999] is a special game. The FA Cup match against Liverpool in the Treble season was a good one, too. The 3-0 away win in Juventus was amazing. That night will always remain special, we scored at crucial times.” So, all in all, it’s fair to see he enjoyed himself.

    OLD TRAFFORD
    Ole may be gone – on the pitch at least – but his legend, and his Red flag will fly high, in the stands, and in his heart. “Europe’s great stadiums all have a different feel about them but Old Trafford is home, and that’s special,” he said. “I feel at home at Old Trafford, I really enjoyed playing here, and I’ve never been scared of walking out and playing in front of those huge crowds, because they always want us to do well. For me, there’s nowhere like Old Trafford.”

    THE UNITED EXPERIENCE
    We’ve done the maths: 216 starts, plus a further 150 substitute appearances, makes 366 games and a fantastic return of 126 goals – Ole strained every sinew for the United cause. “I think I can say I’ve given my all, given everything I could as a player to Manchester United. I’m proud to have been a part of this fantastic club, and played under such a brilliant manager. I’ve also played alongside some great players and made some great friends here. I’ve had some fantastic experiences that are too numerous to just list here and now.”

    RED ARMY LOVE-IN
    “The fans have been magnificent,” says Ole. “The people of Manchester and the club’s fans all around the world have given me a different perspective of how passionate people can be about football. I really have to thank the fans a lot because they have always supported me, not only when I was on the pitch, but also in the more difficult times when I was coming back from injury. It’s strange to think that I’ll be an old man, and I’ll be meeting United fans, and they’ll still want to talk to me about that goal. I always get asked questions like: ‘How did it feel? You were the one who won it…’ It wasn’t me who won it, the team won it, it wasn’t my touch, it’s what the team did over the season… but never mind.”

    AND, FOR MY NEXT TRICK
    In May 2008, Sir Alex revealed that Ole would take charge of United's Reserves from the start of the 2008/09 season. “I’m very excited about working on the other side of the line," he said. "It will be very challenging, which is important, and I’m pleased I’ll make my first steps into coaching at this club. Whenever I’ve thought about coaching I’ve always wanted to work at United, it feels right. But you never know if you’ll be wanted, so when the manager told me there might be a place I was absolutely delighted.” The feeling is mutual.
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      Ronaldo to miss season opener

      Manchester United look set to be without Cristiano Ronaldo for the start of the new Premier League campaign, but the club insist it will not be because he is being sold to Real Madrid.

      The Portuguese winger is set to undergo ankle surgery next week, which will keep him sidelined for up to six weeks.

      The United superstar visited a specialist in the week and, with the backing of the Old Trafford medical team and the Portuguese Football Federation, will go under the knife sometime next week.

      The news came on the day the Red Devils rubbished fresh reports from Spain that the 23-year-old will sign for Real, the latest claiming he will move within a matter of days.

      But a club spokesman said: "It is utter nonsense and totally laughable. Cristiano Ronaldo is not for sale."


      Comment


        Originally posted by persian boy View Post
        Ronaldo to miss season opener
        crystiano will be crap next season no matter who he plays for.

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          say hello to david petrucci, pride of the romese youth system, now hes ours...

          http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/mai.../sfnman113.xml

          EDIT: a pointer to all, this deal was a month ago

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            I love clubs with great history like Ajax. I also love United. They are a club that make me dream, especially as Ruud van Nistelrooy did great things with them."


            so **** off chelski... money cant buy passion. ahaha

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              Originally posted by 1Heesham1 View Post
              I love clubs with great history like Ajax. I also love United. They are a club that make me dream, especially as Ruud van Nistelrooy did great things with them."
              so **** off chelski... money cant buy passion. ahaha

              damn arsenal were in for him too
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              !GORA OSASUNA!

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                Originally posted by siavasharian
                ESTEGHLAL:

                بهترین خط دفاع.بهترین خط حمله.ثبت رکورد بیشترین گل زده.پر امتیاز ترین تیم ادوار لیگ برتر با ۴۰۹ امتیاز.پر افتخار ترین مربی لیگ برتر با دو قهرمانی
                بهترین گلزن لیگ: آرش برهانی [استقلال] با ۲۱ گل زدهبهترین خط حمله: استقلال تهران با ۷۰ گل زده

                Comment


                  Originally posted by siavasharian
                  ESTEGHLAL:

                  بهترین خط دفاع.بهترین خط حمله.ثبت رکورد بیشترین گل زده.پر امتیاز ترین تیم ادوار لیگ برتر با ۴۰۹ امتیاز.پر افتخار ترین مربی لیگ برتر با دو قهرمانی
                  بهترین گلزن لیگ: آرش برهانی [استقلال] با ۲۱ گل زدهبهترین خط حمله: استقلال تهران با ۷۰ گل زده

                  Comment


                    Piss off Blatter you bastard.
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                      Parker Slams 'Daft' Blatter

                      Former England star Paul Parker has slammed Sepp Blatter for insisting Manchester United should let Cristiano Ronaldo leave, labelling the FIFA president’s comments as ‘disgraceful’…

                      Blatter caused a stir by declaring that United’s refusal to sell Ronaldo to Real Madrid, and their further threat to punish the player’s disloyalty, amounted to “modern slavery”.

                      The Swiss went onto reveal that he hopes to combat such situations by enabling players the break off their contracts more freely – a motion which, if passed, would have an enormous impact on the transfer landscape.

                      The idea is likely to meet with huge opposition from clubs the world over, and Parker insisted the plan would leave clubs all but powerless to hold onto their star players.

                      Disgraceful

                      “What Blatter is saying is players can join a new club every year, whatever their contract situation,” the ex-United defender said in The Sun. “That is a disgraceful statement for the president of FIFA to make.

                      “Players already have so much freedom and power. Why should they be allowed to walk out on a five-year deal after just 12 months? It isn’t right.


                      “His ridiculous idea could ruin the game. How are clubs supposed to budget if their players could walk out at any time? I reckon they would have to put up ticket prices to allow for this and that could drive fans away.”

                      Daft

                      This is not the first proposal of Blatter’s to have met with stinging and widespread criticism; his infamous ‘6+5’ quota scheme, deemed illegal by the European Union, is still hanging in the balance.

                      And Parker believes Blatter should be ditched once and for all in favour of someone who has experience within the game, pointing to UEFA president Michel Platini as an example of what FIFA should look for in their new chief.

                      “It isn’t the first time Blatter has come out with some daft statement,” he said. “His comments show he really hasn’t got any idea about football. It’s time FIFA followed UEFA’s lead and appointed a visionary from a football background.”

                      Mike Maguire


                      Michel Platini, I will interject, is anything but a 'visionary'
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                        Originally posted by Suprah View Post
                        Parker Slams 'Daft' Blatter
                        Michel Platini, I will interject, is anything but a 'visionary'
                        blatter is a fool. this isn't his first time either.
                        you can't do anything about the length of your life, but you can do something about its width and depth
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                          Ronaldo Shocker: Blatter Is Right
                          Cristiano Ronaldo is said to have told Portuguese station TVI that he agrees with Sepp Blatter's comments regarding the treatment of modern footballers, adding that he has not yet come to an agreement with Real Madrid...

                          Ronaldo Shocker: Blatter Is Right


                          The winger is reported to have said that he agrees with FIFA president Sepp Blatter, who earlier controversially claimed that footballers were treated as modern day slaves, adding that Ronaldo should be allowed to leave if it is his personal desire.

                          The full TVI interview in which Ronaldo made this declaration, along with his desire to play for Real Madrid, was aired on Thursday evening during the 21:00 CET bulletin.

                          Update: The interview was broadcast at 21:28 local time.

                          The Manchester United ace said, "I am optimistic - things have been going well, I have been undergoing treatments, everything is going ok.

                          "I have been progressing well, I am now focused on recovery.

                          "I will be back in 10-12 weeks. Training with the ball? That will start in around two months."

                          Talk moved towards the player's future.

                          "I am optimistic and tranquil about what's to come," he said.

                          "Blatter's comments? I agree with him. I have nothing else to say about that. What he (Blatter) said is correct.

                          "Have I already made a deal with Real Madrid? No - that's not true. There is no deal.

                          "I hope that my future will be decided as soon as possible but I do not know where I will start the season."

                          In conclusion he discussed Manchester United assistant coach Carlos Queiroz's chances of becoming Portugal manager.

                          "He is a great coach and would be a great solution for the Portugal squad," said Cristiano. "He'd be a great bet."

                          Deal Or No Deal

                          Meanwhile, Madrid-based sports daily As claims that Ronaldo himself is confident that his move to the Spanish capital will be completed sooner rather than later.

                          Apparently Ronaldo sought to allay the blancos' fears that his ankle operation and plans to return to Manchester would see to it that a move is in jeopardy.

                          The paper states that the player has communicated to Madrid his thoughts via his agent, Jorge Mendes, and an SMS text message. Translated, the text read: "Relax: I've taken care of everything."
                          Originally posted by siavasharian
                          ESTEGHLAL:

                          بهترین خط دفاع.بهترین خط حمله.ثبت رکورد بیشترین گل زده.پر امتیاز ترین تیم ادوار لیگ برتر با ۴۰۹ امتیاز.پر افتخار ترین مربی لیگ برتر با دو قهرمانی
                          بهترین گلزن لیگ: آرش برهانی [استقلال] با ۲۱ گل زدهبهترین خط حمله: استقلال تهران با ۷۰ گل زده

                          Comment


                            Originally posted by siavasharian
                            ESTEGHLAL:

                            بهترین خط دفاع.بهترین خط حمله.ثبت رکورد بیشترین گل زده.پر امتیاز ترین تیم ادوار لیگ برتر با ۴۰۹ امتیاز.پر افتخار ترین مربی لیگ برتر با دو قهرمانی
                            بهترین گلزن لیگ: آرش برهانی [استقلال] با ۲۱ گل زدهبهترین خط حمله: استقلال تهران با ۷۰ گل زده

                            Comment


                              Wow....being paid almost 150k pounds WEEKLY, all sorts of endorsements, mansions, fashion accessories and only signing a FIVE year deal twelve months back (forget contractual obligations )....and footballer like Ronaldo is a "Slave" ??!! PISS OFF YOU DISGRACE !!

                              p.s. that Henry comment abt Messi belongs in Barcelona thread, not here
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                                Aberdeen 0-2 Manchester United: preseason 2008



                                The game was held to celebrate Aberdeen's 25th anniversary of winning the old UEFA Cup Winners' Cup back in 1983 when they beat Real Madrid in the final under Sir Alex Ferguson
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