1) With all the controversy surrounding Chelsea before the match regarding Mourinho leaving by ‘mutual consent’ and speculation surrounding the future of many of the Chelsea stars, anything other than a victory would have been disappointing, and United didn’t disappoint. The match itself was surrounded by controversy with the red card being shown to Obi Mikel and a dubious penalty awarded to Saha. Although, Chelsea had their luck with Joe Cole escaping a red for his tackle on Ronaldo in the second half having previously being lucky not be awarded a nailed-down penalty for his tackle on Evra. Tevez’s goal at the stroke of half time was the defining moment of the game, after that United never looked like dropping points and cruised to a rather easy win. The screening was excellent with a lot of new faces and an equal number of the screening veterans. We still need more active participation from other MUFCM members.
2) I want United to win the UCL this year and I believe that we have the squad to do so. Last year the lack depth in the squad cost us a shot at the CL, this year we are one of the favorites. Retaining the EPL is another major aim for the season.
3) Nemanja Vidic. Ronaldo is the obvious star to look out for but Vidic’s solid no nonsense defending plus the added goal threat from set pieces is going to be a key to United doing well in the EPL and UCL this year.
Saumil Sethna Mumbai Since 2001-2002 season
1. Manchester United-Chelsea game came for United at a right time just when Jose quite Chelsea. It was the best time to just put a dent to their hopes of reclaiming the title from our grasp. I feel they won’t be able to recover from the loss of Mourinho. About the screening, it is always a fun to be there. I always love to watch the match with some crazy United fans. The atmosphere is just superb and it is good that we all can watch it together. Hats off to the organizers!
2. I expect the Red devils to retain the title and also win the FA cup. Although the Champions League remains the main priority I think it is just a bit too early considering the new team that Fergie has assembled. It would be wonderful if we win the champions league but I still think there are still better teams in the competition who can win it. However I firmly believe they are going to retain the title and win the FA cup.. Champions’ league will come in next year probably or hopefully!
3. According to me the key player will be Owen Hargreaves.. You will get different views from others saying Ronaldo, Rooney, Tevez and stuff but Hargreaves is the key.. If he is at his best then even champions’ league is also possible this year. United are lacking defensively and he will be the best person to give them that cover. If he remains fit for the season United are sure to win silverware..
Abhishek Kamath, Mumbai
1) The fact the former Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho lost his job in the week leading to this cracker of a fixture did not make the game any less interesting. Chelsea with or without Mourinho were a side that would be difficult to break down.It felt great beating them 2-0 and was great to see Tevez score his first goal in Manutd colours. But what made this game even more special was watching the game with fellow red devils from Mumbai.31 of us where there at the Avon Ruby, Dadar to watch the champions beat last season runnersup. Also,i would like to mention here, the moderating team from MUFCM did a great job in making this screening a success.
2) You can hear a lot of United supporters talking about a repeat of the ‘99 season treble. But i feel it it not very easy winning three major trophies all in the same season. We might have done with once but its not very easy doing it all over again. For me, our first aim for the season would be the Premier league. After that, I guess it would be the Champions League and then the FA cup. But when it comes to my personal expectations for the season, I would absolutely love it if we did the treble, but a more realistic goal would be to win the League. Although i wouldn’t be complaning if we do win the treble!!
3) Alright, this answer of mine is surely going to raise a few eye brows. One player i feel who holds the key to United winning trophies this season is a 100% fit Saha. We must not forget the form Saha was during the first few months of last season because of which we got off to a great start in the League. Both Rooney and Tevez are great players but i feel they cannot play together upfront. Both of them like playing deep. When saha is not playing we seem to lack a focal point in attack. Also,our attacks get pretty predictable when Saha is not playing. Lets just hope Saha has overcome all his injury problems and stays fit for all or atleast most of the season. If he does,let me assure you, United fans are in for something special this season.
GLORY GLORY MANUTD!!
Name:RohitRamachandran City:Mumbai Fan Since:2001-2002 season(in my 7th season as a United supporter now)
1) United dominated the match and deserved to win. It was my first screening with MUFCM. Fantastic experience. …Awesome place which is centrally located in Mumbai (easy for everyone to reach), Great atmosphere, Good food, Great way to make some new red devil friends.
2) Firstly to retain the EPL title and then win the Champions League by playing the best attractive football they are known for.
3) Well EPL is too long for one player to win it on its own But CL …I would say Vidic. As we all know United always score…but to win the CL you need a good defense too Vidic is the key to United’s defense Even last year we lost against Milan 3-0 as Vidic was half fit or else we could have won the title for sure.
Sunil Thakur, Mumbai…..Have been following United since 1999.
1. The game was brilliant for two reasons: ManUtd won the game comfortably and got one over one of their title rivals We had a successful MUFCM screening at Dadar where around 30 of us were gathered and had a brilliant evening watching the game This was MUFCM’s first screening of the 07-08 season and me being part of the mods , it was certainly not a bad thing that everything fell perfectly into place. Chelsea seemed to be slightly put-off by the departure of their famous manager and dint seem to be at their best. Matters became worse at the half-hr mark when Obi Mikel was shown a red card. ManUtd’s efforts finally paid off when Carlos Tevez nicked in front of the keeper and glanced in Ryan Giggs’ cross on half-time. Second half was all United and then in the 88th minute Saha was fouled in the box and he duly converted the resulting penalty kick, much to the delight of his teammates and all United fans across the globe.
2. After a slightly shaky start to the season, things seem to finally falling in place with a few straight wins and no goals conceded. With Rooney, Saha and Ronaldo back from injuries/suspension, we should start scoring goals for fun soon! As for my expectations, well, one trophy at least. If we only win the FA Cup it wouldn’t be counted as a successful season in my opinion. This season we have two anniversaries- 100 years since our first League title & of course 50 years since the Munich Air Tragedy. So ideally winning both the League title and the European Cup would make this season second only to the 98-99. And we look like we have a team that is very much capable of winning both these trophies. Of course winning either one of the two wouldn’t be too bad but it will still hurt if we miss out on one of them.
3. Last season was all Ronaldo with Rooney playing the role of support ‘star’ as such. This seaso I feel is Wayne Rooney’s year through and through. Once he is back to full fitness following his injury in the first game of the season, he can contribute a lot to this Manchester United team. Him along with Tevez and Ronaldo and the ever-lasting Giggs and Scholes are going to be crucial if we (MUFC this time !!!) are to achieve our goals this season.
Nandan Vaidya, Mumbai
