Re: Liverpool Vs Manchester Utd: Pre-Match thread
From the offal :
'Why United means more for us than them'
Given Old Trafford is only a 35 mile trek down the M62, it’s no surprise Manchester United are forever grazing the surface of our subconscious.
Ears will stand up slightly more when their name is uttered on the radio; eyes will scour the television or through mobile phones, darting towards the name of Manchester United in order to discover their fate that afternoon.
Pain is sourced from their success; pleasure is brought by their downfall. That’s not obsession, as some would claim – it’s simply football rivalry.
All these emotions intensify in the weeks leading to the next meeting. Ears perk up that little bit sharper; eyes scour that little bit quicker. The pain and pleasure brought by their endeavours touches that little bit stronger.
Even last Sunday, seven days and 180 miles from our date with United, thoughts turned to them.
Trips to London to watch Liverpool Football Club evoke a kaleidoscopic slideshow of memories following the Reds, both good and bad. The tube map which defines the city is akin to an advent calendar, with each stop a window displaying moments experienced by us and our ancestors.
But it doesn’t matter if we’re on the Hammersmith and City eastbound to West Ham or the Victoria northbound to Seven Sisters, there’s always one stop that I reminisce about more.
District line. Southbound. Putney Bridge.
A mile and a half from Fulham’s Craven Cottage, Putney Bridge appears to be like most other minor tube stations in west London’s suburbia. Not even the excellent Eight Bells pub adjacent to the station – owned by Liverpool supporters – is enough to distinguish it from others.
But as you walk towards the stadium, the breeze from the Thames brushes along your cheek – and with it carries a faint, two-year-old noise into your ear. A noise which is stuck in our conscious, deposited in our minds like the sediment on the side of the riverbank.
As Yossi Benayoun hit the net in the 93rd minute in April 2009, bedlam was unleashed.
It was a celebration so raucous and devoid of control, you wouldn’t be surprised if Craven Cottage still shakes sometimes; it was a celebration so vociferous, it’s not impossible the 3,000 believing battlecries that we’re going to win the league still reverberate around Putney.
The goal symbolised so much. Liverpool FC were becoming the bastion of invincibility of yesteryear. Teams were being either callously disposed of, or, in the case of Fulham, repeatedly and relentlessly beaten until they eventually submitted. With each passing game, Liverpool looked like champions elect; the end of the 20-year wait for a title edged ever-nearer.
And then, an unknown 17-year-old Italian swung the title pendulum back towards Old Trafford. They had the momentum and the belief once more; no matter what we did, they responded in kind. Our wait would go on; our cries upon the Thames riverbank would forever blow in the wind.
It forever blows in my mind, too.
As someone who was 3-years-old the last time Liverpool lifted the title, there’s been 21 years of anecdotes from family and older friends about the emotion of watching Liverpool Football Club parade the trophy on a glowing May afternoon.
I experienced it, to a degree, at Wembley and Cardiff. I experienced it at Istanbul. After such a long wait, it would feel like all three rolled into one.
It hurt because it was United, but it hurt more because we’re Liverpool. For some, that wasn’t the case.
For some, Macheda’s goal didn’t stop us from our 19th league title – it handed United the one which brought them level with us.
That’s not the way it should be. The cheers at Craven Cottage that mild Saturday evening weren’t to celebrate a dent in United’s title hopes – it was to cheer Liverpool Football Club. Never should the former be more important than the latter.
To want a result to hurt United more than it helps Liverpool changes it from football rivalry to obsession, something this football club has never been about.
We’ve never sung about other teams when playing Wigan or West Brom. That’s why, regardless of our trophy haul, we know we were lucky to be born this side of the East Lancs Road.
We support Liverpool first and oppose Manchester United – and Everton – second. When Kenny leads out the side this weekend, he isn't doing it to stop Manchester United’s title charge. He’s doing it because he’s manager of Liverpool Football Club, and three points is what this club always strives for.
Despite last week’s disappointing result at Upton Park, there is an overriding feeling that Kenny is restoring us to our former glories.
As a support that has waited 20 years for the Scot to reclaim his rightful throne, patience shouldn’t be a problem as he readjusts the palace over the next few months.
Matches such as the West Ham loss will happen. It doesn’t push our progress back any further; it merely helps Kenny, Steve Clarke and the rest of the backroom staff assess the squad more succinctly.
Kenny won’t have a hard job to motivate the players this weekend. Regardless of the name on the scoreboard, the league leaders are playing at Anfield, and it’s a perfect opportunity to make a statement. Our climb might have only just begun, but we’re already more than capable against the table-topping sides.
We proved that against Chelsea – twice - and we can prove that against United. It would provide us with a springboard and give the players belief. Not because it’s Manchester United, but because it’s the team currently top of the table.
When Ferguson took over Manchester United, he stated his aim was to knock Liverpool from its perch. That’s not rivalry – that’s obsession. United fans may think a title win this season will mean he’s succeeded in doing that. For me, the Liverbird just flew away for 20 years.
Now, he’s back. And regardless of what number of titles United are on, Kenny Dalglish isn’t focusing on any perches, he’s just focusing on winning matches and trophies for Liverpool Football Club