Barcelona and Real Madrid are undoubtedly huge football clubs with enormous fan bases. Yet Manchester United trumps them both as the most loved sporting brand name anywhere in the world according to the highly respected Forbes magazine. In addition to a reported 333 million worldwide supporters, United is considered to be the most valuable franchise in sports and continues growing because of its championships and tradition. Seattle Times reporter Joshua Mayers explains how United became the worlds best loved club.
A five match USA tour by Manchester United possibly requires a bigger entourage than a world concert tour by U2 or The Rolling Stones! Okay, that may be a little over the top – although it cannot be far fetched, because I don’t have the slightest idea of how many people rock bands take with them but as David McDonnell reports in the Daily Mirror, United requires no less than a party of 80 to ensure that the multi million dollar pre season circus goes off without a hitch.
Sir Alex Ferguson has been labelled ‘Sir Pinocchio’ by Sky Sports Italia. “He does not tell the truth all the time, especially when it comes to buying or selling players” it warned its readers. So what can we make of Ferguson’s insistence that Dimitar Berbatov is over the disappointment of being left out of the Champions League final squad? The Bulgarian was joint top scorer in last season’s Premier League but failed to make the bench at Wembley with Michael Owen preferred after the manager agonised over his selection. The omission led to inevitable speculation in the press that the former Spurs striker would be leaving Old Trafford this summer but the manager insists there are no issues to resolve.
Sir Alex Ferguson has been labelled ‘Sir Pinocchio’ by Sky Sports Italia. “He does not tell the truth all the time, especially when it comes to buying or selling players” it warned its readers. So what can we make of Ferguson’s insistence that Dimitar Berbatov is over the disappointment of being left out of the Champions League final squad? The Bulgarian was joint top scorer in last season’s Premier League but failed to make the bench at Wembley with Michael Owen preferred after the manager agonised over his selection. The omission led to inevitable speculation in the press that the former Spurs striker would be leaving Old Trafford this summer but the manager insists there are no issues to resolve.
“The only thing we did differently from that 2-0 defeat in Rome was to score”. It’s hard to argue against that blunt assessment from the now retired Manchester United legend Paul Scholes who has no hesitation in admitting that his side were no match for Barcelona during the Champions League Cup final at Wembley in May – but believes that manager Sir Alex Ferguson will do what is necessary for the team to improve further.
“The only thing we did differently from that 2-0 defeat in Rome was to score”. It’s hard to argue against that blunt assessment from the now retired Manchester United legend Paul Scholes who has no hesitation in admitting that his side were no match for Barcelona during the Champions League Cup final at Wembley in May – but believes that manager Sir Alex Ferguson will do what is necessary for the team to improve further.
