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OLD TRAFFORD reached fever pitch. When Robin van Persie’s free kick hit the back of the net and clinched his hat-trick, all control was lost. Months of frustration were released at that moment; belief that had wavered was reborn. At the weekend, Manchester United sank as low as they could with a 3-0 home defeat to Liverpool, but with this 3-0 win over Olympiakos that sent them to the quarterfinals of the Champions League, they began the long climb back.
“They were fantastic and they deserved this,” said Wayne Rooney of the fans after the game. Never a truer word has been spoken. As their bitterest rivals sauntered out of this arena victorious on Sunday, the crowd sang louder and louder. Twenty times this club has won the English league championship — they remind you of that in these parts. This is a proud club; finally, they have something to shout about again.
Diego Maradona’s Barcelona were the last team to surrender a two goal advantage in this stadium some 30 years ago. That night United were driven forward by the muscular brilliance of their captain Bryan Robson.
Olympiakos are not in that venerated company, but they had every right to approach this game with confidence after their 2-0 victory in the first leg.
Against the Greek champions however, David Moyes’ team reminded this generation that they have heroes too.
Robin van Persie rightly grabs the attention with the three goals that send the club through, but Rooney was the pivot upon which the entire team spun. For a man who has made a public nuisance about being played in midfield, he looked awfully close to playing a Roy Keane-type role.
Behind those two, Ryan Giggs could be found with such dynamism and vision that it boggles the mind he hasn’t featured for two months.
It seemed that all of a sudden United had grown a midfield. How they have needed one in the past few months.
The foundation of this great comeback was found in the understated brilliance of David de Gea in goal. With the match scoreless and faith still strained, De Gea was forced into a phenomenal double save that required the speed of Bruce Lee and the reflexes of a fencer.
It was merely the latest in a long line of great stops he has made this year.
He is an authoritative presence nowadays and can fairly claim to have been United’s player of the season so far.
Antonio Valencia could be seen soldiering on down the flanks despite clashing heads in the fourth minute with such severity that his eye swelled up to the size of a cricket ball.
It was the kind of wound that would stop boxing matches and would have rugby players turning their heads. An hour later, the Ecuadorian could still be seen tackling back and clearing his lines.
“With this squad, this club can be more than a match for anyone,” said David Moyes in the aftermath.
He is right of course, but the fact of that matter is they should have been a match for other sides throughout the campaign. This one-off victory is an enormous lift, but there have been plenty of false dawns already this season.Consistency has been painfully absent under David Moyes and while this result keeps the wolves from the door, they are not that far away.
In the meantime, United and their fans are entitled to enjoy the moment. Football is ludicrous game at times, but when the club can send you to such extremes of emotion in such a short time you can only be smitten.
Uefa results from Wednesday:
Man Utd 3-0 Olympiakos (agg 3-2)
Borussia Dortmund 1-2 Zenit (agg 5-4) — Soccernet
Online Reporter