Last month, the twelve self proclaimed biggest football clubs in Europe, headed by the President of Real Madrid, Florentino Perez, announced to the world that they had formed their own exclusive league called The European Super League. They claimed this was for the greater good of the game and the only viable solution to financially rescue the more than one thousand other professional clubs across the continent by sharing in future profits. This idea was met with universal anger across the football community in Europe. What these owners were really saying was, they no longer wanted to play in a system that has existed for more than 100 years, where someone other than them could be successful. In England alone, there are around 100 professional clubs, spread over five divisions who can all get relegated or promoted, meaning a small town team who play in front of 5,000 fans each week, could and they have, reached the very pinnacle of the countries sport, The Premier League. The owners of the “Big 12” wanted a more closed shop, American franchise system where the rich got richer and the television revenue would increase, in turn saving themselves from the reality of the culture they created, inflated player wages and excessive transfer fees, putting many of these clubs close to financial ruin and in some cases riddled with debt.
Only two days after it was announced, it was dead in the water. The people had spoken and they were having non of it. Protests by fans of the clubs involved, most notably in England, led to the withdrawal of all the English clubs followed by badly worded press releases from the owners basically saying they made a mistake and it won’t happen again.
Still, the power these clubs hold is immense and the desire is still there behind the scenes to somehow change the game forever.
To get an insight into the mind of a supporter of one of these big clubs, I spoke with my mate since way back in 1988, Jonathan Deakin, a season ticket holder at Manchester United for almost that same time period.
Not only did ”Deakin lad” as I affectionally refer to him as, fly almost 6,000 miles to my wedding, he also was the first person to ever play me an Oasis demo cassette in the early 90s so for that alone he has been a huge influence and part of my life.
JD, let’s start with some basics, what’s your most memorable Old Trafford moment in the last 30 years?
JD: The only way to answer this is to imagine I had a time-machine and a token to spend on one journey to one game. So that would be May 1993 at home to Blackburn Rovers when United had won the league title for the first time in 26 years. It was something I had stopped thinking could ever happen and I was only 16. I don't think Old Trafford has ever been as emotional - not typical emotions of aggression or tribalism but more of relief and a blissed-out sense that we had finally laid so many ghosts to rest. Crazy when you think what success followed, but if you want to grasp the concept think of Bryan Robson that night, twelve years a world class player, dragging United through games and seasons and finally a champion of England.
Best opposition player you’ve seen at Old Trafford?
JD: I've always remembered the grace of Zinedine Zidane for Juventus in 1999: a colossus of a player who glided over the pitch and didn't seem to need to get involved in any mither or niggles. He just "did" football. I am also one of just 22,000 (as am i) who saw a near mythical performance in the 1991 Super Cup from Dejan Savicevic for Red Star Belgrade. I say near-mythical because it recently resurfaced on youtube and it's as good as the myth. (see previous post with highlights of that performance).
Best away days?
JD: Plural? I could be here a while. Obviously Barcelona 1999 would be number one if the time-machine gave me a second journey. I've come to a polite agreement with any Liverpool supporters I discuss this with, their comeback in Istanbul versus Milan in 2005 was - I would agree - the biggest comeback in terms of what needed to be done and how far they came. However, those Liverpool supporters got something no one got in Barcelona: time. Time to consider winning, to perhaps think what would happen on penalties. In 1999 within 90 seconds we went from losing and taking pride in at least being there to winnning the trophy. Unique. Nothing will ever be more dramatic unless some day a team does the same thing inside a minute.
Here's something less obvious. My third time-machine visit would be Villa away in the FA Cup third round in 2002. For some reason it kicked off at 7pm on a sunday. For some reason Leeds lost to Cardiff and it was shown in the boozers beforehand. A kind of undercard with a pitch invasion thrown in. For some reason the United allocation was about a third of the front tier. Take those ingredients, add in the most racous United following ever and season it with a comeback from 2-0 to win 3-2 with several pitch invasions and you really do have the perfect away game.
As a season ticket holder of one of the ”Big 12” clubs, what was your personal opinion
of the proposed European Super League?
JD: Shite. I remember the two-group-stage Champions League format and it was awful. The first six games were a waste of money. Even now the third home champions league game is often a pricey 'dead rubber'. Familiarity breeds contempt and apathy in football. Once, European football was exotic and unknown but now there are Greek teams I've seen visit United six or seven times. Take Barcelona at Old Trafford, I was too young for Maradona in 1984 but everyone who was there has it in their best-ever atmosphere. 2-2 in 1994 was the next visit. 2008 was one of the great modern atmospheres and a couple of years ago I took my lad to see Messi in case he never got the chance again. Those fixtures are meant to come around once a decade. Make them annual and, trust me, it will feel like Leicester. From a United perspective I would use two words on the ESL: inevitable and opportunistic. The former as I think the Glazers covet TV rights, the latter due to Covid they perhaps thought people would be looking the other way.
What changes would you make if any, to the modern game?
JD: Tired of time wasting and inconsistent referee time-keeping so I would cut halves to 30 minutes and have a basketball-style time-keeping.
Ditch VAR - it hasn't worked.
Safe standing, unreserved seating areas or both. Let grounds have a natural organic feel to them. I'll still be sat in Main Stand with the old-timers but those that want to need to be allowed to make a racket.
All major cup games (and while I am on this all music big gigs too) to be sold to personal callers via queues at the ground or approved outlets. Separates the men from the boys that - buying on the internet makes everyone equal. We aren't - let's really test people's commitment in the fairest way possible and see who is prepared to be there at 4am.
Controversial, but pay-caps are the only way to re-balance wealth I suspect.
Look at profits and ensure only a certain amount can be taken 'out' by owners.
Change the lower leages (tier 3 and 4) to Northern and Southern leagues feeding into the championship. Not sure on this but I think it would probably help.
How do you feel about the Glazers‘ ownership of United and has it changed over time?
JD: At the time they took over, it was about what they 'might' do. Some people picked it at the time, others took time to see. Now we've seen what they'd REALLY like to do.
Their biggest crime has been to divide a supporter-base who collectively tried their best but fragmented as people made their own choices. The dissent has been consistent: trying to buy shares, FC United, protests, green and gold...which incidentally followed three titles so it's never been about trophies. However, early on one man meant that certain problems were delayed: Alex Ferguson. He was protecting himself to an extent (google Ferguson, Coolmore, 99 questions to know why). But he also took care of business for eight years - probably not even realising the value he added as an individual. For eight years there was no need to make a footballing decision. And since 2013 no one has had a clue about football decisions. People can bang on about net spend but it's been spent badly and - if you look - the big money flies out when fourth place and Champions League has been missed or is under threat. No strategy and no sense of medium-term planning:
Don't buy Maguire for Mourinho but then do buy him a year later. Fellaini bought for more than his transfer buy-out clause. Sanchez. DiMaria. Micky-terry-ian. Schweinsteiger. Falcao.
Selling Johnny Evans who is still a top prem defender.
Being the only club in history to make their goalie the best-paid players.
Currently spending £300k a week on keepers.
Players given stupid contracts so they can be listed as assets....I could go on.
But worst of all is the ground. By 2000 it was the best in England - now it wouldn't make the top five and neither would our training faciltiies. We generate enough money to have built a new one on land at the back (similar to Spurs). But there's no investment in surroundings either. Whether it's corporate or otherwise, supporters can reasonably expect a 21st century experience. Old Trafford is - as much as I love it - still very much a 1990s day out.
Living in America, I know many casual United fans and certainly a lot of sports fans in general who all they know is franchises and closed leagues. How would you best describe what football means to the people of Manchester and other European towns and cities?
JD: What's the line from 'Looking for Eric'? You can change your wife, your politics, your religion. But never, never can you change your favourite football team.
You might come to your team because of where you are born, a parent, a group of friends, or maybe an amazing moment from your childhood. But once that bond settles in your early teens that is usually that. And if you become a proper part of a match-going community, whether that's the madheads who never miss a game or just the six games a season people...well that is something special. Most clubs in the UK have a very distinct identity. They will have a history. Mythical moments like I've described. Rivalries that often seem illogical. Shirts that become iconic. I don't know enough to compare to American top level sport but I suspect the nearest thing you have is college sports? But that community aspect is mirrored and replicated across all major European countries - the pyramid is the core of the principle. If you consider English football since 1993 (the 'birth' of the premiership) I actually think that about half the 92 league clubs have played in the top flight. Yes, there is big money at the top but actually English football is seemingly quite fluid. With the exception of the 2000 there are usually one or two title wins from clubs that might be seen as outside the 'big' ones: Nottingham Forest, Aston Villa, Blackburn, Leicester. And even in the 2000s Chelsea were disrupters. I think it's the threat to that pyramid that worried people the most.
What did last Sunday’s protest mean to you and what was the message you hoped to get across?
JD: The stars aligned. Firstly, the ESL gave us a mandate - don't forget all those visiting clubs who chanted 'USA' at us. They suddenly realised the Glazers were not just a United problem but an English football problem. So then you have Liverpool at home as a place to start. And a rare moment of unity as those who may have said, "I told you so," instead said, "Here's one more chance." Everyone was up for it. Honestly, for United it's about making the Glazers feel as uncomfortable as possible - ideally they would sell but are there owners out there who would do it the way we want? I can't see our conservative government telling someone to hand over a private company to part-ownership.
What do you expect/hope will happen next?
JD: The Glazers are hard-faced and will just see this as round three or four of the same fight they think they will win. However, this does feel different.
The images of supporters on the pitch make the headlines but it was the non-violent protest at The Lowry Hotel that stopped the game - those players were not leaving. At the very least, this will necessitate expensive road closures and police presence in future. Supporters stopped the biggest game in English football and in doing so realised there are only two ways to drive a bus into Old Trafford! My heart tells me this could be a movement and another protest would be bigger again. And, let's be honest, there are loads of willing young lads who have twelve months of lockdown frustration to ease and this gives them an outlet! My head tells me this will soon descend back into the 'thuggish football supporters' narrative much-loved by our tabloid press. But the coverage today seems very balanced to be fair. I bought four papers - it felt like when we win a trophy. The popular image of Man United supporters as glory-hunting, prawn-sandwich eating out of town tourists pervades - but for me there are only four clubs in Britain who could have pulled off what we pulled off yesterday. Answers on a postcard.
