For Manchester United, Tuesday’s Champions League match was not only a place of forced victory.
The match against Danish champions FC København was of course vital for United’s Euro dreams, but however, its sporting contribution lay at the feet of Sir Bobby Charlton’s farewell.
The greatest player in the club’s history passed away on Saturday at the age of 86. Even before the start of the match, CEO Richard Arnold went to lay a wreath at Sir Bobby’s place. “Loved, Adored, Never Forgotten” (Loved, Admired, Never Forgotten) read it on the mourning ribbon.
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A single bagpipe player led manager Erik ten Hag onto the field. The Dutchman was flanked by Charlton’s 81-year-old teammate Alex Stepney and United Under-19s captain Dan Gore.
Under their leadership, the entire stadium joined in a minute of silence.
One or another home team supporter had a lump in his throat. Of course, during United’s 145-year history, the club has experienced similar situations before.
Some remembered the cold January evening at Old Trafford in 1994, when the same bagpipe ceremony honored Sir Matt Busby.
At that time, the red shirts ran Everton so that the 1–0 victory did not describe the events of the game in any way. Éric Cantona did what he wanted on the grass, and the duo Roy Keane–Paul Ince scared the opponents on the way home.
Later in the spring, that team celebrated a double championship.
And that is the biggest difference to the current one.
Charlton was part of the ‘Busby Babes’ – a team that was largely destroyed in the tragic Munich air crash.
Paul Scholes recalled on the TNT Sports broadcast how Sir Bobby, who had just turned 61, wanted to participate in the team’s training before the Champions League match at Camp Nou.
– When you grow up in this club, you learn that you have to be stylish no matter if you won or lost the match. That’s what he was. Now I realize how lucky we were to spend time with him.
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Rasmus Højlund (left) played against his former teammates. PDO
Unfortunately, on the field side, only the well-organized FCK bunch was responsible for the elegance, which did not want to remain only in the role of an extra at Old Trafford. Italian referee Marco Guida found the opening period so boring that he whistled the teams to the dressing room after only 44 minutes and 39 seconds.
United manager ten Hag was forced to come up with solutions. He wanted more Danes on the field, so Sofyan Amrabat was allowed to make room for Christian Eriksen.
The visitors’ Polish goalkeeper Kamil Grabara had to stretch to his best right in the handshake, when Eriksen was able to pull in the counter-ball from Marcus Rashford’s forehand.
The playmaker also had a good friend in the midfield. Eriksen and Rasmus Falk already played together in Middelfart Boldklub’s checkers. The move to Odense also happened at the same time.
– We certainly don’t talk to each other. We know Christian’s strengths and his weaknesses. We must be ready, because we know what he can bring to the gameFalk anticipates the match.
Eriksen’s guarding was forgotten for a moment. The Dane was able to measure his concentration for too long, and a millimeter-precise arcing ball found Harry Maguire’s head. When Denis Vavro still played topper on the right side of the offside line, the scolded topper was able to air the goal.
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Harry Maguire (right) fanned the winning goal into the Danish champion’s net. PDO
Even though København is an excellently managed club, it also sometimes has accidents at work. I guess you can count the letting of Rasmus Højlund to Sturm Graz in January 2022 for only 1.8 million euros.
The striker’s price had already increased to more than 80 million when he was bought to United in the summer.
The Danish striker immediately got to wrestle with his childhood friend Elias Jelert. In the stands, father Anders and mother Kirsten are evenly excited for both teams, because 18-year-old Oscar Højlund was sitting on the visitors’ bench.
Little brother didn’t get on the field until the extra time of the match, but he still had time to organize a real thriller ending. Guida blew the whistle for København’s point at the end of extra time, when Scott McTominay almost kicked Mohamed Elyounouss’ jaw out of place.
Behind the ball stepped Jordan Larsson, whose father Henrik also played for a while in United’s shirt.
At this point, it’s hard to believe in anything other than the fact that a former player could be watching the match on the edge of a cloud. How else can it be explained that the early season fumbled Would André Onana guess correctly and still be able to fend off Larsson’s bet?
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Sir Bobby’s statue gathered supporters’ salutes to the late football great. PDO
Sir Bobby seemed to guarantee those important three points with his own magic. On Tuesday, the club had to close his memorial book prematurely because the line in front of the room grew too long.
Fortunately for United, they didn’t have to regret the result after all, because despite all the sentimentality of the evening, this match had a huge sporting stake.
Above all, Charlton was known as an elegant gentleman. But yes, he also valued winning matches above all.