There’s nothing quite like a dramatic late winner. It’s something United fans have become used to over the years but the thrill of it never diminishes. It’s in the DNA of the club. You could just feel it coming at the JJB Stadium last night. Wave after wave of attacks with all 4 of United’s star strikers on the field.Eventually Wigan’s stout resistance was broken when Michael Carrick struck a screamer of a goal and Liverpool’s title hopes were all but blown away. Cue crazy celebrations in front of the massed ranks of United fans – Wayne Rooney almost broke his neck in the carnage and I’m sure I spotted Patrice Evra doing a Benitez-style “it’s all over” motion with his hands! Although the gesture meant no disrespect to Wigan, who you have to say were impressive as they stunned United by taking an early lead.
It’s the fourth time since Liverpool shocked us all at Old Trafford in March that United have gone ahead in the final quarter of a game. The most important example came against Aston Villa last month, of course. After back-to-back defeats, United were 2-1 down with 11 minutes left before Ronaldo and then Kiko Macheda gave the Reds the momentum to build what now appears to be a title-winning sequence of seven straight victories.
Macheda repeated the trick the following week at Sunderland before the epic comeback against Spurs, and Michael Carrick added to that remarkable catalogue last night. It’s not chance or good luck. It’s a combination of spirit, bravery and a sheer bloody-minded refusal to accept anything other than a win.
The good news for
United fans continued after the game when Sir Alex told MUTV that negotiations were ongoing to keep Carlos Tevez at Old Trafford. His worth was proved at the JJB with a simply brilliant piece of skill to get United back into the game. It needed something special to open the door against a Wigan side who were an enormous credit to their manager Steve Bruce.
So now we are on the verge of claiming a hat-trick of titles and equalling Liverpool’s haul of 18 championships. What an achievement it will be. The trouble is, Arsenal would love to be party poopers after their Champions League humbling.
The ideal scenario is for United to lift the trophy on Saturday in front of a bumper home crowd, and then rest some of the big names at Hull so we can properly prepare for Rome. Sounds easy, doesn’t it? But as the hard-fought win over Wigan showed, United simply do not know how to do things the easy way…
Ujungpandang Time
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