To Be or Not to be United

2009-06-16

After a sunset there will always be a sunrise?

By Lavinia Fratila

Manchester United is  a club with a very rich history and also a club who gathered lots of trophies along the years,  like 18 times winner of FA Premier League , 11 times winner of FA Cup, 3 times - Football League Cup, 3 times European titles and 1 UEFA Super cup winner. For sure this sounds impressive even for a non Manchester United fan. Bun unfortunately this year’s success was in the shadows and nobody could enjoy the sweet taste of victory because of a rumor that became a headline in matter of seconds..that of Manchester United’s star Cristiano Ronaldo leaving to Real Madrid.  Is this really such a huge tragedy for the Reds? Is that the beginning of the end like some say? The force and success of Manchester United was really only in the hands of Ronaldo? Is Sir Alex Ferguson capable to find a solution to replace Cristiano? These are some of the questions that everybody is asking. Of course I can not answer these…nobody can..not even Sir Alex, so we’ll have to wait and see.

I can not help thinking about the moment when Roy Keane left the team..we all feared that a man of his value will never be found to replace him and that the team will never be the same without him. Well, the team was not the same indeed but this is the beauty of this game we all love so much. The team was different but good and some new players were allowed to show their talent and their commitment to the Reds. I think that with the “player of the year “ gone from the team, it is a good moment for a new star to be born and Manchester United is a perfect place for that.

Some of the Man United fans will for sure disagree with me on this but I think that Ronaldo leaving might be a very good thing for the team. Why am I saying such a thing? Well, after watching them play and after seeing that every ball was looking for him and all the hopes were centralized on his free kicks , I say it’s time to lose that habit and start acting like we have 11 players on that filed and start using them all. The team and fans have to learn not to put their trust and hopes in one single man no matter how amazing he might be.

Manchester United still has a good team and good players. Indeed the midfield is a bit weak and that was evident in the final against Barcelona, but I trust that Sir Alex will find , as always , the best solution to make the team work

We have to say “thank you Ronaldo “ for offering some great moments to all United fans but also…”the King is dead!! Long live the King!”

So, until the summer is over and the game will be on again let me just say to you that no matter how dark the night will be ..after a sunset there will always be a sunrise.