JEFF POWELL: United will rise again as Fergie remains faithful to Busby ethos

28 May 2009 02:08
This night of nights was possessed by Barca the Beautiful, but one sweet corner of it still belonged to Busby the great. As 16,000 Manchester United fans held aloft the cards which filled La Curva behind one goal at the Olympic Stadium with the words 'For Sir Matt', a benign smile crossed the face of the man who has constructed so many lofty extensions on to the red-brick house that Busby built. How utterly appropriate, no matter how bereft United were at the end. There can be no doubt that as the immortal Sir Matt Busby looked down on the tumultuous scenes in the Eternal City from his front-row seat in football heaven, he was as pleased as if he himself were about to send this dashing, daring, devilish young team into the Colosseum of European football. That privilege belongs of right now to Sir Alex Ferguson, and not even this rebuttal of his quest for a third Champions League glory can take these young men and their future away from him. Not least because Sir Matt did not take his leave of this world until he had not only anointed the successor he believed would fill the trophy room at Old Trafford with even more silverware than he had collected, but also nursed his protege through the difficult early years of that transition. So convinced was Busby - he would have 100 this week - that Ferguson would also fill his own highly-polished shoes that he set aside his preference for a fellow Catholic in favour of the Presbyterian son of a Glasgow shipyard worker. More, he became a father figure to him. How profoundly that trust has been rewarded, even though humility came to leaven it last night. The inner, on-going strength of the Busby-Fergie dynasty surfaced in sporting acknowledgement of Barcelona's merit on the night. Sir Matt's memory was raised in imperial tribute before Sir Alex urged the latest heirs to the Busby Babes into this defence of the European throne of the club game. This was one moment of high emotion which did not depend upon the result. Even in defeat by magical Lionel Messi and the rest of Barcelona's elite talents, the Busby legacy was in safe hands. Ferguson has kept the faith with the stylish football, played with skill and a sense of adventure, with which Sir Matt first cemented United in the imagination of football lovers all over the world. The jewel in his crown is Cristiano Ronaldo, whose fusillade of early shots declared this final open. Wide open. Sadly for United, Barcelona's first goal attempt wormed its way into the back of the net. Yet, the Busby-Fergie tradition not only prospers in victory but also survives defeat. It does so by honouring history and, without such deference, there can be no bedrock for the future. In a final so rich in dazzling forwards, the almost forgotten question was which hidden flaw would prove fatal - Barcelona's weakened defence or a United midfield deprived of Darren Fletcher the enforcer? It was Michael Carrick and Anderson who had failed to protect their back four in that home thrashing by Liverpool. Another crack opened when Carrick left Messi unchallenged to find Andres Iniesta, who urged Samuel Eto'o to round Nemanja Vidic and Carrick and score. There have been as many potholes as silver pots along the road to Rome '09 from Wembley '68 and Busby's European Cup triumph, so United were not done yet. Not when the teams with which Sir Alex first equalled Sir Matt's achievement - in injury time against Bayern Munich and then surpassed it with penalties over Chelsea - were born of the same gladiator ethos. Faced with impending defeat, Sir Alex sent on not a limpet to limit the havoc created by the genius of Messi, but Carlos Tevez and Dimitar Berbatov to join Ronaldo and Wayne Rooney in charge of his heavy brigade. Four forwards and a defiant funeral, with United still hammering on the lid of the coffin after Messi had nailed it down. United cannot guarantee that every game will be a triumph but they do keep arriving at the Champions League summit via the most exciting route. Also, just as Busby replenished his Babes after their tragic decimation in Munich, so Fergie keeps augmenting his multi-million pound signings by cocooning and developing his fledgling youngsters. So win or lose these major - and in last night's case, mesmerising - finals, the legend lives on. One night, two knights, another crusade across Europe at an end. A frustrated end this time but keep smiling, Sir Matt and Sir Alex. There are more and better nights to come.

Source: Daily_Mail