Man United

Last night reminded us once again why we all love being Man Utd fans.

Last week, Man United lost 2-1 at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome in the first leg of the Champions League quarter-finals. It was a fighting 10-man display after Scholes was sent off.

If that wasn’t enough, Portsmouth sprung up a surprise at a visibly tired and depleted side at the weekend in a highly charged fixture at Fratton Park, reducing Chelsea’s deficit to just three points.

After that defeat, I was attacked by premonitions of disaster. Could this be a false dawn? On the threshold of another treble, could we end up winning nothing at all? Mourinho’s words could no longer be carelessly dismissed.

Football fans are a unique breed. Yesterday arguing with a friend (a Liverpool fan), I was again talking up the case of the Treble. I was didactic in my predictions about how United would demolish anyone and everyone this season. Talking about the second-leg against Roma, I was vehement in my declaration that United will rip apart the Italian giants at Old Trafford. I felt less certain about it when I was thinking about the game later. Yet the pride of a football fan is a prized thing – it must be defended at all costs, at all times.

And last night, as carnage happened at Old Trafford, I was a little close to understanding just why I am a Man Utd fan.