This One Was For Manchester

Following Monday’s atrocity at the Manchester Arena, United’s UEFA Europa League triumph became about much more than a season’s work. Here’s Steve Bartram’s take on an emotional 72 hours…

We may trumpet long and loud about being – in our opinion – the world’s biggest club. It might even be justified when we survey the map and point out vast hotbeds of support all over the planet. But our latest success, winning the UEFA Europa League, even while achieved on the continental stage in front of a global audience, was about Manchester.

Forget, for a moment, the trophy. Forget Champions League qualification. Forget the transfer market ramifications. Those factors can be considered in due time. Right here, right now, what truly matters is doing everything we can for our city following Monday night’s inconceivably tragic terrorist attack. For individuals, that has meant donations of time, kindness, money and copious brews. For United, that became – initially, at least – doing our best to win a football match in Stockholm.

For 63 games, all anybody spoke about was United getting back into the Champions League, by hook or by crook. The second-longest season in our history boiled down to one game. Then, suddenly, in the most heart-rending of circumstances, a season’s pressure parted for an even greater burden: representing a wounded city. We’ve always kept the red flag flying high through dark skies, but never before have we flown the flag for all of Manchester for the whole world to see.

It has been an exceptionally surreal couple of days in Manchester. Three miles separate Old Trafford from the Arena, and the usual buzz of activity around the stadium has been silenced. The Megastore, Red Café, Museum and stadium tours have been closed. Sir Matt Busby and the United Trinity have watched over a virtually deserted forecourt.

In this office, in spite of pressing deadlines weighing ever heavier, the usual excitement that builds up before a big game was replaced by a far more sombre mood. Tuesday’s working day was soundtracked by devastating updates of the fallout. On Wednesday, any passing siren drew concerned glimpses. The eerie air around Old Trafford and Manchester has been shared out in Stockholm, where numbness and disbelief pervaded a travelling party who, like the rest of us, could find no sense in the senselessness. For that party to be charged with bringing home something to lift the city’s spirits exerted a weight of expectation and emotional responsibility.

“We cannot take out of our minds and our hearts the victims and their families,” admitted Jose Mourinho on Tuesday. "We have a job to do and we will fly to Sweden to do that job.” That job was tough enough anyway, with a tired, injury-ravaged squad going up against a vibrant, exciting young Ajax team eager to grasp the moment after waiting 21 years to reach a European final. But how that mission was accomplished, as the Dutch side were overcome with guts, sweat and dedication; a victory as Mancunian as Vimto. Creativity in Manchester is forged on the anvil of industry, and our success in Stockholm was founded on hard graft, both on the field on Wednesday night and in Mourinho’s mind in the days prior as he systematically plotted how to shut down one of the most pulsating young attacks around.

Marcus Rashford may have been the only Mancunian on the field by birthright, but every single player was an adopted Manc; each one buzzing about the field with bottomless energy and purpose. Ander, Matteo and Anthony from Bilbao, Legnano and Massy became Andy, Matt and Tony from Blackley, Longsight and Moston. All of them, one of us.

United will forever be a global football club. Reds came from far and wide to descend on Stockholm, backing their beloved team, and they revelled in our latest glory, just as our army of supporters did in their stations in various corners of the globe. This particular triumph, however, was a little bit more for Manchester. For our city, united.

Credit: Manutd.com