01 Jan 08 - The Theatre of Dreams

Today was the day when one of my greatest dreams came true. Ironically, I was not as excited as I should be, perhaps due to the fact that this was not my first European football experience.

We slept in till about 10 am today as we only came back at about 1am yesterday. Since we had quite a bit of time before the match, we decided to just take a walk to the stadium. One hour later, we were right in front of the Theatre of Dreams, home to Manchester United, the team I have been supporting since my childhood days. Unlike Italy and Spain, there were not many makeshift souvenir booths along the way. At the most there were only people hanging around selling matchday badges, trumpets or matchday programs.

inside & outside of the megastore

The first thing when we reached there was to enter the Megastore. Oh boy, the store was huge and it would really do a great damage to the wallet without proper self-control. I was tempted by almost everything in the shop. Originally, I wanted to buy a sweater, but at 40 pounds, I thought it was a bit too extravagant. I was more into decorating my room in hall for next semester; hence, I purchased a scarf which I could use now and hang later on my soft board. Beside that, I also spoilt myself with a giant poster as well as a matchday pin. Not forgetting a few souvenirs for my fellow Man Utd supporters back in hall.

the painted walls of the megastore

After grabbing a quick lunch, we made our grand entrance into Old Trafford. I was a little disappointed with our seats at first which were in the first row of lower tier, just behind the goal. At first I was hoping that the English are not so obedient and we could just sit randomly in the sector. However, once we were in, we were ushered to our seats and we knew that our hope to sit slightly further up was dashed.

This disappointment was soon dismissed though as I could see almost every player very clearly, including the likes of Christiano Ronaldo and Carlos Tevez. Too bad, I did not get to see Rooney and Giggs in action as both were still sick on the match day.

a printscreen from a video from an online source. i could spot my red hanging scarf!! i was on TV!!!!

Furthermore, the only goal of the match took place on the side of the stadium I was sitting at. This meant that I would have probably been on TV if the replays had shown reverse angle. =D The goal itself was a beauty; a combination of the speed of Tevez and the trickery of Ronaldo. Ronaldo received an overhead pass from Tevez, and Ronaldo cunningly backheeled it towards the on-running Tevez which slotted the ball home in the most comfortable fashion.

watch the highlights of the match here!!

aren't you jealous of me? =D

L-R: Evra crossing; Christiano Ronaldo

L-R: Vidic & Ferdinand

Ronaldo's footwork

United's setpiece

I thought the atmosphere in the stadium was superb, contrary to the reports and claims that the fans were too quiet. In fact, most of the fans were singing and cheering almost throughout the match. Anyway, my idea of a superb match is not exactly just about scolding vulgarities and jeering at the opponent’s fans.

how can anyone claim this is "muted"?

Man Utd did not play its best today, but it was enough to seize full 3 points despite the late scare from Birmingham. In fact, in the last 10 minutes of the game, my heart was pounding really hard, in the worst anticipation that Birmingham would equalize. Luckily, this never happened and I could walk out of Old Trafford smiling, knowing that my dream has been duly fulfilled.

3 European football experiences in total. La Liga in Nou Camp, Serie A in San Siro Milan, and now Premier League in Old Trafford. What more can I ask for? What a way to end my European vacation.

We had a Chinese buffet dinner in the evening. I returned to the hostel with a heavy heart, knowing that it was the end of my long European vacation. Now it is time that I return to Grenoble to concentrate on passing my exams.

Before long, it would be Hello Singapore!