Wally with a Brolly

We continue our feature on why our 'pundits' love their clubs. After Cam and Chelsea, and KD and reading, we try to understand why Westy loves Man Utd. I've got to say I'm always circumspect whenever I see a Man Utd fan (same category as Chelsea, Man City and French Arsenal fans to me...sorry), but Westy is honest enough to confront some questions which many evade. Why he loves Man Utd, in his own words.

Yes, I'm a Man United fan *waits for groans to subside*.  In all honesty, my reasons for supporting them aren't great, and if you were to wipe my memory now and ask me to choose a football club to support, it would probably be a completely different side. Such is the difference between decisions you make at 5 and 25. In any case, I grew up in a family where nobody liked sport and the kids I went to school with supported all kinds of teams: Everton, Liverpool, United, Stockport (!) - geography simply didn't come into it... I'm not sure we even knew the word. One Sunday afternoon, I remember being in our TV room, watching a random FA Cup game (Man United vs. Leeds). The team in red went on to win, and I decided that they would be my team. It seems a silly reason to support a club (and it is!) but I knew no different. Anyone who talks to me about United will know that I care deeply about the club and know what I'm talking about... Okay, so the second is debatable, but I've been through all the ups and downs and thankfully, there haven't been that many of the latter.

Finally, think on this. Imagine that Leeds had won that. There would be one more Leeds fan in the world... You wouldn't wish that on anyone, would you?

Favourite Man Utd player of all time? Paul Scholes. Giggs gets more of the plaudits, but Scholesy is by far the best centre midfielder England has produced in the last 30 or so years and yet he was shunted out wide to accommodate that mythical Gerrard/Lampard partnership. I love that he always picks the right option and clearly sets an exceptional example to our younger players. It's also very amusing that he's never bothered to learn how to tackle, or even think about holding back from it. Top player - we will miss him a lot when he goes.

Least favourite Man Utd player of all time? I never understood Barthez. There were a few great performances, sure, but eccentric keepers are always a calamity waiting to happen (Check his ridiculous attempt at a nutmeg on an attacker, or even this video of his hopeless performance at Highbury). Considering he was supposed to be our big replacement for Schmeichel, he was a massive disappointment.


Favourite and worst Man Utd memory? Unsurprisingly, both are Fergie time moments. The best is obviously the Champions League win in 1999, with an otherwise very ordinary game crowned by two of the best 2 yard tap-ins you will ever see. As an 11 year old who lived and breathed football, that was simply magical.
By contrast, my worst memory came last May driving back up the A303, listening to the title race unfold on Radio 5 Live. The horrible moment was hearing the news that Dzeko had scored and knowing deep down that City would score again. The confirmation that Aguero had finished our title hopes was just proof that often, the worst thing in a bad situation is hope!

It can work both ways...

What are your views on the Glazers? Are they really hurting the club? Whilst it would seem on the surface that we're getting along fine, I think people have just forgotten the reality of the situation - that a previously debt-free club which was the most profitable in the world had been loaded with debt and now had owners who had no attachment to the club whatsoever. Sure, we're still fairly active in the transfer market, but that's mostly as a result of the sale of Ronaldo a few years back, and the quality of our squad has certainly dipped since then. I guess my main complaint is that the debt is still hanging over our club, and in the long-term, we don't know what the consequences of that will be - especially with these new Financial Fair Play regulations; debt that is only there because our owners brought it, and hasn't come as a result of any spending to improve the club.

What do you like most about being a Man Utd fan? The obvious answer would be that we're successful, but that actually doesn't come into it too much for me. When you're expected to win pretty much every match, it just becomes a bit more depressing when you do lose to Derby (and Paulo Wanchope) or don't crush Exeter at home. Not denying that winning trophies isn't great, it is! But for me, the best thing is the high profile nature of our club, meaning that we get a lot of TV time. You can guarantee that our matches get the best coverage, even if that does come with the downside that you often have to watch ITV on mute.

What do you like least about being a Man Utd fan? The roll of the eyes whenever you tell anyone you are a United fan. Although there are a number of our fans that are clueless, I would argue that the 'nouveau riche' of Chelsea and Man City fans are just as badly informed as our fans (if not occasionally more so!), and certainly more deluded of their right to be amongst the elite. Equally, our success has been founded on our own income and winnings, principally from the revenue streams from a big stadium, rather than the unsustainable model of a sugar-daddy chairman. That being said, although it's only natural to resent continued success, I think some people are seeing with the behaviours of the plastic City and Chelsea fans that it can be far worse when you get a club with less history suddenly getting success. Not to say that all of their fans are terrible, but there's certainly a bigger core of plastics than is often suggested is the case at Old Trafford.

What's wrong with plastic fans?

Alex Ferguson: a legend, but do you understand some of the criticism aimed at him? Totally. He's exceptional at deflecting the attention from his players, none more so than this season with a relatively poor squad. From one point of view, it would be great if he stopped being so one-eyed and actually admitted what he really thought, but this fierce defence is all part of the pact he makes with his players: they get his undivided backing, and he gets their complete loyalty and respect. We've seen time and again what happens when he feels he's lost this respect, and Stam, Van Nistelrooy and Beckham can attest to the fact that life rarely gets better after Old Trafford.

Finish the sentence: Wayne Rooney is... good, but not great. It may seem harsh, but cast your mind back to the moment he burst on to the scene. That goal against Arsenal, the hat-trick against Fenerbahce and his performances at Euro 2004 all suggested that we were watching the rise of a new world super-star, and it's fair to say that he hasn't fulfilled that potential. Sure, he's a very good player, and he's had some excellent seasons, but realistically, we would have hoped for better.

Wayne Rooney: tipped to be a star, flattered to deceive. It's all relative of course.

What are your and fans' views or hopes on Fergie's successor? I have almost managed to convince myself that it will be Mourinho. It's no secret that he and Fergie are very close friends and there is a lot of respect between them. I also found Mourinho's magnanimous nature in the wake of Real Madrid's win interesting, and suggested that he wanted to leave a good impression on our fans. Admittedly, all of this could just be wishful thinking, but I see it as a decent possibility.

Nani: hero or villain? Villain. He's nowhere near as good as he thinks he is, and whilst he may have similar natural talents to Ronaldo, his work ethic isn't in the same league. He looked like he would break through a few seasons back, but just hasn't remained consistent since then.

Porque me no playing?

Name your favourite Man Utd XI of all time: I think it's only fair to stick to players that I've actually seen play live. Whilst it's easy to say that George Best is better than a lot of these players, for me that would be pure hearsay and based on Youtube clips and general reputation.

 GK: Schmeichel

DR: G.Nev (even more so post goal-gasm)

DC: Pallister
DC: Vidic

DL: Irwin

MR: Ronaldo (Beckham just misses out here. harsh to say the least)

MC: Scholes
MC: Keane (.shame this pick leaves a sour taste in the mouth in the wake of his acrimonious departure)
ML: Giggs

ST: Cole

ST: Van Nistelrooy



In or Out?

David de Gea - In, and deserves all the support we can give him. He is showing signs of becoming a top keeper, and just needs a good run of games.

Rafael - In. Has been outstanding this season, and I honestly think he could take over from Dani Alves for Brazil in the not-too-distant future. If only Fabio could show this rate of improvement, although, to be fair, his path has been blocked by Evra.

Patrice Evra - Out. Has had a number of good seasons but is now slow, lazy and prone to errors.

Phil Jones - In and needs more games. Should eventually move to centre-mid, but for the moment, he could get some much needed defensive practice and centre-back alongside Vidic.

Rio Ferdinand - In for experience. We've shown time and time again that the experienced players play a vital role in tutoring and bringing through the good youngsters. Now, if he could just leave Twitter alone...

Stop that Rio!

Jonny Evans - Last season this would have been a definite out, and whilst I still have my doubts, he's shown enough this year to suggest that he could turn into a very good centre back.

Nemanja Vidic - In. He's an exceptional centre-back and for a period of 2 seasons, before his injury, I'd have rated him as the best in the world. Again, his experience will be vital.

Chris Smalling - In. A lot of eyebrows were raised when he was signed on the back of an own goal against Chelsea, but he has proved a lot of people wrong. A really solid young defender.

Michael Carrick - In. The only player in the England squad who understands the value of keeping possession. He's developed into a really good player and one I'd actually hate to lose!

Carrick: appreciated by Westy.

Anderson - Sadly, out. I really like him, but injuries have massively hindered his development, and he just isn't as good as I thought he would be. Although, like Scholes, I love the fact that he has an area of huge weakness (shooting), and just hasn't bothered to work on it. Seriously, how hard can it be to get a shot on target?!

Paul Scholes - In and keep him coaching. The best footballing brain of his generation by a mile.

Antonio Valencia - Out. Harsh considering he destroys the smaller sides, but he just looks one-dimensional against the better teams. We need to be competing against the very best and sadly, I don't think our wingers are up to it.

Nani - Out. Thinks too much of himself and is still living off his one good season back in 2010/11. Get what we can for him and bring in someone who is actually hungry for success.

Adios you two!

Ashley Young - Out. Ditto Nani but without the good season.

Nick Powell - In. Haven't really seen much, but it's good for us to try to bring through young British players.

Tom Cleverley - In. He might not be there yet, but the more games he gets, the better he will become - just needs time and patience. Looks a classy partner for Carrick, but we do still need a proper midfield destroyer to back them up - hopefully Phil Jones in the future!

Darren Fletcher - In. He deserves as much given that he was the heartbeat of our team for a few seasons. Always gives everything and you that's an invaluable attribute for our youngsters to see.

Shinji Kagawa - Definitely in. I've been really impressed with his movement and silky touches and beginning to think that the £17m we paid was a bargain. A really clever little player and should only get better as he adapts.

Wayne Rooney - In. He might not be as good as we thought he would be, but he's still a great asset to our side. On his day, outstanding.

Robin Van Persie - In, in, in. The best signing we've made in years, even if he has been off the boil recently. Such a danger.

Javier Hernandez - The fact that he is still happy is testament to Fergie's man management skills. I love the dangers Chicarito poses to defenders and the fact that he's basically one of the few old school poachers still out there. Our new Solskjaer.

The new Solskjaer. Already more lovable than Rio. Porque  no tiene Twitter.

Danny Welbeck - In as well. It would take a lot for me to change our front four as they all play subtly different roles. Many might bemoan Danny's lack of goals, but he works so hard to create space for others that it's not really a huge problem. The fact that he was trusted ahead of Rooney for the Madrid game shows how highly Sir Alex values this, and again - he's still young and improving.

Who would you sign? I'd love to see Mario Gotze in a United shirt one day as I think he's probably the best young talent out there at the moment. Other than that, I'd replace our wingers and add a new ball-winner in midfield. He might get a lot of yellows, but Cheick Tioté would be an excellent signing here. The other winger I'd like us to go for would be James Rodriguez of Porto, who looks a cracking player. I think Fabio has to be given a run of games at left back as Evra has been poor this season (headers from corners aside!)