Ole could have finally found Red Devils template
It thereby emphasises just how revolutionary Busby was, just how gloriously distinctive he made Manchester United.
Those interviewed talk of the distinctive smell of his pipe. There is the sight of very different, and seemingly more innocent, football crowds, there to take it all in rather than take what they feel they are entitled to. There is the quaintness of the RP voice on Pathe news reels calling the city’s red team ‘Manchester’, amid so much footage of players absolutely lashing the ball in from six yards before jubilantly raising both arms to the air.
What best displays this world, though, is the utter awe when Madrid arrived for the Busby Babes’ first European Cup semi-final in 1956-57. They were then a side whose brilliance had only been spoken about rather than seen, so you get a proper feel for just how exotic they seemed. You realise why those all-white kits seemed so magical, made such an impression.
It was a cruder sport, then, as the footage emphasises.
It was also a much more physical sport.
“Violence was such a big part of the English game,” Crerand says. “You could frighten people then. Big strong centre-halves could frighten people. If it was today, there’d be nobody on the pitch at half-time, some of the tackles and what went on.”
And into this, and what really was a world of hard men — how old people looked is something else that stands out — Busby threw a gang of teenagers, playing the most joyful and open modern football.
It was all just so unprecedented, so refreshing, so radical.
“That’s why Manchester
United became Manchester United,” Crerand says now.
One of Busby’s pitches to parents when signing up so much young talent was that he would “promise to look after their boys” in such a world. It was a line that took on such a poignant tone after Munich.
The scenes from the aftermath of the crash are naturally the most emotionally affecting, but are still handled deftly.
Among the most striking is when Busby’s voice is relayed over the PA before the match at Old Trafford, recorded from his hospital bed at Munich, the crowd listening in hushed silence.
There is then Busby’s voice, and some remarkable lines, from interviews he did when alive.
“Life was very, very difficult for quite some time,” he is quoted, shortly after so sadly listing the names of the Munich dead.
“I had a feeling I was responsible.”
And then, most stunningly: “I wanted to die.”
The spirit within wouldn’t die, though.
Emboldened by his wife Jean, who directly told him “the boys that died would want you to carry on”, that was exactly what Busby did.
“One was determined to keep Man United on people’s lips.
“I got this obsession again that United were going to the top.”
You repeatedly get a full sense of the scale of the Busby story, just how much was in his life: the adventure, the ideal, the radicalism, the spirit, the goals and the glory and the trophies, the true creation of a great club as well as so many great teams, the tragedy, the recovery, the ultimate deliverance, the presence… but also the survivor’s guilt and the darker side of his personality.
“He wasn’t Father Christmas,” 1968 winner John Aston is quoted in the film. “He wasn’t a benevolent figure… he was tight.”
The film does a superb job of painting the broad brushstrokes of this story, while leaving some deep emotional impressions, but there are areas where you feel more could be delved into — especially that darker side. You don’t really learn anything that new.
Then again, this is the challenge of properly re-introducing such a story for a newer generation, and absolutely everything is touched upon — even if only lightly. There are so many parts of Busby life — not least that hugely intriguing period in the early ’60s, as well as his relationship with George Best — that would serve as a documentary in themselves.
What sinks in the most, though, is that sense of perseverance. Many at United now might say this is never more relevant, and necessary.
The film ends with scenes of the 1968 final intercut with the 1999 Champions League final, to implicitly make the link about the values created.
It is something Crerand reminds of.
“It’s often forgotten, when we won the European Cup in 1968 against Benfica, myself and Alec Stepney were the only players bought in. The rest all came through the ranks,” he says.
This was not a team bought again after the tragedy of Munich. This was a team built again, staying true to ideals, perhaps personified in George Best.
Faith, and perseverance: the true morals of the Busby story.
Busby is in select cinemas from 11 November, own on digital 15 November and DVD & Blu-ray 18 November.
WAS this a turning point or, like that recent run of three away wins on the bounce, another false dawn? Only time will tell, but it would be churlish to be anything other than positive about Manchester United’s first truly impressive victory at Old Trafford for some months.
For the first time since the opening weekend of the Premier League season, they scored twice at home. In fact, this 3-0 win over Partizan Belgrade to progress through the Europa League group stage was arguably more convincing and more encouraging a display than that 4-0 against Chelsea in August.
Yes, this victory came by a slightly smaller margin. Yes, it came against a far weaker side. But this time, United were in control of proceedings. They were proactive rather than reactive. They dominated possession and knew what to do with it. The slick passing, intelligent movement and direct play which Ole Gunnar Solskjaer espouses were all reflected and did not come at the cost of sacrificing the ball.
“This is a little bit of a template on how we want to play,” he declared post-match. “It was pleasing for me that we went forward.”
United, who face Brighton tomorrow, have let go of five leads this term, but not this time.
“We needed the second and third. Too many times we’re 1-0 up and haven’t got the second. But these boys are learning and this will give them loads of pointers of how we play when we’re performing well,” he said.
United had registered only one shot on target in their previous two Europa League outings, yet they tested Partizan’s goalkeeper Vadimir Stojkovic twice inside the opening quarter of an hour.
If Marcus Rashford’s radar had been properly calibrated, that number would have been higher still. He shanked two early opportunities.
But on a night which ended with goals for all three members of United’s starting attack — Rashford, Mason Greenwood and Anthony Martial — Solskjaer will not be overly concerned with the ones that got away. If anything, it is encouraging that United finally created enough chances to be able to miss a few of them and still win comfortably.
Nobody is getting carried away. An out-of-form Partizan side were incapable of setting themselves up in the sort of basic, organised defensive shape which has left United’s attack stumped on more than a few occasions already this season.
Instead, they left themselves wide open and were ripe for the picking. Solskjaer admitted this much.
“It’s the opposition that allows you to play this way as well,” he said. “No disrespect to Partizan but they gave us spaces.”
The challenge now is to take consistency from a run of four wins in five games and replicate their cup form in the league. This was United’s fourth win in a cup competition this season, one more than they have managed in the top flight in total.
Three wins in 11 league games is a dreadful record. At least progressing in Europe with two games to spare should help ease selection issues.
Solskjaer will know that the post-Sir Alex Ferguson United is never more than one defeat away from a full-scale crisis. There are still plenty of concerns about his system, style of play and suitability to the role. None of them are answered by one positive result.
But for once at least, Old Trafford saw the ‘template’ for a Solskjaer team and on this occasion, it was one that worked.