Tom Halsey
International Coach
I think mine would all be very predictable tbh.
Man Utd 2-1 Arsenal (AET) 98/99 FA Cup Semi Final Replay
I don't often go back and watch games in their entirety, and when I do I usually remember why I don't do it, but this is the one exception. A game that got uncommonly near to justifying the cliché "it had everything", we dominated for the first part yet it suddenly became a case of hanging on after Bergkamp's deflected equaliser and Keane's sending off. A disallowed Anelka goal (it took Elleray about 30 seconds to notice the linesman's flag and the Arsenal players even longer) and a stoppage-time penalty save from Schmeichel got us to extra time, where it is hard to overstate the attack vs defence nature of it. Schmeichel injured himself denying Bergkamp again but had little choice to play on what with us having used all 3 subs and being down to 10 men. Then came the Giggs goal, which really was wonderful, and 10 more minutes of frantic defending before the relief of the final whistle. My favourite old game by streets.
Juventus 2-3 Man Utd, European Cup Semi Final 2nd Leg, 98/99
Only a week on from the previous game, probably our best European performance in my lifetime. Played a Juventus side (attempting to reach their fifth European final in a row) off the park in Turin after somewhat unfortunately going 2-0 down early on. We seemed to draw Juventus every year around this time and we'd only beaten them once, also needing a stoppage time equaliser from Giggs (not entirely merited, either) to draw the first leg. I recall them calling this the greatest European comeback of all-time after the match. Until...
Man Utd 2-1 Bayern Munich, European Cup Final, 98/99
Obviously. In truth only in here because of stoppage time, the first 85 minutes really were very poor and we were lucky only to be a goal down going into the final five minutes. For some reason at this point Bayern stopped playing and we finally started, creating chances for fun, putting two of them away in the nick of time to seal the Treble. I don't know for how much longer we'll be able to say we're the only English club to do it, but we'll always be the first and I doubt any of the other clubs from other nations to complete the Treble have done it quite so dramatically. There were so many moments, not just in the above three matches, where it could have gone wrong and so nearly did.
Everton 2-4 Man Utd, 06/07
Four years without a title (it seemed ages at the time!) and it looked like we were about to blow it. A transitional side blossomed in the first half of the season, but in the second half nerves began to show and Chelsea started reeling us in. With four matches left, we were three points clear but when Everton went 2-0 up it looked like being cut to nothing, as Chelsea took the lead at home to Bolton. But a second-half comeback (complete with own goal from agent Neville, P.) combined with a late Kevin Davies equaliser at Stamford Bridge instead moved us five clear with three left and the brink of the title. Probably the most I've enjoyed a title other than 1999.
Man Utd 1-0 Barcelona, European Cup Semi Final 2nd Leg, 07/08
The most nervous I've ever been watching a football match. The game itself wasn't great (save for a superb winner from Scholes) but the feeling of euphoria on the final whistle is something that I've not experienced since after a football match. We had the better of the chances but Xavi and Iniesta's mastery of possession was already well established by this point and they did spend a lot of time camped around our 18 yard box. Henry missed a golden chance about 5 minutes from the end that would have taken them through on away goals, but he headed straight at VDS from inside the six yard box and we made it to Moscow. Us winning the final was obviously very enjoyable, and Terry's penalty miss was one of the great schadenfreude moments, but for sheer nervous energy it didn't match the semi-final. Not sure why really.
EDIT: I forgot I had written that they would all be predictable before then going on to select the Everton game.
Man Utd 2-1 Arsenal (AET) 98/99 FA Cup Semi Final Replay
I don't often go back and watch games in their entirety, and when I do I usually remember why I don't do it, but this is the one exception. A game that got uncommonly near to justifying the cliché "it had everything", we dominated for the first part yet it suddenly became a case of hanging on after Bergkamp's deflected equaliser and Keane's sending off. A disallowed Anelka goal (it took Elleray about 30 seconds to notice the linesman's flag and the Arsenal players even longer) and a stoppage-time penalty save from Schmeichel got us to extra time, where it is hard to overstate the attack vs defence nature of it. Schmeichel injured himself denying Bergkamp again but had little choice to play on what with us having used all 3 subs and being down to 10 men. Then came the Giggs goal, which really was wonderful, and 10 more minutes of frantic defending before the relief of the final whistle. My favourite old game by streets.
Juventus 2-3 Man Utd, European Cup Semi Final 2nd Leg, 98/99
Only a week on from the previous game, probably our best European performance in my lifetime. Played a Juventus side (attempting to reach their fifth European final in a row) off the park in Turin after somewhat unfortunately going 2-0 down early on. We seemed to draw Juventus every year around this time and we'd only beaten them once, also needing a stoppage time equaliser from Giggs (not entirely merited, either) to draw the first leg. I recall them calling this the greatest European comeback of all-time after the match. Until...
Man Utd 2-1 Bayern Munich, European Cup Final, 98/99
Obviously. In truth only in here because of stoppage time, the first 85 minutes really were very poor and we were lucky only to be a goal down going into the final five minutes. For some reason at this point Bayern stopped playing and we finally started, creating chances for fun, putting two of them away in the nick of time to seal the Treble. I don't know for how much longer we'll be able to say we're the only English club to do it, but we'll always be the first and I doubt any of the other clubs from other nations to complete the Treble have done it quite so dramatically. There were so many moments, not just in the above three matches, where it could have gone wrong and so nearly did.
Everton 2-4 Man Utd, 06/07
Four years without a title (it seemed ages at the time!) and it looked like we were about to blow it. A transitional side blossomed in the first half of the season, but in the second half nerves began to show and Chelsea started reeling us in. With four matches left, we were three points clear but when Everton went 2-0 up it looked like being cut to nothing, as Chelsea took the lead at home to Bolton. But a second-half comeback (complete with own goal from agent Neville, P.) combined with a late Kevin Davies equaliser at Stamford Bridge instead moved us five clear with three left and the brink of the title. Probably the most I've enjoyed a title other than 1999.
Man Utd 1-0 Barcelona, European Cup Semi Final 2nd Leg, 07/08
The most nervous I've ever been watching a football match. The game itself wasn't great (save for a superb winner from Scholes) but the feeling of euphoria on the final whistle is something that I've not experienced since after a football match. We had the better of the chances but Xavi and Iniesta's mastery of possession was already well established by this point and they did spend a lot of time camped around our 18 yard box. Henry missed a golden chance about 5 minutes from the end that would have taken them through on away goals, but he headed straight at VDS from inside the six yard box and we made it to Moscow. Us winning the final was obviously very enjoyable, and Terry's penalty miss was one of the great schadenfreude moments, but for sheer nervous energy it didn't match the semi-final. Not sure why really.
EDIT: I forgot I had written that they would all be predictable before then going on to select the Everton game.