David Hurst

I tuned in for the second half and the inevitable extra time of the Champions League final last night. If ever there was a game that had 1-1 draw and penalties written all over it, it was this one, and sure enough…

The game is being described as “fantastic” in the media, but I thought it was pretty average actually. The players looked almost scared to shoot in the second half, and many possible chances went begging. In the end, they might as well have tossed a coin and spared everyone the bother.

What I don’t understand is the confusion surrounding the future of Cristiano Ronaldo. Manchester United say he’s staying, all the Spanish media say he’s heading to Real Madrid, and Cristiano himself doesn’t seem too sure. I don’t get it. Is the kid seriously thinking of leaving the club and manager that have helped make him what he is? Alex Ferguson has a proven track record in developing youngsters, and he has certainly had an impact on Ronaldo, who when he first played in the UK seemed to be able to do nothing but step over the ball at every given opportunity.

Perhaps he subscribes to this nonsense that Real Madrid are the biggest club in the world. Absolute rubbish. Manchester United are both bigger and better, and most importantly, are actually consistently winning trophies. If he stays put, he has the opportunity to be the next Ryan Giggs.

Speaking of Ryan Giggs, what a player! As a Liverpool fan I’m not prone to waxing lyrical about Manc players, but Ryan deserves special respect. Surely he will go down in history as one of the worlds greatest. Understated, professional, with sublime talent to boot, I only wish (as do most of the nation) that he chose to play for England instead… (cue vehement protests from Welsh people).

I also cannot comprehend the mentality of Roman Abramovich. First of all he gets rid of one of the world’s finest managers, then he brings in a virtual unknown who turns out to be brilliant, and now apparently Avram Grant is leaving too. Pathetic that any manager’s job should be under threat after such a short period of time, especially when Chelsea have performed excellently this season. Clearly, Roman doesn’t have as much business acumen as one might expect for someone of his financial standing. Manchester United have proved that it is best to stick with one guy and let him develop the team. They’ve had their ups and downs, but there’s always been more ups than downs.

Despite my Merseyside persuasions, I have to conceed that Man Utd thoroughly deserve their success this season. They have played exceptionally well, so congratulations to them. Commiserations to Avram and Chelsea - it was close!