Though City might be local rivals, and Chelsea or Arsenal
a more potent threat as title challengers, it is defeat
to the Merseysiders that still cuts the deepest.
Twenty-five years after arriving, Sir Alex Ferguson's sole objective of knocking the Liver-bird's 'off their F*&king perch', still it seems is priority number one.
As it stands, Liverpool and United both hold 18 league titles, and the struggle for that elusive 19th was made only more obvious when the Red Devils lost at Anfield last month.
With 5 European Cups to United's 3, Liverpool fans proudly display a banner declaring Form is Temporary, Class is Permanent. However it must be questioned as to whether the Mancunians loss was proof of this, or merely a blip in a legacy that has seen United win 11 premiership titles, and 2 European cups since 1992.
The influx of Silverware under Ferguson's reign is an obvious sore point on Merseyside, and United's own Scouser-baiting flag proclaiming MUFC – Making History, Not Living In It; all too obviously ridicules a club that seems obsessed with its own history.
United's 3-1 loss to Liverpool could possibly end up being one of the most momentous of recent times. Ferguson's 50th league game against the old enemy, not only blew the title race wide open, but also showed the glaring similarities between the two great rivals.
Liverpool saw their worst start to a season in 57 years, and it was the first time they had fallen into the bottom 3 since 1984. In comparison United were unbeaten until February, sitting at the top of the table, and still in the draw for both the FA cup and Champions League.
However in recent months the mood at Anfield has changed. Roy Hodgson was sacked, and replaced by Kop legend Kenny Dalglish, while the sale of Fernando Torres which at first looked a mistake, proved to be good business.
Liverpool appears to be a club on the rise,
while United look vulnerable.
The once strong foundations at the Theatre of Dreams are beginning to become frail and ragged. With no major signings for two seasons, it is a worrying indictment of a squad in which youth has always been paramount to success, that they still rely on ageing stars such as Ryan Giggs and Paul Scholes.
Over recent years United and Liverpool have undergone takeovers, with the subsequent owners appearing to care more about their own coffers, than the passion and loyalty of the fans that fill them.
In October last year Liverpool were close to administration and a possible 9 point deduction from the FA.
A £282m debt saddled on them by American owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett, meant that the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) came close to calling in loans taken out by Kop Holdings, who own the club.
A poll at the time conducted by the website anfieldroad.com revealed that 97.6 per cent of Liverpool fans believed that administration was a better option for the future of the club, than seeing Hicks and Gillett remain in control.
“We had the same two choices on the poll as the RBS decision makers,” says Jim Boardman of anfieldroad.com. “Fans chose the uncertainty of a bank takeover and the real threat of administration, over the depressing certainty of what would come from more time with Hicks and Gillett at the helm."
Liverpool were saved from disaster by another American, John W. Henry, a multimillionaire and head of New England Sports Ventures (NESV).
Henry's takeover coincided with a dramatic turnaround in form for the Reds, having risen from five points off bottom place to sixth in the Premier League.
Sceptical of another foreign owner, the replacement of Hodgson for Dalglish won over many fans. As did the signings of Andy Carroll and Luis Suarez - an important gesture that the club was willing, and able to spend big.
In comparison United have suffered there own financial problems
since the club was purchased by the American in 2005.
With a debt now estimated to be around £700m, the Red Devils last year announced losses of £84m, the majority of this going to payback interest, and loans taken out by the Glazer family to buy the club in the first place.
Manchester United's chief executive, David Gill, in an attempt to placate worried fans, points to the £164m the club has in the bank. He insists that United are comfortable with the current 'business model', and that the club is still increasing revenue under the ownership of the Glazer's.
Despite this the Manchester United Supporters' Trust (MUST) argues that the losses are further evidence that fan's ticket, and TV subscription money is going on servicing debt, rather than players or facilities.
"Ostensibly we are the best-run football club in the UK, generating amazing revenue. But the problem is that under the current ownership that's all being wasted because it's going into paying interest on debt." says MUST chief executive, Duncan Drasdo.
"We could be competing with Man City and Chelsea for the best players, instead of squeezing spend on players and pushing up ticket prices. We could be giving supporters who are being priced out, those that have supported the club for many years, the opportunity to watch their team."
The group believe that supporters, not absentee investors, are United's lifeblood.
One member, Teresa, who describes herself as a 'committed fan of United' and 'foot soldier for the cause', says that the Glazer's are relegating her beloved club to the 'status of mere entertainment'.
"There are still a lot of football supporters worldwide who regret the lemming like rush to cash in on fan loyalty for the profit of a few wealthy individuals. MUST is about reclaiming our club for the supporters and the community. We do not believe this is an impossible dream but we recognise that we have to play the markets at their own game.
"This is about mass mobilisation and claiming the moral, political and media high ground. From the days when the media treated us like naive children to the position we are in now where government ministers are backing the cause of supporter ownership, we have come a long way. We are learning all the time and we have the dedication and love of supporters."
MUST's Green & Gold campaign – Manchester United's original colours as Newton Heath, has been instrumental in getting not only fans, but politicians to start tackling the issue of football ownership.
A Westminster debate on the subject was described by Salford MP Hazel Blears as “probably the most popular ever in Westminster Hall.” While Hugh Robertson, Minister for Sport, called it a "weather vane showing the strength of the issue."
When John W. Henry bought Liverpool, it was done under an understanding that it would not be completed by loading debt onto the club, as with United. This therefore gave Liverpool a clean slate, and meant that any cash was available to spend on players and facilities.
Last year a similar enterprise by a group of United fans called the Red Knights, unsuccessfully attempted to oust the Glazers with a bid estimated to have been around £1 Billion.
Comprised of a group of wealthy fans who empathised with the anger of the supporters, the Knight's failed to raise the £1.5 Billion asking price placed on the Club.
Paul Marshall, co-founder of the red knights said at the Liberal Democrat party conference that: “There is a tide of change in British football and there is a chance that fan power will be unleashed, and that the fans will take charge of their clubs. If one club can lead the way others will follow."
He suggests however that all-in-all football is bad for business, with over half of the professional football clubs in England having faced administration at some stage since 1992, and 14 of the 20 clubs in the Premiership operating at a loss.
"If a self-made tycoon wants to blow his life's fortune on a football club he should be free to do so. Communities and towns like Blackburn, Reading and Wigan have often benefited from the investments that have gone into their clubs and stadiums. And I am sure that Fulham fans are happy to keep cheering Al Fayed's laps of honour provided he serves up the cash.
"The problem arises when the owners have no shared identity with the supporters, when they are not part of the community and instead of supporting the community, they actually take money out of the club – as in the case of the Glazers. Then we have the reverse of community. We have something antithetical to the spirit of a football club. We have the rape of a community."
However this does not mean supporters should just sit back and wait for their own Sheikh Mansour or Roman Abramovich, explains Marshall.
"The fans have to make it happen. They must be the instruments of change. Unfortunately we are not starting where Barcelona were in 1899. We are starting from a position where the clubs are owned by tycoons or wannabe tycoons. So to return the clubs to the fans, the fans will need to pay their share. If the community demands success, the community has to be willing to pay for it."
One person who will not be interested in purchasing
the debt ridden club is Dragons Den star Theo Paphitis.
A life long Manchester United Fan, he was quick to deride any talk of a take over by the Red Knights.
“The Red Knights are nonsense, it is just fantasy. There are a lot of people who are fans and maybe if they put their money where their mouth is, or at least some of their money, they possibly could take control of United and may prove to make a considerable profit,” says Paphitis.
“The key thing for United is can they remain competitive? Football fans are quite astute, and people don't give them the credit that they really deserve. They can work out that we have had success, and it's ok if it continues under the Glazers.”
Once a successful football chairman himself, Paphitis took Millwall FC out of administration and saw the club reach the FA cup final in 2004 - only the second team out of the topflight to do so since 1982.
He suggests that as long as football's finances remain 'sustainable', then a club will not have a problem.
“Football is big business now. The problem is small business's think they are big businesses and the people who get involved haven't done their homework, so they fail. But because they are failing it touches a lot of people and that is the fans.
However Paphitis admitted that the instability of United’s financial foundations was worrying.
“What the fans are worried about is what happens if the Glazers have a wobble? Does that mean United go down? Now that is an incredibly strong concern, and it's all credit to the fans that they can see that.”
While Liverpool were saved from administration and a possible disastrous 9 point deduction; United for the time being are still flying high, and (on paper at least) searching for another treble.
Unfortunately the triumphs this season are more down to the inconsistencies of the chasing pack, and the display at Anfield was so wretched that it asked questions as to whether Ferguson will be able to halt a slide further away from the summit next season.
Unrest amongst supporters is evident and having not made a major acquisition in 2 years, despite the official line of the club saying they have funds at their disposal, has not eased the worry.
Though the Red Knights may have put their charge for Manchester United on hold for now, it is unlikely we will see an end to the controversy surrounding the Glazers ownership. Sadly for the supporters this means an uncertain future, and a possible fate far worse than anything Liverpool ever faced.
By Adam Yare
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