The United Nations Part One: Europe

Hello and welcome back to We All Follow United, your regular slice of Manchester United history. 

As the world's greatest football club, it's hardly surprising that United have attracted players from all around the world to pull on the famous red shirt but have you ever wondered which player was the first one from their respective country to play for United? Well wonder no more as in this first part of a special mini-series of articles we take a look at the first players from the European nations to play for The Red Devils. 

Armenia: Henrikh Mkhitaryan (2016-2018. 63 appearances, 13 goals) 

Midfielder Mkhittaryan came highly rated from German giants Borussia Dortmund when Jose Mourinho paid £26million to bring the Armenian international to Old Trafford in the summer of 2016. He made his debut in the 2016 Community Shield win over Leicester City and went on to become a vital part of the United squad that won the League Cup and Europa League in 2016-17, scoring the winning goal in the latter competition's final.

Henrikh departed the club in January 2018 as part of the swap deal that brought Alexis Sanchez to Old Trafford and spent the 2019-20 season on loan at Serie A side AS Roma alongside fellow loanee and United defender Chris Smalling.

Belgium: Ritchie de Laet (2009-2012. 6 appearances, 0 goals) 

Belgian left-back de Laet arrived at Old Trafford in January 2009 from Stoke City after spending two years in The Potteries. After playing solely for the reserve team during the early part of his United career, de Laet made his first team debut in the final game of the 2008-09 season away at Hull City, a game which the newly crowned champions won 1-0 thanks to Darron Gibson's first half goal.

The Antwerp native would only make five more appearances for the first team with the last of these coming on December 19th 2009 when he was unable to prevent United from going down 3-0 to Fulham at Craven Cottage. Many loan spells at lower-league clubs across England followed before he eventually left Old Trafford permanently to join Leicester City in 2012. He now plies his trade back in Belgium with hometown club Royal Antwerp.

Bulgaria: Dimitar Berbatov (2008-2012. 149 appearances, 56 goals) 

Despite Tottenham Hotspur trying desperately to hold on to their star striker, United finally managed to prise the Bulgarian striker away for a club record fee of £30.75million in a dramatic transfer deadline day deal in September 2008. 'Berba; netted his first goal for the club in a Champions League tie in Denmark against Aalborg and bagged 14 goals in his 43 appearances during his maiden season with United.

After struggling for form in the 2009-10 season, speculation was rife that Berbatov would be on his way out of United prior to the 2010-11 campaign but he responded in tremendous fashion by scoring 21 goals in 42 games to help United win their record breaking 19th league title, arguably his most significant contribution coming in the shape of a hat-trick against arch-rivals Liverpool in September 2010. He also equalled the Premier League record for the most goals scored by a single player by notching five time in a 7-1 win over Blackburn in November of the same year.

Following the emergence of Javier Hernandez and Danny Welbeck alongside Wayne Rooney as United's main strike force, Berbatov found first team opportunities limited during the 2011-12 season and following the arrival of Robin van Persie in the summer of 2012, he departed for Fulham in a £4million deal.

Czech Republic: Karel Poborsky (1996-1998. 48 appearances, 6 goals) 

After his eponymous 'scoop' goal against Portugal at Euro 96, hopes were high after Fergie shelled out £3.5million to bring Czech winger Poborsky to United from Slavia Prague. Unfortunately for Karel, the emergence of a young upstart by the name of David Beckham (probably just a flash in the pan) stifled his opportunities in the regular starting side although he did still earn himself a Premier League winners' medal at the end of the 1996-97 season after making 22 appearances and netting on four occasions.

Further first team games came even harder to come by in the following 1997-98 season as he only made 15 more appearances with his final showing for United coming in a 2-0 home win over Everton on Boxing Day 1997. He left United in January 1998 swapping Manchester for Lisbon to join Benfica for £2million.

Denmark: Jesper Olsen (1984-1988. 176 appearances, 24 goals) 

At a time when foreign players were still at a premium in English football, Ron Atkinson parted with £350,000 to bring Danish winger Olsen to United in the summer of 1984.

Olsen quickly became a fan favourite as he became United's regular left winger (ousting fellow foreigner Arnold Muhren) and collected an FA Cup medal in 1985 before being a pivotal part of the side that set the First Division alight as United won their first 10 consecutive games of the following 85-86 season. Despite falling away and eventually finishing fourth that season, a personal highlight for Olsen came in February 1986 when he netted a hat-trick against West Bromwich Albion.

Despite former England winger Peter Barnes joining United in 1985, Olsen maintained his place in the side (Barnes provided cover during a period on the sidelines) and despite being transfer listed by Big Ron in 1986 following a training ground scrap with Remi Moses, Atkinson's successor Alex Ferguson took him off the list and continued to utilise him as first choice winger until he left the club in November 1988 for Bordeaux. His final United appearance came on November 12th 1988 in a 2-2 draw against Derby County at The Baseball Ground.

France: Eric Cantona (1992-1997. 185 appearances, 82 goals) 

In one of football's great sliding doors moments, we'll never know what happened if Leeds chairman Bill Fatherly never phoned Martin Edwards to express an interest in signing Denis Irwin. If that call hadn't happened then Eric Cantona would never have moved across the Pennines and become a hero to us all.

Canton's arrival for a paltry £1.2million breathed new life into United and they began a charge which ultimately ended in their first league title for 26 years, winning the 1992-93 Premier League title by a margin of ten points from nearest challengers Aston Villa.

Eric went on to score some tremendous goals over his United career and his return from the exile imposed on him by the Football Association in October 1995 galvanised Alex Ferguson's team of 'kids' as they went on to win the club's second 'double' in 1996. A fourth title in five years followed in 1997 before The King abdicated and retired from the game. His final appearance came in the testimonial fixture for Coventry City defender David Buust on May 16th 1997.

Germany: Bastian Schweinsteiger (2015-2017. 35 appearances, 2 goals) 

After 17 years and 500 appearances for German giants Bayern Munich, World Cup winner Schweinsteiger was reunited with former boss Louis van Gaal in the summer of 2015.

Bastian, versatile enough to be used as either a wide player or central midfielder, made his debut as a substitute in the opening game of the 2015-16 season (a 1-0 win over Tottenham Hotspur) and scored his first goal for United in November 2015 against Leicester City.

Following the arrival of Jose Mourinho as manager in 2016, Schweinsteiger's first team opportunities became limited and at one point was even made to train with the under-23 team. Eventually, the German made a return to the first team and made his first appearance of the 2016-17 campaign in the League Cup against West Ham. His final appearance for the club came in the Europa League win over St. Etienne in February 2017 before his departure for Major League Soccer outfit Chicago Fire in March of the same year.

Holland: Arnold Muhren (1982-1985. 98 appearances, 18 goals) 

Alongside fellow countryman Frans Thijssen, Arnold Muhren played a pivotal part in Bobby Robson's Ipswich Town side that won the UEFA Cup in 1981 and pushed for the First Division title in the same year and in 1982.

Muhren joined United in the summer of 1982 and made his first appearance for the club on the opening day of the season. The season ended with another trophy for the Dutchman as he scored the fourth goal in the replayed FA Cup final against Brighton.

Arnold went on to make a further 52 appearances for United but the arrival of the aforementioned Jesper Olsen made his first team minutes limited and he eventually left the club at the end of the 1984-85 campaign with his final United appearance coming in the 5-1 walloping at the hands of Watford at Vicarage Road on the last day of the season.

Italy: Carlo Sartori (1968-1972. 56 appearances, 6 goals) 

As mentioned in last week's 'firsts' post, Carlo Sartori was the first player not to hail from the UK or Ireland to play for Manchester United, making his first appearance in October 1968 in a 2-2 draw with Tottenham Hotspur.

Originally coming from Calderzone in Italy, Sartori's family relocated to the Collyhurst area of Manchester when he was a youngster and he signed trainee forms with United in 1965.

His final appearance for United came in January 1972 in a 3-1 home defeat to Wolverhampton Wanderers before he returned to his native country to play in Serie A with Bologna.

Norway: Ronny Johnsen (1996-2002. 150 appearances, 9 goals) 

Norwegian international centre-back Johnsen came to United from Besiktas in the summer of 1996 and instantly became a key figure for the club, helping them on their way to the Premier League title in 1997 before regularly partnering Henning Berg or Jaap Stam in the heart of defence to assist United in their historic treble triumph of 1998-99.

Over the duration of his six-year spell at Old Trafford, Johnsen won three league titles (1997, 1999 and 2001) as well as one FA Cup and the Champions League. Despite injury keeping him out of the majority of the 1999-2000 season, he was rewarded with a league winners' medal after receiving special dispensation from the Premier League.

Johnsen's contract wasn't renewed by the club and he left Old Trafford at the end of the 2001-02 season on a free transfer, joining Aston Villa.

Poland: Tomasz Kuszczak (2006-2012. 61 appearances) 

Despite never playing regularly for the first team, Kuszczak proved to be a dependable deputy for Edwin van der Sar and latterly David De Gea after he arrived at the club from West Bromwich Albion in 2006.

The Polish keeper's first appearance came in a 1-0 defeat to Arsenal in September 2006, saving Gilberto Silva's penalty kick after he had committed the foul that resulted in the spot-kick.

Despite van der Sar's impressive form in the 2008-09 season and the challenge of Ben Foster for the number two goalkeeper spot, Kuszczak enjoyed an extended run of first team appearances during the 2009-10 season when van der Sar was sidelined by injury.

During his time with United, Tomasz won three Premier League titles, was on the bench for the 2008 Champions League final win over Chelsea and started the 2010 League Cup final which ended in victory over Aston Villa. The arrival of Anders Lindegaard looked to further limit Tomasz's first team opportunities and he left the club at the end of his contract in 2012.

Portugal: Cristiano Ronaldo (2003-2009. 292 appearances, 118 goals) 

Few could have predicted what would become of the skinny teenager who ran United ragged in a pre-season friendly in the summer of 2003 for Sporting Lisbon. Legend has it that after the United players returned to the dressing room following the 3-1 loss, many of them implored Sir Alex Ferguson to sign the youngster, thankfully he heeded their advice.

The mercurial Madeiran soon quickly made the right wing spot vacated by David Beckham his own and won a special place in the hearts of the United faithful as he began to mesmerise opposing defenders with a vast array of tricks and skills.

The Portuguese international won a glut of honours during his six years at Old Trafford with his extraordinary scoring return of 42 goals in all competitions during the 2007-08 season helped United win both the Premier League and Champions League. The feat also won Ronaldo his first Ballon D'Or award in 2008.

A protracted transfer saga ensued as Real Madrid made their admiration of Ronaldo public during the summer of 2008, Cristiano stayed for the following 08-09 season and grabbed 26 goals (including stunning Champions League efforts against FC Porto and Arsenal) overall to help United to their third consecutive Premier League title and the final of the Champions League although his United career came to a disappointing end as Barcelona convincingly beat Fergie's men 2-0 in Rome.

Russia: Andrei Kanchelskis (1991-1995. 161 appearances, 36 goals) 

Flying winger Kanchelskis has a place in footballing history as the only player to have scored goals in Manchester, Merseyside and Glasgow Old Firm derbies down the years, with his contribution in a Manchester derby coming in the 5-0 demolition of Manchester City in November 1994.

Andrei came to Manchester United in March 1991 in a £650,000 deal from Shakhtar Donetsk and made his debut for the club in May of the same year in the penultimate game of the 90-91 season. Over the coming years, Kanchelskis established himself as the first choice right winger as United finally won the league title for the first time since 1967 before winning the club's first 'double' in 1994. His final appearance for the club came in the March 1995 3-0 home win over Arsenal, a game in which he scored the last of his 36 goals for United. After a much publicised falling out with Alex Ferguson, Kanchelskis left Old Trafford for Everton in the pre-season of the 1995-96 season.

Despite being born in the Ukraine to Lithuanian parents, Kanchelskis represented Russia at Euro 96 after playing for the Soviet Union and then it's successor the CIS (Commonwealth of Independent States), representing the latter against Scotland at Euro 92.

Serbia: Nemanja Vidic (2006-2014. 300 apperances, 21 goals) 

'He comes from Serbia, he'll f---ing murder you!!' was the popular cry of the United faithful in honour of central defender Vidic. Signed from Spartak Moscow in January 2006, the formidable defender forged a formidable partnership with Rio Ferdinand to help Sir Alex's side return to the peak of domestic and European football.

Between 2006 and his eventual departure at the end of the 2013-14 season, Vidic won the Premier League on five occasions (captain of the team in 2011 and 2013), the League Cup three times and the Champions League in 2008. After Sir Alex Ferguson's retirement in 2013, Vidic continued to play a vital part in David Moyes' team, scoring against Bayern Munich in the Champions League in April 2014 which would be the last of his 21 goals for the club as he joined Inter Milan in July of the same year at the end of his contract at Old Trafford.

Spain: Ricardo (2002-2005. 5 appearances) 

Spanish goalkeeper Ricardo came to United in the summer of 2002 to provide back-up for Fabien Barthez and Roy Carroll but only made a handful of first team appearances all of which came during the 2002-03 season.

The former Atletico Madrid and Valladolid keeper's debut came in the opening Champions League fixture of the season and his only Premier League outing for United saw him concede an early penalty although he atoned for his mistake by saving David Dunn's spot-kick. After the arrival of Tim Howard in 2003, Ricardo spent the 03-04 season back in Spain on loan with Racing Santander and eventually left United permanently in 2005.

Sweden: Jesper Blomqvist (1998-2001. 38 appearances, 1 goal) 

Sir Alex Ferguson was a long-term admirer of Swedish winger Blomqvist after he helped Gothenburg  knock United out of the Champions League during the 1994-95 season, eventually bringing him to Old Trafford prior to the 1998-99 Treble winning campaign.

Blomqvist made his United debut in the 4-1 home win over Charlton Athletic in September of 1998 and went on to make 24 further appearances in the league and also start in the Champions League final triumph at the end of the season. His solitary United goal came in October 1998 in a 4-1 away win over Everton.

Jesper suffered a long period on the sidelines due to a serious knee injury and unfortunately never played in the first team for United again. His later career took in spells at Everton, Charlton and back in his native Sweden with Djurgarden, Enkopings and Hammarby.

Switzerland: Saidy Janko (2013-2015. 1 appearance) 

Swiss full-back Janko was one of only three signings made by David Moyes in the summer of 2013, joining United on deadline day in September along with Marouane Fellaini.

After winning the Denzil Haroun award for Reserve Team Player Of The Year at the end of his first season with the club, Janko made his first (and only) appearance for the first team in August 2014 as Louis van Gaal's side were humiliated 4-0 by Milton Keynes in the Capital One Cup.

After a loan period at Bolton Wanderers, Janko joined Celtic prior to the 2015-16 season but only made a handful of appearances at Parkhead before joining St. Etienne and latterly FC Porto.

Yugoslavia: Nikola Jovanovic (1980-1982. 26 appearances, 4 goals) 

Yugoslav defender Jovanovic made history by becoming the first foreign player to transfer to United when Dave Sexton paid a massive (at the time) £300,000 to bring him to Old Trafford with the defender rejecting Bayern Munich in favour of United.

Jovanovic made his United debut in a 3-1 win over Derby County in February of 1980 and went on to make 24 appearances in the following 1980-81 season (scoring four times) but he failed to live up to the transfer fee and struggled with injuries during his time in Manchester. In a bid to regain fitness he spent time on loan with Buducnost Podgorica in his native Yugoslavia (now Montenegro) and ultimately had his contract with United terminated in 1982.

There we have it, we have reached the end of part one of The United Nations, we'll focus on some players from the rest of the world in next week's second part. 

If you have enjoyed this piece then why not get in touch and let us know your favourite imported United player from days gone by on Twitter. Our editor Dan can be found @BarkerGray2. 

Until next time, take care. 

Remember When...

....Sir Alex Ferguson had a testimonial fixture

Manchester United vs Rest Of The World XI, October 11th 1999 

Hello and welcome back to We All Follow United, a blog page dedicated to the history of the world's greatest football club, Manchester United. 

For today's post we're going to take a look at a special fixture that took place early in the 1999-2000 season when just short  of 55,000 people crammed into Old Trafford to honour one of the greatest managers in the club's history and celebrate the glorious thirteen year reign of Sir Alex Ferguson. 

Captains for the evening Jaap Stam and Peter Schmeichel exchange pleasantries before Sir Ales Ferguson's testimonial fixture. 

Eight days after receiving an almighty 5-0 pants-downing away at Chelsea, United's first team lined up against a stellar line-up making up the Rest Of The World XI boasting Champions League winners, World Cup winners and the returning Eric Cantona, making his first appearance back at Old Trafford since the Munich memorial fixture the previous summer.

Return Of The King: Eric Cantona played for both the Rest Of The World XI and the Manchester United legends. 

Despite the Italian based trio of Zinedene Zidane, Gabriel Batistuta and Fernando Couto pulling out, United's opposition on the evening (managed by Bayern Munich gaffer Ottmar Hitzfeld) still boasted star names in the shape of Cafu, Paul Gascoigne, Rio Ferdinand, Taribo West and the great Brazilian Careca. Peter Schmeichel returned to Old Trafford for the first time since his move to Sporting Lisbon to keep goal too.

It was the RoW XI who broke the deadlock in the tenth minute when Chelsea manager Gianluca Vialli continued his torment of United that had begun eight days earlier by gratefully sweeping Cafu's cross beyond Raimond van der Gouw. The move had been orchestrated by former Ballon D'Or winner George Weah (who would later join Chelsea) when his pass found the evergreen Roma full-back to cross for former Champions League winner Vialli.

Despite the light-hearted tone of the evening, United pressed for an equaliser. Dwight Yorke went close before Teddy Sheringham prodded Phil Neville's cross inside Schmeichel's near post just a minute before half-time. Despite initially looking frustrated at being beaten, the smile quickly returned to Schmeichel's face when Sheringham excitedly jumped on his back to celebrate the goal.

Oh Teddy Teddy: Teddy Sheringham equalised for United in the dying minutes of the first half of Sir Alex Ferguson's testimonial. 

Early in the second period, the great Careca ghosted through United's defence to slide the ball beyond  Van der Gouw to restore the RoW's lead. United again pressed to level affairs and were only denied by some fine saves from substitute goalkeeper Pascal Olmeta, most notably to deny Paul Scholes' angled shot.

With around twenty minutes remaining, the RoW players left the field and made way for a cavalcade of past United heroes, many of whom dusted off their boots to pay tribute to their former gaffer. The legends who took to the pitch were as follows.

Peter Schmeicheln, Paul Parker, Clayton Blackmore, Steve Bruce, Gary Pallister, Darren Ferguson, Mark Hughes, Lee Sharpe, Bryan Robson and Eric Cantona. David Beckham also made an appearance for the legends team as he was on the comeback trail from a groin injury. 

The legends showed that class is well and truly permanent, especially Mark Hughes who left his own indelible stamp on proceedings with two goals. The first was a spectacular effort when he lashed Lee Sharpe's cross home with a fine first-time shot from outside the penalty area. 'Sparky' made it 4-1 a short time later before Paul Scholes reduced United's deficit to 4-2 with a late strike.

Sparky Strikes Again: Mark Hughes replicated the form that endeared him to the United faithful with two goals to win the testimonial for the Rest Of The World/Legends XI. 

At the end of the game, Sir Alex soaked up the adulation of both the past and present players on the field as well as the amassed crowd as he paraded the Champions League trophy on the field after the final whistle had blown. It was a fitting way to mark all of Sir Alex's achievements up to that point as well as allowing the supporters to see some of their past heroes for one last time on the hallowed Old Trafford turf.

The Rest Of The World team were as follows (their club at the time in brackets).

Peter Schmeichel (Sporting Lisbon), Cafu (AS Roma0, Alessandro Pistone (Newcastle United), Wim Jonk (Sheffield Wednesday), Rio Ferdinand (West Ham United), Taribo West (Inter Milan), Paul Gascoigne (Middlesbrough), George Weah (AC Milan), Gianluca Vialli (Chelsea manager), Henrik Larsson (Celtic), Dario Marcolin (Lazio), Eric Cantona (retired), Careca (Sao Jose), David Weir (Everton), Guerino Gottardi (Lazio), Benito Carbone (Sheffield Wednesday), Pascal Olmeta (retired).

That brings our look back at Sir Alex Ferguson's testimonial to a close, I hope you have enjoyed the article and stoked some happy memories for you. If you were there and have any memories of the game that you would like to share then why not get in touch on Twitter where I can be found @BarkerGray2. 

Until next time, take care. 

Fantasy Fives: French Reds

Hello and welcome back to We All Follow United, your regular trip down Manchester United memory lane. 

Today, we're going to start a new series on the page in which we form a five-a-side team made up of players that fall under a certain criteria. 

This piece has a Gallic theme as today's Fantasy Fives theme is French Manchester United players. 

Goalkeeper: Fabien Barthez (2000-2004. 139 appearances) 

There's an old saying that all goalkeepers are crazy and you possibly won't get a keeper as mad as a box of frogs as Barthez again. A World Cup winner in 1998, Barthez joined United from Monaco and had helped his country win Euro 2000 in the summer before his £7.8 million switch to Old Trafford. 

While his errors were highly publicised, Barthez was capable of pulling off important saves at crucial times and played an integral part in the Premier League title wins of 2000-01 and 2002-03. 

The arrival of American keeper Tim Howard in the summer of 2003 saw Fabien move to Marseille on loan for the 03-04 campaign and he eventually retired at the end of the 2006-07 season. 

Defender: Laurent Blanc (2001-2003. 75 appearances, 4 goals) 

Sir Alex Ferguson was a longtime admirer of the French defender who was also part of the squads that won the 1998 World Cup and Euro 2000 and finally got his man in 2001 following Jaap Stam's acrimonious departure to Lazio. 

The veteran centre half shored up United's defence after some early frailties during his first season and then formed a formidable partnership with new signing Rio Ferdinand which went a long way to helping United reclaim the Premier League title in 2003. At the end of that title winning campaign, Blanc retired from professional football and headed into coaching. 

As a manager, Blanc was at one time touted as a potential successor to Sir Alex as his managerial career saw him win every domestic honour possible in France, firstly with Bordeaux and latterly with Paris St Germain with a spell in charge of the French national team sandwiched in between. 

Defender: Patrice Evra (2005-2014. 379 appearances, 10 goals) 

French international Evra had to undergo a baptism of fire to begin his Manchester United career as his debut came in the cur and thrust of a Manchester Derby. After a disappointing start, Patrice quickly adapted to the English game and soon became United's first choice left-back. 

During his nine years at Old Trafford, Evra won a glut of honours including five Premier League titles, three League Cups (including captaining the team that won the 2010 final 2-1 against Aston Villa), the Club World Cup and of course the 2008 Champions League. 

Evra left United at the end of the 2013-14 season to join Italian giants Juventus and later returned to the Premier League at the end of his career, joining up with former United boss David Moyes at West Ham United, making five appearances for The Hammers towards the end of the 2017-18 season. 

Forward: Eric Cantona (1992-1997. 179 appearances, 81 goals) 

What is there to say about Eric Cantona that hasn't already been said. Tempestous, talismanic, feisty and deadly all at the same time.

His arrival across the Pennines from Leeds in November 1992 breathed new life into a labouring squad languishing in mid-table before going to on to end the 26-year wait for a league title. Arguably his biggest achievement came when he returned from his eight month exile that had derailed United's title challenge in 1995 to almost single handedly overturn Newcastle's 12 point lead at the top of the league, scoring some important goals along the way to helping the team claim an historic 'double double' at the end of the 1995/96 season.

If you could choose one of his 81 goals for the club to sum his contribution up then look no further than his second of the game when United defeated Sunderland 5-0 at Old Trafford on December 21st 1996. Having started the attack in midfield, Cantona (by now United captain) beat two defenders and then received the ball back from Brian McClair's short pass to lift it beyond the despairing grasp of visiting keeper Lionel Perez. As the crowd went into raptures, Cantona stood motionless soaking in the adulation whilst reminding fans why he had earned the moniker 'King Eric'.

Forward: Louis Saha (2004-2008. 124 appearances. 42 goals) 

After a prolific spell in West London helping Fulham achieve and maintain Premier League status, Sir Alex Ferguson was persuaded to part with £12.4million to bring the striker to Old Trafford in January 2004.

The fee looked like it was going to be a bargain as Saha notched seven goals in his first ten matches (including a strike on his debut against Southampton) but his United career was blighted by several long-term injuries. Ruud van Nistelrooy's departure to Real Madrid in 2006 allowed Saha to become part of United's main strike force along with Wayne Rooney but after some exciting pre-Christmas form soon succumbed to another injury.

Despite these injury problems, by the time he left United to join Everton in September 2008 he had still accrued two Premier League champions medals, a League Cup and a Champions League medal over his time at Old Trafford.

That brings our look at some famous Frenchmen to have pulled on the red shirt. I hope you have enjoyed the piece and stoked some happy memories of seeing the aforementioned players in action. 

Keeping in topic with the French theme, I must point you in the direction of the new book 'King Eric' by Wayne Barton. The biography takes a look at the footballing and cultural impact that Cantona made during his five years at United and tells the story of how he went on to become the club's greatest ever player. If you would like to purchase a copy then follow this link https://www.amazon.co.uk/King-Eric-Cantona-Portrait-Football/dp/1911613510/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1585933372&sr=8-1

For more old school United chatter then drop me a follow on Twitter where I can be found @BarkerGray2. 

Until next time, take care. 

United 'Firsts'

Hello and welcome to We All Follow United, a new site dedicated to the history of the world's greatest football club, Manchester United. 

In the summer of last year I created an online magazine with the same title and I recently planned to create another issue, unfortunately the laptop that I used for writing the publication gave up the ghost. Fortunately through the sourcing of a replacement I'm able to bring the We All Follow United name back in blog form. 

As this is the first post on the new site, let's take a look at some of the 'firsts' in United's history. 

First Match In A National Competition 

After spending their formative years playing friendly matches and in the Manchester and District Challenge Cup, Newton Heath took the step to enter the FA Cup for the first time in October 1886.

Their first game in the competition, which had been running since 1871, was an away tie with Fleetwood Rangers. Welsh international striker Jack Doughty scored both goals for The Heathens in the match which ended in a 2-2 draw. At the conclusion of the game, Newton Heath captain Jack Powell refused to play a period of extra time to determine a winner and thus the tie was awarded to Fleetwood. Newton Heath lodged an appeal to the FA in an attempt to get the match replayed, this appeal was unsuccessful and led to Newton Heath taking a period of self-imposed exile from the competition that lasted until 1889.

First Football League Fixture 

The club's first foray into an organised national league competition took place in 1888 when they took their place in The Combination, a competition formed by clubs from the north of England and The Midlands. Unfortunately, The Combination was governed by the clubs as opposed to a central organising committee and the organisational burden proved too much leading to the competition folding before the end of it's first season.

Out of the ashes of The Combination came The Football Alliance, Newton Heath spent three seasons plying their trade in the competition. Their first two Alliance seasons ended in 8th and 9th placed finishes before coming second just a point behind champions Nottingham Forest in 1892. This success was enough to see the club finally elected to the Football League for the 1892-93 season.

Newton Heath (who by now had dropped the Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway suffix from their name) took to the field for the first time under the auspices of the Football League on September 3rd 1892 at Blackburn Rovers' Ewood Park. Despite goals from Jimmy Coupar, Bob Donaldson and Alf Farman The Heathens were beaten 4-3. The club eventually finished the season in last place in Division One but were spared from relegation after beating Second Division champions Small Heath (now known as Birmingham City) 5-3 in a play-off at Sheffield Wednesday's Olive Grove ground.

First Match Of The 20th Century 

Newton Heath's first match of the 20th century took place on January 6th 1900 in a Second Division fixture against Bolton Wanderers at Burnden Park. Striker Bob Parkinson was on the scoresheet but it wasn't enough to prevent the hosts running out 2-1 winners.

Parkinson was on the scoresheet again along with William Jackson to help United to their first win of the new century with a 2-0 away win over Loughborough on January 13th.

First Match as 'Manchester United' 

After Newton Heath had run into financial difficulties following a court judgement in favour of former club president William Healey regarding money owed to him by the club, a consortium of businessmen recruited by club captain Harry Stafford and headed up by local brewer John Henry Davies rescued the club from bankruptcy. The consortium's investment totalled £2000 and the decision was made to change the club's name to Manchester United. Contrary to popular belief, the club's colours didn't change from green and gold halves to red, instead Newton Heath's colours in their final season under the old name were in fact plain white jerseys with blue knickers.

Gainsborough Trinity's Northolme Ground hosted the club's first match under the new name of Manchester United. 

Their first game under the new moniker was played on September 6th 1902 against Gainsborough Trinity at their Northolme Ground. England international forward Charlie Richards was on the scoresheet as the new United won 1-0.

First League Championship 

No club has won more English league titles than Manchester United, the first of the club's 20 championships came at the end of the 1907-08 season.

Bolstered by the signings of star players such as Billy Meredith and top scorer Alexander 'Sandy' Turnbull, United won five of their opening six games starting with a 4-1 away win over Aston Villa on September 2nd 1908. Villa would end up as United's nearest challengers in the league but still finished the season some nine points adrift behind Ernest Mangnall's side. United won 23 of their 38 league fixtures thanks in no small part to Turnbull's 25 league goals (27 in all competitions).

Ernest Mangnall was the first man to manage Manchester United to a league title when he steered the club to the first of their 20 championships in 1908. 

First FA Cup Final Win 

Until Arsenal won the trophy in 2017 making them outright leaders, United held the record for the most FA Cup wins by team with their twelfth triumph coming in 2016. The club's first FA Cup win came at the end of the 1908-09 season.

The first winning cup run got underway on January 16th 1909 when United beat Brighton & Hove Albion 1-0 at Bank Street in the first round. A home win over Everton in the second round by the same scoreline followed by a 6-1 thumping of Blackburn Rovers set them up for an away tie against Burnley. The tie was originally played on March 5th and was abandoned after 72 minutes owing to bad weather with the home side 1-0 ahead. The match was replayed five days later and thankfully ended in a 3-2 win for United which secured progression to the semi-finals.

Newcastle United were beaten 1-0 at Sheffield United's Bramall Lane which saw United through to their maiden FA Cup Final at Crystal Palace with Bristol City lying in wait.

The final was played in front of over 70,000 spectators and United lined up as follows.

Harry Moger (GK), George Stacey, Vince Hayes, Dick Duckworth, Charlie Roberts (captain), Alex Bell, Billy Meredith, Harold Halse, Jimmy Turnbull, Sandy Turnbull, Jimmy Wall.

It would be Sandy Turnbull who would write his name into the history books, netting the only goal of the afternoon when he rifled home the rebound after Harold Halse's original shot had cannoned off the crossbar in the 25th minute.

Captain Charlie Roberts, a £400 signing from Grimsby Town in 1904, lifted the trophy and became the last Englishman to captain a Manchester United side to an FA Cup win until Bryan Robson skippered the club to the Wembley triumph of 1983.

Charlie Roberts captained United to their first ever FA Cup final triumph in 1909. Roberts was a trailblazer as the first player to wear shorts above the knee as well as being instrumental in the formation of a trade union for footballers. 

First Match At Old Trafford

United have called three grounds 'home' over the course of their 141 year history. A field on North Road, close to the Newton Heath railway depot was the first and was the club's home ground until 1893 when they moved to Bank Street in Clayton. Newton Heath and later Manchester United played at the new ground for 17 years until the grounds fell into a state of disrepair which owner John Henry Davies didn't feel was fit for a side that had recently won the league title and FA Cup.

Davies negated to spend club money on repairing Bank Street and instead used the funds to build a ground in the Old Trafford area of Greater Manchester adjacent to the Bridgewater Canal.

Old Trafford opened just over 110 years ago and has gone on to host England international fixtures, matches during the 1966 World Cup and 1996 European Championships as well as world title boxing matches, rugby union test matches and the annual Super League Grand Final. 

The stadium was designed by leading architect Archibald Leitch and was complete late in 1909. The first match at the new ground was held on February 19th 1910 when Liverpool made the short trip down the East Lancs Road for a First Division fixture. Despite goals from Tom Homer, Sandy Turnbull and George Wall, it was the visitors who left with the points after a 4-3 win.

United recorded their first win at their new home on March 5th 1910 when Scotsman Jack Picken netted the winner against Sheffield United.

First Wembley Appearance 

Empire Stadium, or Wembley as it was better known in it's original incarnation, hosted it's first football match in 1923 when Bolton Wanderers beat West Ham United 2-0 in the famous 'White Horse' FA Cup final.

United made their first appearance under the famous twin towers on April 24th 1948 when they faced the famous Blackpool side of the time that featured star names such as Stanley Matthews and Stan Mortensen.

Manchester United captain Johnny Carey is chaired by his team-mates after collecting the trophy following United's 4-2 win over Blackpool in the 1948 FA Cup Final. 

Matt Busby's side upset the odds and recovered from a 2-1 deficit to grab three goals in twelve minutes to win 4-2 and secure the club's first post-war trophy. Jack Rowley (2), Stan Pearson and John Anderson scored the goals which enabled captain Johnny Carey to climb Wembley's famous 39 steps and collect the cup.

First Football League Cup Tie 

United took part in the first staging of the League Cup which took place in the 1960-61 season.

The club's first tie in the new competition was an away trip to Exeter City on October 19th 1960 which ended in a 1-1 draw with Scottish forward Alex Dawson netting United's goal. There was no extra time in the League Cup in those days so a replay was played on October 26th.

United had better luck in the replay and swept their visitors aside 4-1 at Old Trafford with Albert Quixall scoring twice in addition to goals from Johnny Giles and Mark Pearson.

First Foreign Player 

Italian midfielder Carlo Sartori was the first non British or Irish player to represent Manchester United.

Italian born Carlo Sartori grew up in Greater Manchester and became the first player not from either Britain or Ireland to play for Manchester United. 

A native of Caderzone, Sartori's family moved to the Collyhurst area of Manchester and the youngster made his way through the youth ranks at United before making his first team debut in October 1968 as a substitute in a 2-2 draw away at Tottenham Hotspur.

Yugoslav international Nikola Jovanovic was the first foreign player to transfer to United when Dave Sexton paid £300,000 to bring the defender to Old Trafford from Red Star Belgrade in 1980.

First £1,000,000 Transfer 

Shockwaves reverberated around the world of football in 1979 when Nottingham Forest became the first club to pay £1,000,000 for a player when they signed England international forward Trevor Francis from Birmingham City.

United's first transfer fee over a million was paid in October 1981 when recently appointed manager Ron Atkinson raided his former club West Bromwich Albion to bring Bryan Robson to Old Trafford in a £1.500,000 deal that smashed the British transfer record.

Bryan Robson was the first player to transfer to Manchester United for a fee of over £1,000,000 in 1981. At the press conference to announce his signing, manager Ron Atkinson described the transfer as 'not even a gamble, not a risk'. 

'Robbo' earned the moniker 'Captain Marvel' during his thirteen year spell at United, skippering the team to FA Cup wins in 1983, 1985 and 1990, the Cup Winners Cup in 1991, the League Cup in 1992 (see below) and playing a fundamental part in the Premier League title wins of 1993 and 1994.

First Football League Cup Final Win 

After being on the losing side in 1983 and 1991 (losing 2-1 to Liverpool and 1-0 to Sheffield Wednesday respectively), Alex Ferguson's side made it third time lucky in 1992.

The road to Wembley saw United beat Cambridge United 4-1 over two legs, Portsmouth 3-1 in the third round, Oldham Athletic 2-0 in the fourth round before a clash with trans-Penine rivals Leeds in the fifth round (drawn by none other than Donald Trump!!). Howard Wilkinson's side were brushed aside 3-1 at Elland Road to set up a semi-final with Middlesbrough. After a goalless draw in the first leg at Ayresome Park, United won through to the final which matched them with Brian Clough's Nottingham Forest.

Young midfielder Ryan Giggs drew the defenders away and supplied the pass for Brian McClair to fire the ball past Andy Marriott in the Forest goal and score what proved to be the winning goal after 14 minutes.

Winning goalscorer Brian McClair is all smiles after Manchester United won the Football League Cup for the first time after beating Nottingham Forest 1-0 in the 1992 final at Wembley. 

First Premier League Victory 

Despite history remembering Manchester United as the first ever Premier League champions but what is not often reported is how badly United started the season in the new league.

Alex Ferguson's side had just one point to show for their opening three matches after a 2-1 reverse away at Sheffield United (in which Brian Deane scored the first ever Premier League goal) followed by a 3-0 home loss to Everton. Denis Irwin smashed home an equaliser as Ipswich Town took a share of the spoils in a 1-1 draw at Old Trafford.

Many years before he was helping people get on to the property ladder on daytime TV show 'Homes Under The Hammer', Dion Dublin notched the winning goal to help United to their maiden Premier League victory in August 1992. 

An 88th minute winner from summer signing Dion Dublin was enough for United to get their first three points of the season as they left the South Coast with a 1-0 win over Southampton on August 24th 1992.

First Match Of The 21st Century 

United took to the field in the unusual surroundings of the Maracana Stadium in Brazil for their first match of the new millennium as they lined up against Mexican side Necaxa in the controversial FIFA Club World Championship on January 6th 2000.

A late equaliser from Dwight Yorke was needed as United rescued a draw in their first game of the 21st century. The opening game of their 2000 FIFA Club World Championship campaign finished 1-1 with Mexican side Necaxa. 

Necaxa, who had won the North American equivalent of the Champions League in 1999, took a surprise lead when Cristian Montesinos scored in the 14th minute. United's task was made harder two minutes before half time when Argentine referee Horacio Elizondo (the same referee who would send Wayne Rooney off at the 2006 World Cup) gave David Beckham his marching orders for a high tackle. A late equaliser from Dwight Yorke was needed two minutes from time to spare United's blushes and rescue a point from their opening group fixture.

After losing their second game of the tournament 3-1 to Copa Libertadores champions Vasco Da Gama, United were out of the competition by the time they recorded their first win of the 21st century when two goals from South African Quinton Fortune delivered a 2-0 win over fellow eliminated team South Melbourne on January 11th 2000.

That brings our look at some of United's 'firsts' to an end, I hope you have enjoyed our trip through the annals of red history. If there is anything you would like to see featured on the site then why not get in touch on Twitter where I can be found @BarkerGray2. 

Until next time, take care.