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We never thought we would go down, but if it happened to us it can happen to the MU| this All Football


The funeral silence in the dressing room is what Sammy McIlroy remembers most. Lou Macari doesn’t think the players saw it coming. Alex Stepney admits the warning signs were there when Manchester United finished 18th the previous season.

April 27, 1974. The day United were relegated, although it was Birmingham’s victory over Norwich and not, as legend has it, defeat in the Manchester derby and a back-heel winner from the invincible Denis Law sealed their fate.

Law and Bobby Charlton had left United the previous year. George Best, the last of the Holy Trinity who inspired Matt Busby’s European Cup-winning side, was gone by January as United headed for the drop.

Fifty years ago this week, they were recovering from defeat to Oldham Athletic in the Second Division. It came at the end of December which also saw English football’s aristocrats – and European champions six years earlier – held goalless at Old Trafford by Leyton Orient, before sneaking a one-goal victory away in York City.

If United’s relegation was a sensation then, it would be almost unimaginable now, even as they sit just seven points above the drop zone. However, the 20-time English champions could be in 15th place in the Premier League by the time they arrive at Anfield on Sunday to face old rivals Liverpool.

Could it really happen again? Mail Sport talks to members of the ’74 boys about the possibility of history repeating itself.

SAMMY McILROY (Midfielder, 1971-82)

It shows you that no matter how big a club is, what your history is, the players you’ve got, you can still go down if things aren’t right on the pitch. Anything can happen – including expulsion.

I look at the situation now, where we are 14th in the league. Deep down, I don’t think United will be relegated, but we have to get things right as soon as possible.

Let’s be honest, we’re not winning games and if that happens you drop down the league and things get worse: confidence goes, fans are on edge, you’ n going a goal behind in the first five minutes and the fans are starting to think ‘here we go’. Honestly, there is no worse feeling in football.

I have been impressed by Ruben Amorim and the way he has been open about it. I think he says things like this to let the players know what could be happening here if we don’t get our act together.

It doesn’t matter what size club you are, it happens to you and you have to keep fighting.

Right now, United’s players have to fight for their lives to get out of this situation and show 100 per cent commitment to make it happen like it did in ’74. There are a lot of players playing now who don’t even know what happened in ’74.

Character plays a big role when you are in a situation like this. You have to have it in abundance. They can all play, but it takes passion and commitment.

Results don’t lie, league positions don’t lie. You have to fight for your life to try to get out of it.

I think these players will stay in this division and hopefully learn that they don’t want to be in this situation again – and you certainly don’t want the scenario we had.

It was the quietest dressing room I’ve ever been in. It was crazy for a club like Manchester United to lose their status in the top division. Unthinkable, but it really happened.

No matter what anyone told you, it was one of the worst feelings of my football career.

Once Denis scored, he walked right off the pitch, up the tunnel and nobody saw him after that. We had a players’ lounge in those days where we go for a drink and a chat after the game, but I can’t remember seeing him there at all.

That summer was terrible. Wherever you went, if people recognized you, they gave you some abuse. You had to grin and take it.

Fans of other teams were delighted that a club like United had been relegated. They were waiting for us at the bus and sniggered and laughed at us. On some grounds we were coming off the pitch and we spat and had things thrown at us.

The opposition fans taunted us because of the size of the club. They let us know what to expect now, this was no longer the First Division.

Our first game in the Second Division was away to Leyton Orient, a little ground full to the rafters. Their fans gave it to us very strongly: this is what to expect.

When we were expelled and came back, we went from strength to strength. But Manchester United don’t want to be relegated again, not in modern football.

Results can change the confidence and mindset of players if you start getting some wins.

Everyone has been saying to me, ‘oh my God, the next two games are away to Liverpool and Arsenal in the FA Cup’.

Those are two games that players want to play in. Let’s go out and show what we can do. Hopefully the players have that in mind for the next couple of games.

If you give 100 percent and things don’t go your way, you can hold your hands up and say I couldn’t have done it anymore. I hope the players do.

ALEX STEPNEY (Goalkeeper, 1966-78)

At the time, you never think you’re going down. The warning signs were there because we had struggled the previous season, and from that point of view it looked like it could be on the cards.

But out of the 42 league games, I only let in 48 goals and we lost eight games 1-0. That’s not a form of expulsion, is it?

It was Manchester United and we had won the European Cup in 1968, but Sir Matt Busby was right to step down because of his injuries from the plane crash and be knighted and given the freedom of Manchester. It was too much for him.

After that, it all depends on who becomes the manager. We had four in four years with Wilf McGuiness, Frank O’Farrell and then Tommy Docherty following Matt.

Tommy brought in a number of loan players and I don’t think that helped because we couldn’t have a stable team.

It was nothing to do with the upheaval with George Best, another upheaval with so many players coming on loan and cutting and changing that put us in that situation.

We all know what happened with Denis’ goal, a back heel out of nowhere in the six yard box, but it doesn’t bother me. Birmingham got a result before we did and that disappointed us.

But United will not be relegated this season, in my opinion, they are too good for that.

They have to improve and hopefully Ruben Amorim can resolve this by the end of the season. That’s my opinion and I’m sure it will be. Absolutely, no problem about that.

He has to look at everything he has in his squad. I have been very honest in saying, I don’t think you will see the same lineup for three or four games until the end of January or February, if there are injuries now.

Halfway through the season, United are on 22 points. If they can get two or three results, that makes a hell of a difference.

Going back to ’74, it was a different situation. Two points for a win in those days wasn’t much, but three points is now huge.

We play Liverpool this weekend and they are flying, but who would have thought United would have beaten Manchester City in last season’s FA Cup final and at the Etihad last month? There are no easy games anymore.

LOU MACARI (Midfielder, 1973-84)

I think it’s fair to say we didn’t see that coming. There had been huge changes with a new manager and new players, but there was no great drama around us from week to week or talk of us going down, and I think the fans believed in us.

We didn’t lose for six games in March and April, winning four of them. It’s only when the league table shows you’re close to the bottom three that you realize there could be a bit of trouble ahead.

But I don’t think United will be in another fight against relegation. Give him another two months and if they’re in the bottom three then I’d be a bit concerned, but I think it’s any three of five clubs and I don’t think United are in that five.

I don’t think too many people at the moment have any thoughts of that happening either.

I could be wrong. As the weeks and months go by, things could change. It could all work out if things aren’t happening for you.

When the manager says it, you take notice. ‘Let’s not ignore that possibility.’ But I’m looking over it in the hope that it doesn’t come to that.

At this point, I don’t see them being dragged into a dog fight. There is enough in the team to stay clear of that danger zone but they have to start producing it quickly.

Liverpool at Anfield is never easy. It’s no different this year to how it was last year or the season before. They’re on top of the tree and bombing along.

But we can produce a performance. Not so long ago we beat City – I don’t know who predicted that, but I certainly didn’t.





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