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Manchester United's new manager David Moyes poses at Old Trafford Stadium. Source:AAP
TWO words resonate around the world of sport like few others - Manchester United.
They have become so much more than a football team, they are a brand. It is almost the tale of two teams: the one you see sweeping all before them on the park and the mega-club revolutionising the game off the pitch.
Most Australian football fans have grown up on a diet of the Premier League and this week could be a once-in-a-lifetime experience.
There is an aura about this club, carefully cultivated by Alex Ferguson. Playing at Old Trafford is a almost mythical experience and every Premier League player, every season, marks off that fixture as something special.
It really is the Theatre of Dreams. Playing at Anfield was something similar, with the fans singing You'll Never Walk Alone and knowing the history of these great venues. They are the memories that stay with you forever.
And for a bunch of lucky A-League players, they will create their own memories this Saturday as they come up against Robin van Persie, Rio Ferdinand and some of the biggest names in the world game. To have these players in Australia is massive for the code.
To have Liverpool playing in Melbourne as well shows that our game has made a mark on the world. That's the impact of having marquee players such as Alessandro Del Piero and Shinji Ono in our league.
Every country wants a piece of Manchester United, yet they chose to play here.
We are in a privileged position because we get to usher in a new era with David Moyes taking over from Fergie as manager. In many ways, it was the job you couldn't accept, but also the job you couldn't refuse.
Moyes was handpicked by Fergie - it's a bit like batting after Bradman - and everyone will be looking to see how he handles it.
My first game in England was the Charity Shield in 1994 against Manchester United.
Coming up against the likes of Eric Cantona, Mark Hughes, Paul Ince and the rest at Wembley is something I still cherish.
The magic of United lies in how they have constantly reinvented themselves over that period, often releasing players still at their peak and bringing in new stars to carry on the legacy.
The evolution of United can be seen in the names... Cantona to Beckham to Cristiano Ronaldo and Nani. Up front, it was Mark Hughes, to Ruud Van Nistelrooy to Wayne Rooney and now Robin van Persie.
Ferguson won 38 trophies in his time at Old Trafford - many celebrated clubs haven't lifted that much silverware in their entire history.
* * *
I HAVE been played a hospital pass here and asked to name the best Manchester United team of the Ferguson era.
Where do you start?
Great players such as Steve Bruce, Gary Pallister, Andy Cole, Dwight Yorke, Cristiano Ronaldo, Van Persie and Bryan Robson didn't make the cut.
Sorry Bozza, but you missed out, too.
It was Eric Cantona - he basically retired with the league trophy on his head - who was the catalyst for United's remarkable run of success and has to be the first player chosen. He remains arguably Ferguson's greatest buy.
Beckham and Giggs and Gary Neville, three guys who came through the youth club's system are in there, proving United's success hasn't been built entirely on a cheque book.
While Chelsea and local rivals Manchester City have bought fleeting success, Fergie has built an empire.
And that's his gift to world football.
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