Dear Phil,
Football’s all gone a bit serious lately, hasn’t it?
Remember when it used to be about just expressing yourself and having a good time?
People would look forward to going to the match all week so they could see their mates and watch their side play. Nowadays if a team loses, half of the fanbase claim it’s ruined their weekend.
We’ve lost sight of why we actually started to like the beautiful game in the first place. Scoring a goal doesn’t make a player smile, it makes them angry. You can see the tension and the nerves suddenly being released from their body, almost like they’ve been burdened by this enormous weight of expectation.
And then there’s you.
You’re what football is all about. Every single faceplant into the turf offers hope to millions of kids all over the world that there’s still a chance they could make it.
You play football with a smile on your face – at least we think that’s what you’re trying to do with your face – and remind us all why we love the game.
Watching your team win is great, but watching your team be funny is even better.
We’re not going to suggest for a second that we were jumping with delight when Sergio Aguero lead you a merry dance at Old Trafford back in 2013 before smashing the ball past David de Gea to win the Manchester derby, but what you did that day will live with us forever.
We couldn’t care less about the goal you scored or your performance, but that face you pulled as Aguero broke our hearts. You know the one.
You’ve played for the biggest club in the world for over a decade, won the Premier League, the FA Cup, the Europa League and played at a World Cup, yet it’s those faces that we’ll remember you for.
Don’t take it as an insult – far from it.
Football is supposed to be fun and if we can look back at the moment Manchester City won the derby back in 2013 and laugh at it then you’ve done your job.
You’ll never be forgotten at Old Trafford. Primarily because you’ve left about 10 forehead-sized divots on the pitch, but also just because you made football fun again.
Who knows how much longer you’ll be at United, but rest assured we’ll enjoy every moment of it. Against Wolves tonight, we're all behind you.
Thanks for everything, Phil.
Love United
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