Tuesday 26 August 2008, 13:48
John Gidman called last week. Now 54, the former Manchester United full-back lives on the Costa Del Sol with his air stewardess girlfriend. When I interviewed him two years ago, I met him at 8am in Torremolinos. The first thing he said was “Are we going...
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Tuesday 12 August 2008, 15:39
So glamorous is my job that I had to work 12 hours on Saturday and Sunday, a situation which improved markedly on Monday as Paul Parker (ex-Manchester United and England full-back) came to Barcelona and I met him for something to eat. He ended up going...
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Thursday 07 August 2008, 17:00
This job is seldom dull. Here’s some of the communications I’ve had in the last 24 hours. 1) A phone call from a British lad in a Greek prison serving 14 years for allegedly drug running. He’s a Manchester United fan and wants me to send him some posters...
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Monday 04 August 2008, 13:10
If you don’t ask then you don’t get… Manchester United officials are not adverse to criticism, so fair play to chief executive David Gill for issuing 14 free tickets to the loyal Reds who carried on from South Africa to support the team at the friendly...
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Tuesday 29 July 2008, 16:30
“It’s not safe for you to walk to the stadium alone,” agreed the receptionist and a customer in my hotel in Port Elizabeth, a World Cup host city, ahead of the derby between Kaizer Chiefs and Orlando Pirates. “Not safe for a white person.” As I sat in...
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Wednesday 23 July 2008, 15:00
I’d spent a pleasant day interviewing people in Durban, checking the progress of the new World Cup stadium and watching Manchester United train ahead of a friendly match against the Orlando Pirates. For training, I had media accreditation and was directed...
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Monday 21 July 2008, 16:30
“I’m sorry Sir, you’ll not be boarding the aircraft to Johannesburg.” “But…” “I’m sorry.” This was the culmination of a conversation at midnight on Thursday, shortly after I’d tried to board the Air France 777 to South Africa at Paris Charles De Gaulle...
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Friday 18 July 2008, 12:22
I’d just left home for the 12-day trip to South Africa. Literally walked down the street, past Barcelona’s Botafumeiro seafood restaurant, where a day earlier Adriano Galliani, Silvio Berlusconi’s right-hand man at Milan, had concluded the deal to take...
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Wednesday 16 July 2008, 13:32
I’ve just got back from Marseille after interviewing Eric Cantona ahead of the Beach Soccer World Cup, which starts in Eric’s hometown this week. Without flights, I drove the 550 kilometres from Barcelona. It took five hours and nine pay tolls on a motorway...
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Wednesday 09 July 2008, 15:29
The Cantona interview was confirmed yesterday, so I’m to see him in Marseille “between 1400 Monday and 1400 Tuesday.” I’m working out how to get to France’s second biggest city. The only direct flight between Barcelona (where Eric lived for three years...
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Thursday 03 July 2008, 18:28
I travel to South Africa in two weeks for Manchester United’s pre-season tour. I’m going to be covering the trip for the magazine of a newspaper I’ve never worked for before. They have given me a substantial word count to do a large feature and are meticulous...
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Friday 27 June 2008, 16:00
I spoke to Jordi Cruyff yesterday, a star of the 1996 European Championships. His performances for Holland - mainly a scooped goal against Switzerland - and a low transfer fee as he was effectively pushed out of Barcelona, were enough to earn him a move...
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Monday 23 June 2008, 16:50
It’s a strange one watching Spain’s Euro 2008 games in Catalonia, because Catalans are divided on the fortunes of the national side. Mariano, one of the Manchester La Fianna players, is a Catalan who watches Spain. He was in Austria for one of their group...
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Tuesday 17 June 2008, 12:51
Two days before Sir Alex Ferguson went on his recent holiday, he drove to a suburb in Bury to see his long time friend, the former Manchester United kitman Norman Davies. Norman was seriously ill after a long battle with cancer, but Ferguson cheered him...
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Thursday 05 June 2008, 07:00
After finishing fourth in the league in Barcelona, Manchester La Fianna play our final game of the season on Saturday. Tomorrow, we set sail for a friendly against the U19s of third division SD Eivissa at their 6,000 capacity stadium in the glorious Ibiza...
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