Who says that the Champions League is predictable? Manchester UnitedâÂÂs trip to Bursa last week was anything but.
A flight to and a night in Istanbul were followed by an early morning ferry across the Sea of Mamara to TurkeyâÂÂs fourth-biggest city of 1.8 million. The hospitality was superb, the atmosphere in the ground too â as it always is in Turkey.
The former editor of the Turkish FourFourTwo took me out in Istanbul with her friend. Both are TV presenters on one of the main sports channels. And, as I realised when I walked into a restaurant, both are famous. One had just come from rehearsals from the Turkish equivalent of Strictly Come Dancing.
They were great company and fixed me up to meet some Bursaspor fans the next day. They also explained why United fans got into so much trouble when we played Galatasaray in 1993: the tour organisers had booked us into one of the roughest parts of Istanbul.
Come match day, there were some weary eyes on the early-morning ferry to Bursa, most of them from the 60 United fans on board who probably hadnâÂÂt had their right hours.
A Bursa fan was waiting for me at the ferry port with a sign saying âÂÂAndy Journalist.â IâÂÂve never had anyone meet me before with a sign, though a mate once came through arrivals at Vienna airport and went to hug a complete stranger for a dare.
âÂÂGreat to see you again,â he said, hugging the confused middle-aged Austrian tightly. âÂÂThanks for picking me up.â The befuddled Austrian finally pushed him away gasping, âÂÂbut I donâÂÂt even know you.âÂÂ
The Bursa fan took me to meet his mates, all proper die-hard Bursaspor fans who had been to their away games in Glasgow and Manchester. They were in the process of sorting their Valencia trip. As Turkey is not in the European Union, they have to pay for all their travel and then apply for a visa. If they get knocked back â tough.
TheyâÂÂre happy to be in the Champions League, to be enjoying trips to Ibrox, Old Trafford and the Mestalla. TheyâÂÂre leading the Turkish league and hope that theyâÂÂll be back next year when they plan to do a bit better. Bursaspor could start by scoring a goal and getting a point.
They took me to BursasporâÂÂs modern training ground, to their team bus, presidentâÂÂs helicopter, museum and to meet a director who had dreamed up their âÂÂGreen Crocodileâ moniker. They were proud of their city and their team and couldnâÂÂt do enough to help.
They explained how they take 2,000 to most away games in Istanbul, but took 30,000 to a key game last year when they were on their way to becoming the first Turkish side outside Istanbul to win the league since 1984.
They told me how PrestonâÂÂs Gordon Milne was their manager for a time and how their team was built on emerging Turkish talents. With a new stadium, they hope to match the Big Three of Galatasaray, Fenerbahce and Besiktas.
And they told me that the journalist IâÂÂd been with in Istanbul was very well respected. âÂÂI was with another girl,â I added, explaining who the other journalist was.
âÂÂYou had dinner with Burcu?â they asked, aghast. âÂÂThat is the dream of every Turkish man.âÂÂ
The atmosphere in the ground was loud and proud. You could hear the calls to prayer from the nearby mosques and smell the meats and fish being grilled in the streets. Little wonder that the 600 travelling Reds enjoyed the trip.
Then I returned to Barcelona, where a friend told me an amusing story. He used to be a footballer himself and played for his country Belgium at Under-16 and Under-18 level. He was a professional at Anderlecht, though he never played in the first team and slipped down into the Belgian second and third divisions. At the age of 23, he decided to start afresh in Barcelona, initially working in a call centre.
It was at that point that he sent his football CV to me, hoping to play for a team I was running. HeâÂÂs been that leagueâÂÂs player of the year several times since and his professional life has taken an upturn too.
Once it was clear that he knew football, had great social skills and could speak five different languages, he was snapped up by a company which looks after several top footballers. And several lesser names. He spends much of his time knocking on coachesâ doors in Brussels or Birmingham, Bari or Bochum. HeâÂÂs a good egg in an industry not adverse to attracting crooks and consumed by greed.
Last week, he took one player contracted to a Premier League club to Atletico Madrid for a trial. He then watched and waited as the player was put through his paces. On an adjacent pitch, Diego Forlan and Simao were practising. They wouldn't have thought that my friend was an agent, because most agents aren't lads in their twenties in good condition.
Forlan was pinging the balls with both feet and unnerving accuracy. HeâÂÂs done this since heâÂÂs been a child and recommends any budding footballer to follow. Simao was equally impressive, until one ball flew in the direction of my mate â who trapped it mid-air, flicked it up and volleyed it back.
Forlan and Simao both applauded then suggested that he should sign for Atleti...
