Another long-awaited return to Uefa’s premier bloated cash cow

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EPOCH II

In 1993, Manchester United competed in Big Cup for the first time since 1969. It was the romantic denouement to an epic saga of hope and yearning, an old club finally reconnecting with the competition that had become intertwined with its very identity. They beat the famous Honved 3-2. These were giddy, emotional and epochal times. And tonight, younger supporters will be able to experience for themselves just how it felt for their forefathers to scratch an itch that had been nagging for the best part of a quarter of a century. For United haven’t played a game in Big Cup for nearly 17 months now, which is a similar sort of wait for modern fans, really, isn’t it, when you factor in the pace of life in the information age, everyone’s raging sense of entitlement, and other self-centred vileness. But tonight their success-starved fanbase will be rewarded for their infinite patience as United make another long-awaited return to Uefa’s premier bloated cash cow. Let the good times roll! Again!

ROBERTO SOLDA-DOH!

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