The forgotten legends of football - Bryan Robson

At the international front too, Robson was now an integral part of the national team. While his 1986 and 1990 world cup campaigns were brutally cut short by injuries, his 1982 campaign was an excellent one for him. In the group stage when England faced France, Robson was the complete midfielder. He neutralized the threat of a young Michel Platini throughout the game. Also, he scored a goal in 27 seconds after kickoff, which was at the time a world cup record. After France equalized, Robson again scored to re-establish dominance. It is generally reckoned to be one of the most complete performances given by Robson, who was earning a reputation as one of the best midfielders of his time. Like any world class midfielder, Robson had bags of energy in him. He displayed the same commitment at full time, as he did at kickoff. The thing I feel that makes him better than most other midfielders, be it Figo or Zidane was his pace, and sustained pace at that.

It is Sir Alex Ferguson who is generally credited with United’s never-say-die spirit. But for me, it was the United captain that epitomized it. In the Cup Winners’ Cup in 1984, a Maradona inspired Barcelona defeated United 2-0 at the Camp Nou. The general feeling was that the best United could do was earn a draw. Bryan Robson, though, had other ideas. He was unstoppable on the night. Not only did he completely eclipse Diego Maradona, he left the Catalans reeling. Every pass was perfect and every tackle accurate, and he also got the two goals which equaled the scores on aggregate. But he did not stop there; the midfield metronome was still churning. Frank Stapleton might have got the winner, but everyone knew it had been Robson’s night.

One particular feature that stood out to me was his distribution of the ball. He did not have the passing range of someone like Scholes, but he was the man everything went through; his role was very similar to that of Carrick’s today. One thing he possessed that Carrick does not was terrific anticipation. He made brilliant runs on and off the ball. And while Robson was tough on the ball, he played with an elegance that had rarely been seen in Britain. As if this was not enough, he was considered better than most strikers when it came to heading ability.

Twice he came to lifting the Division One title, but both times late-season collapses found them in fourth place. Atkinson’s job was rumored to be unsafe and although Atkinson did win one more FA Cup in 1985, it was the arrival of a Scotsman from Aberdeen which was going to change United and its captain forever. Sir Alex Ferguson recognized Robson’s value to the side and went about building a team around the enigmatic captain. Three trophy-less seasons later, Robson was finally able to get his hands on another FA Cup trophy, making him the only Manchester United captain to lift the trophy thrice.