It's encouraging that fans are still prepared to fight."Barca's challenge, page 22. LIKE THEIR team-mate and totem Dennis Bergkamp, who arrived in France yesterday via Le Shuttle, Arsenal's players must employ tunnel vision for tonight's opening Champions' League joust against Lens. Arsene Wenger, the manager, and winger Marc Overmars, the two members of the party with experience of the competition, have been emphasising how important it is to begin with a victory, rather than clinging on in time-honoured fashion for either the draw or narrow defeat which are still acceptable in away ties in the other two-leg European tournaments. In the old days, the old ways of "boring, boring Arsenal" often seemed ideally suited to quelling a noisy foreign crowd, and a goalless draw was a job well done that merited champagne on the flight home. The latest fiasco is a step too far."Decisions affecting the future of Manchester United will be taken on the other side of the world Our club will no longer be independent. We will be manipulated to further the business interests of the Murdoch empire."Crick said: "The one person missing here is the man with the Kansas accent, who is the chief executive of BSkyB, Mark Booth The man who did not know the name of United's left back. He probably thinks Law, Best and Charlton is a firm of Manhattan accountants, that the Busby Babes are Chicago's answer to the Spice Girls and that King Eric is a brand of Icelandic condoms."Fans were told of support coming from Liverpool, Everton and Leeds, in addition to most other clubs in the Premiership. Messages of support by the former United players, Sammy McIlroy and Brian McClair, were also read out.
"Like all true Manchester United fans," McIlroy, the last of the Busby Babes, wrote, "I'm extremely concerned at the effect the take- over will have... Subsitutes not used: Horsrud, Johnsen, Sannerholt, T Odegaard (gk).Referee: H Strampe (Germany).. MANCHESTER UNITED'S supporters have been urged to boycott club merchandise and to stage a sit-in after tonight's Champions' League match against Barcelona at Old Trafford in an attempt to halt the prospective pounds 623m take-over by BSkyB. In addition, a meeting of nearly 1,000 supporters in the city's Bridgewater Hall were told there are plans for a mass walk-out during the game against Liverpool next Thursday. All 33,000 individual shareholders in the club will be contacted and urged to reject any BSkyB offers and fans have been encouraged to write to their MPs. Pension funds and financial companies, who own 60 per cent of the plc, will also be contacted and asked not to accept the offer, which is worth 240p a share. Subsitutes not used: Ferraresi, Hughes, Jaszczun, Oakes (gk).Stromsgodset (4-5-1): Hansen; Granas, Karlsen, Waehler, Skistad; Nyan, H Odegaard (George, 10; Strom, 71), Solberg, Kihle, Hagen; Michelsen (Olsen, 88). "United is worth more and they shouldn't be selling."Supporters were handed leaflets expounding the opposition to BSkyB's approach.
"This club has been built on the loyalty of its supporters and the efforts of Matt Busby, Alex Ferguson and great players past and present," it read. "But since the launch of the plc we have seen our club taken further away from its loyal support. "We must not assume the financial institutions will accept the deal," Michael Crick of Shareholders United Against Murdoch said. He lives only a mile from our training ground and has been a prolific scorer in our junior teams. Darren Byfield, another young prospect, had the two best chances to halve the deficit, although Bosnich prevented Michelsen putting the outcome beyond doubt in a rare counter-attack.Despite Karlsen's dismissal for fouling the substitute Riccardo Scimeca, Villa appeared destined not to find a way through a massed defence.
I have never felt able to trust him for 90 minutes before but tonight I took a shot in the dark and he got us out of jail."Aston Villa (3-5-2): Bosnich; Grayson (Taylor, 37), Southgate, Barry; Charles, Hendrie, Draper (Scimeca, 67), Thompson, Wright; Joachim, Byfield (Vassell, 80). Thompson, however, maintained his prolific service; following one of his crosses, Charles gave Villa a lifeline with a scrambled goal.Another centre, by Alan Wright was headed back across goal by Scimeca and miscued by Lee Hendrie, whereupon Vassell hauled Villa level in front of a delirious Holte End. Christer George, who had replaced Hans Erik Odegaard following an over-zealous challenge by Alan Thompson, steered the ball wide of Bosnich after Rune Hagen's cut-back.Villa stepped up the pressure in the second half, opening up the flanks and troubling Glenn Arne Hansen. The ploy reaped a rich dividend in the 21st minute after he muscled his way past Gareth Southgate. Michelsen's right-foot drive was beaten out by Mark Bosnich, but rolled obligingly for him to stroke in the rebound.Villa were still coming to terms with being behind for the first time this season when the Norwegians doubled their advantage.
Injury- hit Stromsgodset used a wing-back, Anders Michelsen, as a lone striker. While they lead the Premiership, Stromsgodset lie ninth in their domestic league with Norway's worst defensive record.Perhaps the visitors' poor pedigree - they lost 11-0 at Anfield in 1974 - had induced complacency in the Villa ranks. After all, John Gregory, their manager, had stressed that the league took priority over Europe.Whatever the truth, Villa were 2-0 down after only 23 minutes. Three and a half minutes into stoppage time, the England Under-18 striker pounced again to complete an extraordinary fightback.Villa, quarter-finalists last spring, surely did not envisage an evening of such high drama. Within two minutes, Gary Charles's goal gave Villa hope against a side depleted by the dismissal of their captain, Kenneth Karlsen, for a second bookable offence. Only 12 seconds remained when Vassell sidefooted the equaliser.