Before the goal, before the game even, there was the tunnel. It’s the moment that stands largest exactly 20 years on, romantic to those who hanker for the days of ill-fitting kits and a bit more pre-match needle; glorious to those who say We Used To Be A Proper Country.
Enter Roy Keane, undeterred by the claustrophobia of the Highbury corridor, finger-pointing and letting rip: “We’ll see you out there … shouting your mouth off, you, every week, you.” Drop in some bleeps. Patrick Vieira is at the other end, taking the heat for having a pre-match pop at Gary Neville. The referee/headteacher, Graham Poll, transforms into a yucca plant, calming Keane until it’s time. Out there they go.
