Brian McClair has claimed he brought the Stone Roses sound to Manchester United, criticizing Gary Neville and Old Trafford announcer Alan Keegan following their comments in a promotional video for the club.
Man United and adidas have teamed up with the iconic Mancunian band to launch a new collection of training wear and casual wear. along with a video where Neville stated that in his role as captain, he chose ‘This Is The One’ to rock the stadium on home match days.
But that account has been disputed by McClair, 60, who spent more than a decade with Man United between 1987 and 1998, claiming Sir Alex Ferguson gave him the honor long before Neville took up the armband.
McClair published in X (formerly Twitter): ‘A figment of Alan and Gary’s fertile imagination!
‘Fergie wasn’t happy with Tina Turner, she wanted Matt Monroe’s “Walk Away”, when I laughed at this she got furious and suggested I pick a tune (not her exact words!)
Brian McClair claims he brought the Stone Roses sound to Manchester United
Gary Neville claims he chose ‘This Is The One’ to succeed at Old Trafford as captain
Man United teamed up with Mancunian band to launch new training kit collection
‘I chose the Roses man!’
Regardless of how it happened, the song from the debut album became firmly linked to Man United and led to the fashionable union between them and the Stone Roses, incorporating the same dark green, white and yellow colors of the artwork.
In the short promotional film called ‘Roses are Red’, Old Trafford stadium announcer Alan Keegan said: ‘When it became known that Gary Neville was going to be captain, I looked into what he would like as a soundtrack at Old Trafford. ?’
Neville said they wanted to get away from the Rocky sound, which was from Philadelphia, to something much closer to home.
Speaking of ‘This is the one’, Neville told the Man United website: “When the coach made me captain and I knew I would lead the team, I wanted a new song.
‘I wanted us to come out with a Manchester song. I loved ‘This Is the One’. I felt like Old Trafford was where it all happened and I had heard enough about Oasis over the years. Manchester has a better band than Oasis. The Stone Roses had a huge impact on the city.
‘The song has stood the test of time, but United helps keep it alive every week. When I’m up there on the TV porch and John Squire’s guitar starts playing, that moment still gives me goosebumps.
“If you’re a United fan and you hear that song, you know it’s time for the game to start.”
Neville was chosen Man United captain when Roy Keane left in 2005, many years after McClair stopped playing for the Red Devils.
Current first team players Marcus Rashford, Alejandro Garnacho and Scott McTominay took part in a photo shoot to showcase the new Stone Roses themed collection.
McClair was one of Sir Alex Ferguson’s first signings at Manchester United in 1987, and played at Old Trafford for 11 years, scoring 127 goals during his time there and winning 15 trophies, including four Premier League titles.
McClair was one of Sir Alex Ferguson’s first signings at Manchester United back in 1987.
The Stone Roses track has become part of the matchday experience at Old Trafford
Marcus Rashford and Alejandro Garnacho were among the stars promoting the new collection.
‘Choccy’ – as McClair is known for its resemblance to the eclair – created the podcast Life with Brian during the pandemic.
In an interview with Mail Sport last year, he said he was always happy to interact with fans, if they recognized him.
In an interview published last year by FourFourTwo magazine, McClair said he was given a tape of early Oasis songs before their worldwide fame, and that Noel Gallagher was “quite partial to a penguin” and coffee while he worked washing the star car
Man United return to action when they visit Aston Villa on Sunday afternoon, after back-to-back wins against Wolves and West Ham.