"On the Road - a journey through a season" was published in June 2010 and originally appeared as a blog on ESPN Soccernet. It is a week by week tale of the ups and downs of following the mighty Manchester United on their trips around the footballing landscape of Europe. Daniel gave up his season ticket in protest at the increasing influence of the Glazer family at Old Trafford and the knock-on effect on the average fan.
I think the fact that Daniel only watches United live away from home gives us a greater insight into the true United fan. Not the oblivious sycophants who parade on the Old Trafford forecourt on match days resplendent in their green and gold scarves but wearing the Aon first team shirt and certainly not the day trippers who prefer to capture every kick with a snap of the camera on their mobile.
This is the story of a true United supporter in the 2009/10 season as the author makes his way from Burnley to Sunderland as the Reds fight for the league title and from Besiktas to Munich as the quest for the Champions League ultimately ends in failure.
What shines through on page after page is the cutting wit and humour in the text coupled with sharp analysis of the games and where the team are lacking. A constant theme running through is the disgust at the Glazer family's actions and the level of debt they are piling onto the once sound foundations of our historic club.
Do not just take my word for it, plenty of others have heaped praise on Daniel's work:
"A stylish, swaggering view from the stands, with not a prawn sandwich in sight. Every modern football writer should write like this." Rob Smyth, The Guardian
"Daniel Harris has repeatedly shown he is an authority on all things Manchester United. Classic tales, superbly presented. Informed, funny and always close to the heart." Daniel Taylor, The Guardian.
"At last, a Nineties fashion revival one can welcome - the fan's eye season review, and one that puts a premium on leftfield intelligence to boot." Richard Kurt, United author.
"Daniel Harris could well become the new United author for his generation. His pieces will provoke and animate, as all such reviews should, and though you may agree or disagree with his comment, you will want to read more of what he has to say. Because just like United themselves, Harris has that great ability to never be dull." Red News.
"This is the voice of the true fan, passionate yet reassuringly fair-minded." Patrick Barclay, Chief Football Correspondent, The Times.
If you are a Manchester United fan, then it is an essential read and you can purchase it here from Amazon and any leading book store.
Daniel kindly took the time to answer some questions:
1) Briefly describe your United supporting history?
My grandad started going to United in the 30s, and passed it on to my dad, who grew up in Cheetham Hill. He moved to London for university, but there was never any danger I'd suppowt mye lowcoowl tame. My dad always regretted not taking me to the 83 Cup Final (I was four, and not compensated by the rosette that was brought home for me), and when he sneaked off to the 1-5 with Watford prior to the 85 Cup Final, and I still moaned afterwards that he'd not taken me, he promised to take me soon after. So my first game was a 2-0 win at home to West Ham at the start of the next season, sitting on a bench at the back of the Stretford End. After that, I got London aways and a few OT trips a season, visiting my gran or a mate, and the occasional skiving of school, until I was old enough to decide what I got up to in my own time, at which point I became a regular.
I've been lucky to see lots of incredible things, but the most significant was Eric jumping into the crowd at Selhurst Park. A perfect encapsulation of Redness and United, which also taught me something.
3) What has been your worst moment as a United fan present at a match?
In a way, I find that significant defeats give me some kind of closure - I certainly felt that when we lost at home to Arsenal in 2002 - though had I been at Anfield in 92, perhaps I'd feel differently, and similarly, I couldn't get a ticket for West Ham in 95. I remember a 0-4 at Spurs in 1987, just before the Cup Final, which as an 8 year-old, was very hard to take - it was an absolute degrading, and a stark indication of how far from good we were.
4) Tell us a bit about how "On the Road - a journey through a season" came about?
I write stuff for a job, and had done a few pieces for Soccernet. My boss there asked me to do a weekly piece, and suggested it be about following United around, which sounded ok to me. I certainly never got bored of saying to my girlfriend right, I'm off to work in Istanbul/Munich/Wigan, see you in a couple of days.
The gobshites I spent my time with, mainly - we spent a lot of time taking the piss out of each other and each other's families as savagely as we could, and competing to develop the best routines describing our tedious derring-do. And when we got bored of that, we'd move onto other people around, whether teachers, those in the public eye, or just those who happened to be nearby. In terms of actual things that are meant to be comedic, the usual kind of thing I suppose - Blackadder, Fawlty Towers, Monty Python, Simpsons, Viz, The Beano, The Blues Brothers - and then once I was a bit older, as many things as I could get my hands on, but the thing that stands out as inspirational in terms of becoming a writer was Pulp Fiction.
6) Your disgust at the Glazer regime is apparent throughout the book, how do you see the next few years of their club ownership turning out?
They'll have to sell or go bust at some point, when the principal on the debt needs repaying, but until then, more of the same. Ever-increasing ticket prices, and under-investment in the playing staff.
7) Once the club is out of the Americans hands, do you envisage returning to Old Trafford and is it something you miss?
It's hard to say, really. If United became - legally, at least - the property of some high net-worth individual, it wouldn't be that much better than where we are now in some ways, but on the basis that the future of the club would no longer be imperilled, I'd think very hard about going back. It might depend on the ticket prices, though.
8) The new season is fast approaching. What are your thoughts ahead of the big kick off?
I'm trying to look forward to it, but the summer contains everything that's bad about football with none of what's good, so it's hard not to detest it all with filthy resentment. Once the games start, though, it'll be diluted with the usual obsession.
9) I believe that your novel is next on the list to be published. Can you tell us what that is about and any other future plans?
Well, I've just submitted what's hopefully a final final draft - though I've said that before - and then, hopefully, a publisher will pick it up. In the meantime, I've started another one, and am finishing off a proposal for another sport book.
A huge thanks to Daniel for taking the time to answer my questions. You can follow him on Twitter by clicking the button below.
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