Review: Class of '92 (2013)

“Beckham… into Sheringham… and Solskjaer has won it!”

Clive Tyldesley’s infamous words stir up elation or misery depending on which side of the football allegiance fence you fall. It was a ‘where were you’ moment for all football fans who watched on as Manchester United sealed an historic treble in the most dramatic of fashions.

But what of the players? What went through David Beckham’s mind as he crossed the ball for fate to deal its hand?

Seen through the eyes of Fergie’s Fledgelings – a band of brothers composed of Gary and Phil Neville, Nicky Butt, David Beckham, Paul Scholes and the evergreen Ryan Giggs – Class of ’92 sees the group take an after-dinner trip down memory lane.

Featuring interviews with ‘Le King’, former Prime Minister Tony Blair and Stone Roses’s Mani the feature charts their roller coaster ascent from United’s youth ranks, through their break into the club first-team and up the Camp Nou steps to lift European football’s biggest prize.

Along the way, the feature details the formation of the nucleus of that team – their 1992 FA Youth Cup victory – revisiting their controversial initiation practises and the casualties of that team whose careers never reached the dizzy heights of the film’s stars.

Sweeping through the culmination of a glorious nineties revival this docu-film charts Manchester establishing itself as England’s capital outside of the capital on and off the pitch against a nostalgic soundtrack of the city’s Oasis and Stone Roses.

Basking in glorious simplicity, directors Ben and Gabe Turner allow a rarely seen intimate glimpse of the players so adored by their fans, stripping away the media personas to reveal what is very simply a group of six down-to-earth friends who made a career out of playing the beautiful game.

Star of the show is midfield maestro Scholes, opening up in front of the camera to reveal himself as the joker of the group despite his notoriously interview-shy reputation.

Humorous in parts, moving in others, Class of ’92 is a delight for every Manchester United fan, and a begrudging must-see for anyone with an affinity to football – especially of the Mancunian variety, Class of ’92 hits the top corner with more finesse than Mr Beckham’s right foot.