Musician Georgia: 'My love for United keeps growing'

We lived in a flat and didn't really have much, certainly no garden. That meant that when it came to playing outside, I’d head to the local park where there would always be a football around. 

 

I used to get stuck in with all the boys. I remember there was a kid who was best friends with Joe Cole at the time – it felt like there was a big football culture around Edgware Road. 

 

All of the kids in the area supported different London teams, Arsenal, Tottenham, Chelsea, West Ham, and for a time I didn’t really have a side to follow. I got scouted by QPR at the age of 10, so for a while pondered supporting them, but never really found a club to call home. 

 

I wasn’t particularly fussed by school; I just wanted to get out in the playground and play football.

We were quite close to Regent’s Park. Every Saturday and Sunday there’d be league games there, and we would sit on the sideline just watching and learning. My childhood was completely dominated by football.

 

My mum’s side are a mix of Spurs and Bournemouth fans, but my dad was always a huge United fan. 

 

He was a big fan of sports generally and would constantly have United on the telly. I would sit down with him and soak up United of the late 90s/2000s. My love for the club started there. 

 

I followed the Treble campaign with him and started to learn more about Sir Alex and the club’s history. 

 

I remember us going through an emotional journey at that time. I suddenly understood how powerful football was and how sentimental it can be, especially in a family unit. But becoming a United fan while living in London meant I took a lot of stick! A lot of my mates were Arsenal fans and were in disbelief that I could be a Red.

I was particularly in love with Paul Scholes. 

 

When I say in love though… I just loved the way he played football. It was like watching one of the Spanish players you see in the Premier League now; he had this flow and vision about him which seemed so modern. 

 

I had posters of Scholes on my wall. When you're young, you just get obsessed with that one player, don’t you?! Scholes was mine. I wasn’t a huge fan of his tackling though! 

 

Leave that to Keane.

I’m set to visit Old Trafford for the first time this season with a mate. I’ve only stood outside it, next to the Fergie statue, so this is very exciting for me. All the Man United I’ve seen over the years has been on the TV. 

 

The final of the Champions League really stands out, even after all these years. When Solskjaer came on and scored, that was such a pivotal moment for the club, and a pivotal memory for me. Alongside this, what stands out to me are those first appearances [Cristiano] Ronaldo made for the club. It seemed like there was this new mould of player that Fergie was developing in the camp; a feeling that this new 18-year-old kid had something, that he could be a new-star sensation. 

 

Those early Ronaldo appearances really felt like witnessing history in the making. Mind you, there were always special players on the pitch: Rooney scoring that screamer against Arsenal, Van Nistelrooy moments, those Cantona goals.

Despite trickier times of late, my love for the club just keeps growing. 

 

Going through tough times and watching the journey, and seeing us come out the other side with more optimism, is all a part of the fun. I see a future now and a vision.

For years, I think it was like ‘What is the Man United vision?’, but now [Erik] ten Hag has arrived, there is real optimism. It might not be perfect yet, but there is a light at the end of the tunnel. He feels like the catalyst that can push us on to the next phase of becoming a successful team. 

 

Ten Hag has already seriously strengthened our midfield with Casemiro and Mount, and I feel good heading into the 2023/24 season. I think we can get top four, despite serious competition from the likes of Newcastle and Arsenal. I guess you never know with football, but we have a foundation now and something to keep building on.

In terms of my music, it’s been hard work! And like Man United, I still have a lot of work to do! 

 

But I think I have this survival mentality and work ethic that was instilled in me from my football days and being immersed in the sport. That has helped me achieve some of my goals already. 

 

The kind of vigorous training I used to go through in my QPR days means I know what it takes in the music industry - it spurs me on.