If you need to understand football's passion that makes it the global game, creating more drama in 24 hours than a lifetime of Ian Fleming, examine the ramifications from two Premiership games within 24 hours this week. Fulham's pulsating draw with United and Liverpool's surrender to City.

Fulham drew all the positives from Sunday's encounter at the Cottage. The team spirit was tremendous, and but for a major aberration on the part of the officials, the Whites could easily have been celebrating their 3rd straight home win in this fixture. Last season Ferguson made much of the injury-depleted squad he had to field in December's 3-0 defeat. Admittedly for this game Rooney was absent with a bug, but he was on a 13 game goaless streak coming into the weekend.

A trawl of fans forums and United blogs reveals a rain of abuse falling upon the likes of O' Shea, Evans, Berbatov, Park, Nani and Valencia. Even this early in the season I sense an over-reliance on veterans Scholes and Giggs to somehow pull things around. With the age of megabucks transfers (a la Tevez) seemingly behind them, what does the future hold for Man U?

Make no bones about it. They remain a major force and a global brand, but with the debt servicing level last week climbing to a new high (who else spotted the story?) I sense the Glazers empire is slowly sinking into the Old Trafford foundations. After Sunday, I know which side of the fence I'd rather be cheering from.

So to Monday and City's demolition of Liverpool. Here in the space of 24 hours we had three contenders for the tag of 'England's Big 4' in action. With glaring deficiences all over the pitch moneybags City tore Liverpool apart and Roy may soon be reminded of life's maxim, 'Be careful what you wish for.' As I write his new team are flying to Turkey without Torres (rested) and Gerrard (injured). While Roy rode the rainbow with Fulham all the way last season, here his Liverpool side could be exiting the Europa League at just the 2nd hurdle.

So is Mark Hughes sitting smugly behind his desk this week optimistically plotting to bury Blackpool at the weekend? (a side coming off a 6-0 thrashing). You bet he's not. Want to know why managers, players, club CEO's are all in the supertax bracket? Stand still in football and you're a dead man. Before next week's transfer window slams shut, Hughes knows every minute will see him sweating on finalising more deals while fighting with every sinew to hang on to his current roster of talent.

Hot money, double dealing, blatant lying, beautiful women, mysterious foreigners, ruthless agents, hostile crowds and a relentless, baying press pack on your heels...James Bond wouldn't have lasted five minutes. That's football - and that's why we're hooked...