Mark Twain once said "Never let the truth get in the way of a good story" and Denis Law relegating Manchester United in 1974 was far too good a story to get bogged down in inconvenient truths.
Law was a legend at Old Trafford.
Signed from Torino for a then British-record fee of £115,000 ($143,000) in 1962, Law spent 11 years at United, scoring 237 goals in 404 appearances – only Bobby Charlton and Wayne Rooney have netted more times for the club.
He played alongside Charlton, as well as iconic winger George Best, and the trio formed what became known as the 'Holy Trinity'.
A statue of them stands outside Old Trafford today, with Law immortalised celebrating in customary fashion: right arm raised in the air, fingers clutching the sleeve of his shirt.
And yet Law's most famous goal is one scored against United.
The Scotland international had left Old Trafford at the end of the 1972-73 season, having scored just one goal in 11 outings in the First Division as injuries began to take their toll on one of the game's most prolific centre-forwards.
United allowed the former Ballon d'Or winner to join Manchester City, with whom he had previously spent two years before joining Torino in 1961.
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The fans held no grudge against Law for joining their bitter rivals.
When he returned to Old Trafford with City on April 27, 1974, he was given a reception befitting a player who had won two league titles and a European Cup during his time at United.
The supporters were even more desperate than usual to see their side beat their neighbours.
United sat second from bottom in the 22-team First Division table. With just two games remaining, they needed to both beat City and hope that 19th-placed Birmingham were beaten by Norwich City.
Just under 57,000 people turned up for one of the most important Manchester derbies in history – and bore witness to one of the most iconic goals of all time.
With just eight minutes to go and the game still scoreless, Law ingeniously backheeled a pass from Franny Lee into the United net.
It was classic Law: an instinctive, precise finish. Yet he couldn't bring himself to raise his arm in the air in customary fashion. Rather than being elated, he looked visibly stunned.
“I just felt depressed, and that wasn’t like me," he later admitted to the Daily Mail.
"After 19 years of trying my hardest to score goals, here was one that I almost wished hadn’t actually gone in. I was inconsolable. I didn’t want it to happen."
Law felt as if he had relegated United. And that's how the story has so often been told.
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In reality, though, his goal was irrelevant. Even if United had won, it wouldn't have saved them from relegation as Birmingham beat Norwich to ensure their survival.
That was of no consolation to Law, though, particularly as the final goal of his illustrious career at the highest level became the most famous of his career.
Indeed, in 2012, he was asked how long did the pain of netting against United last?
"How long ago was the game? There is your answer," he said.
"The subject always crops up. It’s one of those things. It’s always there and I am always remembered for it.
"That's a shame."
And also grossly unfair, given the goal was utterly inconsequential.
But facts really don't have any place in such a fantastic story.