Congo River and "Congo" is the preferred English name in 19th-century literature, although references to "Zahir" or "Zaire" as the name used by the inhabitants remained common. The Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Republic of the Congo are named after it, as was the previous Republic of the Congo which had gained independence in 1960 from the Belgian Congo. The Republic of Zaire during 1971–1997 was also named after the river, after its name in French and Portuguese. The Congo's drainage basin covers , an area larger than India. The Congo's discharge at its mouth ranges from , with an
1971–72 Manchester United F.C. season 1971–72 Manchester United F.C. season The 1971–72 season was Manchester United's 70th season in the Football League, and their 27th consecutive season in the top division of English football. In a pre-season competition United participated in the Watney Cup, which was contested by the teams that had scored the most goals in each of the four divisions of the Football League the previous season who had not been promoted or admitted to one of the European competitions. Before the beginning of the season, on 8 June 1971, Frank O'Farrell was appointed as United manager, more than five months after Wilf