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Published: 19 November
2002
ALEX FERGUSON
by John Ryan
In late 2000 Alex Ferguson announced that he would retire from the position
of Manager of Manchester United at the end of the 2001-2002 season. The
decision at the time made perfect sense as Ferguson approached his 60th
birthday, wanted to spend time with his family and had done so much to
make Manchester United the great club it is today. But now 2 years on
from the announcement, United lie 5th in the Premiership, have question
marks over their results and last season finished outside the top 2 in
England for the very first time in 10 years. Alex Ferguson last season
announced he would stay on as Manchester United Manager for 3 more years.
What implications does this at this point have for Manchester United and
when Alex Ferguson does leave the Manager's post, just how will he be
remembered?
Alex Ferguson began being noticed by officials of English Clubs in the
early 1980's after his success in Scotland with Aberdeen. With Celtic
& Rangers domination proceedings, he smashed open their powersharing deal
and set Aberdeen on the road to glory. As Manager of Aberdeen he brought
them League Success in 1980, 84 & 85 including "The Double" in 1984, and
beating the mighty Real Madrid in the 1983 Cup Winners Cup final. Ferguson
took the job of Manager of Manchester United on November 6th 1986. Bryan
Robson was quick to point out Ferguson's approach in comparison to United's
previous manager, Ron Atkinson. "Ron would throw his arm around you and
come out for a drink with the players. Alex tends to bully you to see
how tough you are, what your response is". Although Ferguson had a lot
of sorting out to do in bringing Manchester United back to the top of
English football, United were still capable of beating Liverpool, the
dominant team of that era. With his first visit to Anfield, he managed
to lead United out of there with a 1-0 win and it wasn't until his 5th
game V's Liverpool as United manager that United were beaten. This though
might have been more symtomatic of United of that era, as despite failing
to produce anything of note in the Title race in the early 80's, the previous
manager had won 5 & drawn 7 of his 15 games V Liverpool. Ferguson though
did throw down the gauntlet to Liverpool & stated that for United to become
England's top team, Liverpool would have to be displaced. Ferguson's mandate
was to make United Champions of England.
What Alex Ferguson's Manchester United have achieved is known to almost
every fan of English football and beyond. From the time Ferguson landed
his first trophy, The FA Cup in 1990 until his biggest prize of all, The
European Cup in 1999, he had amassed 5 English titles, 4 FA Cups, The
League Cup, Cup winners cup and then the Champions League. Yet a lot of
his success is attributed to fear & motivation he instills in his players.
Almost every player past & present to play for Manchester United have
received what Gary Pallister (United 1989-98) described as "The Hairdryer
teatment". This is where Fergie would stand toe to toe with a player &
scream abuse in the players face, almost like a hairdryer drying the players
hair. Ferguson was also famed for throwing tea cups about the dressing
room at half time during games, using foul language to get his message
across and in general being a no-nonsense manager. Others might criticise
his methods, few will argue with his results.
In the modern game there is a belief that Alex Ferguson lacks tactical
awareness, relying totally on fear, motivation & man-management. With
United enjoying a trophyless season in 2002 the word seems to be that
the expensive foreign signings are not receptive to Fergie's bouts of
anger. Some claim that Ferguson has failed in Europe because playing against
top players his tactics are exposed. But although Ferguson's record in
the Champions League might be called to question simply because Manchester
United have won the competition only once under Ferguson in 8 attempts,
it would be wholly unfair to say he lacks tactical acumen. In European
Competition Ferguson has won the Champions Cup, 2 European Cup Winners
Cups and 2 European Super Cups. In a career so far in which he has competed
in Europe 14 times, he has won 3 major trophies. In 8 Old Trafford efforts
at the Champions League he has reached the quarter finals at least on
6 & the semi finals on 3 occasions. With Manchester United he has defeated
Barcelona, Bayern Munich, Juventus, Fiorentina, Valencia, Montepellier,
Internazionale, and numerous other clubs. These wins are hardly the work
of a manager relying totally on fear or man management to get him through
a cup tie. In fact it is his days at Aberdeen where he should get most
credit, as with a side who are not known for European conquests, he managed
to beat Bayern Munich & Real Madrid to win the European Cup winners Cup.
The following is a reference, which appears on the AberdeenFC website,
describing Fergouson's reaction to going 1-2 behind at Pittodrie to Bayern
in the CWC quarter final, a game Aberdeen had to win: Ferguson did not
panic. He Made 2 changes bringing on John McMaster and John Hewitt.".
Both players had a hand in the goals which gave Aberdeen a 3-2 win & sent
them on their way to glory. In truth, few managers in the game can say
they've won a European trophy with a club of the size of Aberdeen.
Possibly Ferguson being a man who is passionate to the core about Machester
United is the reason people outside Old Trafford question the tactical
mind of the Manager. Comparing him to Arsene Wenger & Gerard Houllier,
Ferguson is easy the most likely of the 3 to get hot under the collar
during a game. Does that mean they are more relaxed, even more intelligent
Managers than him? That is entirely a matter of opinion, but Ferguson
is the one with all of the silverware tucked away in his cabinet. Even
when the media speak about "mind games" and how Arsene Wenger wound Ferguson
up to win the title, it is a complete myth. Wenger did infuriate Ferguson
in 1997 when Ferguson called for an extension to the season but got no
support from the Arsenal Manager. The Myth is highlighted as United were
still crowned champions that season, while Arsenal won the title the year
after. Added to that, Wenger had to endure 3 seasons in Ferguson's shadow
before Arsenal's 2002 double and saw his 1998 double overshadowed by the
1999 Treble. In truth, is there a manager in England who can say he has
truly out-foxed Ferguson in terms of trophies or success?
Where critics of Ferguson can claim a victory is in his European battles
with coaches of the ilk of Marcello Lippi and Ottmar Hittzfeld. Against
Lippi, Ferguson's United have played Juventus 6 times with Ferguson winning
2 drawing 1 & losing 3 of the battles. In the champions League group stages
of the 1996/97 & 97/98 competitions United played Juventus 4 times, winning
1 & losing 3 of those encounters. The 3-2 win in Oct 1997 was a high point
in european terms, but the reality of the situation was that Juventus
advanced to the final in both years. A semi final and quarter final was
the best United could manage. Despite that one of Ferguson & United's
greatest results was the 3-2 win in Turin in the 1999 CL semi final second
leg. At 2-0 down Ferguson did something similar to all those years previous
at Aberdeen when playing Bayern - he didn't panic, had belief in his team
& won 3-2. That belief, one of his greatest assets stood to United that
season & brought the club the glory it craved. Against Hittzfeld, Ferguson's
record is less impressive. Hittzfeld, as coach of Borussia & Bayern has
pitted his wits against Fergie on 9 times in the past 6 seasons. The results
speak for themselves. Ferguson 1 Hittzfeld 4, 4 draws.Indeed were it not
for the CL final win of 1999 Fergie's record V's Hittzfeld would be abysmal.
Are these the facts the Ferguson critics thrive on? Possibly, but if this
is the only armour Fergie's critics can display to knock his tactics then
it is clear proof that United's floor in recent years has been Liverpool
& Arsenal's ceiling. While Fergie has pitted his wits against the 2 aformentioned
giants of the management world, Houllier & Wenger have had to deal with
coaches & teams of lesser standing. I think Alex Ferguson relishes the
greater challenge always & wants to be the best. To him, that means beating
the best.
By his own admission, Ferguson appreciates loyalty. As a player he felt
Glasgow Rangers did not show him loyalty & he turned his back on them.
Having read his autobiography, he has given severe talkings to players
like Mark hughes, Roy Keane & Eric Cantona in the past, yet has rarely
if ever criticised them in public. In 1994 when Manchester United beat
Sheffield United in the third round of the FA Cup at Bramall Lane, Mark
Hughes was dismissed for a foul on one of the Sheffield players. Ferguson
refused to criticise Hughes in the after match interviews yet after watching
the video of the game, he privately berated Mark Hughes for "almost dislodging
the players' testicles". Ferguson has done the same with Cantona & Keane,
but all 3 players obviously appreciated his loyalty to play under him
for so long. On the field too, Ferguson shows loyalty to his players.
Andy Cole, after a difficult first full season at Manchester United was
never shunned away in the reserve teams. Brian McClair when reaching the
end of his playing days, was not asked to leave by Ferguson, instead kept
as a seasoned professional on the bench ready to be called upon. The fact
McClair was advising the younger players on their contracts with Manchester
United was also a huge help to Ferguson. The mutual loyalty Ferguson enjoys
with his players is a rich recipe for success. However there is also a
limit to this as Jim Leighton found out after the drawn FA Cup final in
1990. When tough decisions have to be made, Ferguson is rarely found wanting.
Jaap Stam will testify to this too.
In the transfer market, Ferguson is often criticised too with the criticism
levelled at him that he is not as astute in the buying & selling of players
as Houllier, Wenger, & other managers at lesser clubs. Comparing him with
Wenger, the Arsenal manager definitely has done some fantastic business
for Arsenal with deals like Patrick Vieira & Nicholas Anelka (the latter
making Arsenal almost 20 million STG in profit). Houllier too has made
some decent purchases, in players like Sammi Hyppia, Stephane Henchoz
& Dietmar Hamann. Possibly, the difference though is that Ferguson has
no fear of buying a player. Others may see that as just United being a
rich club being able to fearlessly spend to buy top players, but let's
not forget that for players who have not been a huge success like Neill
Webb, Massimo Taibi and Diego Forlan thus far, Ferguson with the aid of
his staff have nurtured the likes of Giggs, Scholes, Gary Neville, David
Beckham, John O'Shea, Nicky Butt & Wes Brown. How much would these players
make in today's transfer market? It would certainly cast a long shadow
over the 20M Wenger raised in the sale of Anelka. Comparing Ferguson to
Houllier, Houllier's successful purchases have all so far been defensive
players. Ferguson has managed to land players like Ruud Van Nistelrooy,
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, Sheringham, Kanchelskis and of course, possibly
the greatest signing of all, Eric Cantona. While the 2 French Managers
seem reluctant to pay top dollar for the biggest names in World football
Ferguson has no such reservations. In the seasons leading up to the Arsenal
double of 1998 Wenger bought players like Christopher Wreh, Luis Boa Morte,
Alex Manniger & Gilles Grimandi. To his credit, Wenger landed domestic
success with these players. In the summer of 1998 Ferguson spent 28 million
on Blomqvist, Stam & Yorke. Manchester United won the treble the following
May. Therefore criticism of Ferguson in the transfer market seems a tad
harsh, given the successful youth structure put in place & unparalled
success achieved since 1990.
And now, Fergie is almost 6 months through the extended 3 years of his
contract. His desire to win seems to be as bright as ever and passion
for the game has not diminished. Manchester United's last trophy was in
May 2001. United had secured the title 4 games from the end of that season
but lost 3 of the last 4. In the 2001/2002 season, United lost 9 Premiership
games, a feat not achieved since 1990-91. Many pundits put the loss of
form down to Ferguson announcing his departure early. Theories were laid
down that the players at Old Trafford no longer feared Ferguson & the
will to win at Old Trafford was gone. If this is the reason behind Manchester
United's trophyless season in 2002, does it not reflect more on the players
than on Ferguson, his tactics or his methods? And now, half way through
November 2002 Manchester United have lost 3 games in the Premiership.
Manchester City were United's last conquerors, added to defeats against
Leeds United, Bolton Wanderers, Zalaegerszegi & Maccabi Haifa this season.
It seems that the era of Fergie being able to rest players and still get
big results is gone. Yet if Alex Ferguson brings the European Cup back
to Old Trafford this season, will he then be the greatest British Manager
of all time? There is certainly enough evidence to suggest he already
is that and it was a lucky day for Manchester United, that first November
day he walked into Old Trafford. I doubt any other Manager in the world
would have done the job Alex Ferguson has. He will be remembered as a
legend.
John Ryan
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