Summary of sir alex ferguson autobiography
Alex Ferguson
Scottish football manager (born )
For other people named Alex Ferguson, see Alex Ferguson (disambiguation).
Sir Alexander Chapman Ferguson (born 31 December ) is a Scottish former football manager and player, best known for managing Manchester United from to He is widely regarded as one of the greatest managers of all time and has won more trophies (49) than any other manager in the history of football.[5] Ferguson is often credited for valuing youth during his time with Manchester United, particularly in the s with the "Class of '92", who contributed to making the club one of the richest and most successful in the world.[6]
Ferguson played as a forward for several Scottish clubs, including Dunfermline Athletic and Rangers.
Summary of sir alex ferguson autobiography pdf Archived from the original on 3 February Johnston Publishing. Defeat by Leeds United in September was the team's first league loss in seven months; Keane during the match injured himself and was subsequently ruled out for the rest of the season with ligament damage. Ferguson McLean H.While playing for Dunfermline, he was the top goalscorer in the Scottish league in the –66 season. Towards the end of his playing career he also worked as a coach, then started his managerial career with East Stirlingshire and St Mirren. Ferguson then enjoyed a highly successful period as manager of Aberdeen, winning three Scottish league championships, four Scottish Cups and both the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup and the UEFA Super Cup in He briefly managed Scotland following the death of Jock Stein, taking the team to the World Cup.
Ferguson was appointed manager of Manchester United in November During his 26 years with Manchester United he won 38 trophies, including 13 Premier League titles, five FA Cups, and two UEFA Champions League titles. He was knighted in the Queen's Birthday Honours list for his services to the game.[7] Ferguson is the longest-serving manager of Manchester United, having overtaken Sir Matt Busby's record on 19 December He retired from management at the end of the –13 season, having won the Premier League in his final season.
Early life
Alexander Chapman Ferguson[8] was born at his grandmother's home on Shieldhall Road in the Govan district of Glasgow on 31 December , the son of Elizabeth (née Hardie) and Alexander Beaton Ferguson. His father was a plater's helper in the shipbuilding industry.[9] He grew up in a tenement at Govan Road, which has since been demolished, where he lived with his parents and his younger brother Martin, who also became a footballer.[10] He attended Broomloan Road Primary School and later Govan High School.[11] He began his football career with Harmony Row Boys Club in Govan,[12][13] before progressing to Drumchapel Amateurs, a youth club with a strong reputation for producing senior footballers.[14] He also took an apprenticeship as a toolmaker at a factory in Hillington, being appointed a union shop steward.[12]
Playing career
Club
Ferguson's playing career began as an amateur with Queen's Park, where he made his debut as a striker, aged [15] He described his first match as a "nightmare",[16] but scored Queen's Park's goal in a 2–1 defeat against Stranraer.
Perhaps his most notable game for Queen's Park was the 7–1 defeat away to Queen of the South on Boxing Day when ex-England international Ivor Broadis scored four of the Queen of the South goals. Ferguson was the solitary Queen's Park goalscorer.[17]
Despite scoring 20 goals in his 31 games for Queen's Park, he could not command a regular place in the side and moved to St Johnstone in Ferguson was on a part-time contract with St Johnstone, and he combined working in a Govan shipyard with training at night in Perth.[18] Although he regularly scored goals for St Johnstone, he was unable to command a consistent place in their team.
He regularly requested transfers, and even considered emigrating to Canada.[19] St Johnstone's failure to sign another forward led the manager to select Ferguson for a match against Rangers, in which he scored a hat-trick in a surprise 3–2 victory at Ibrox.[19][20]
Dunfermline signed him the following summer (), and Ferguson became a full-time professional footballer.
In the following season (–65) Dunfermline were strong challengers for the Scottish league title and reached the Scottish Cup Final, but Ferguson was dropped for the final after a poor performance in a league game against St Johnstone. Dunfermline lost the final 3–2 to Celtic, then failed to win the League by one point. The –66 season saw Ferguson notch up 45 goals in 51 games for Dunfermline.
Along with Joe McBride of Celtic, he was the top goalscorer in the Scottish league with 31 goals.[21]
Ferguson then joined Rangers for £65,, which was a record fee for a transfer between two Scottish clubs.[22] He performed well in Europe during his two seasons with the club, scoring six goals in nine appearances in the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup including two against Köln in the –68 competition, and an important strike against Athletic Bilbao in the –69 edition which helped Rangers into the semi-finals,[23] but on both occasions they were knocked out by English opposition.
He was blamed for a goal conceded in the Scottish Cup Final,[24] in a match in which he was designated to mark Celtic captain, Billy McNeill, and was subsequently forced to play for the club's junior side instead of for the first team.[25] According to his brother, Ferguson was so upset by the experience that he threw his losers' medal away.[26]
There have been claims that he suffered discrimination at Rangers due to his marriage to a Catholic, Cathy Holding.[27] Ferguson said in a documentary film about his life and career (Sir Alex Ferguson: Never Give In) that he "assumed" that his exclusion from the first team after the cup final was due to her religion.[18] His autobiography noted that Rangers had known of his wife's religion when he joined the club.[28] In March , he added that when he was signed, a Rangers director had questioned whether the Fergusons had been married in a (Catholic) chapel, and that the director had replied "oh, that's okay" when told they had married in a registry office.[29] Ferguson left Rangers reluctantly, as he had grown up locally and had dreamed of succeeding there.[30] He was upset by how newspapers would refer to him as an "ex-Rangers player" after he had left, and rarely attended gatherings of their former players.[30]
The following October, Nottingham Forest wanted to sign Ferguson,[31] but his wife was not keen on moving to England at that time, so he went to Falkirk instead.
He remained at Brockville for four years, gaining more league appearances than he had elsewhere; in recognition of his experience he was promoted to player-coach, but when John Prentice became manager he removed Ferguson's coaching responsibilities. Ferguson's time at Falkirk was soured by this, and he responded by requesting a transfer and moved to Ayr United, where he finished his playing career in [32]
International
Ferguson's only involvement with the Scotland national team was during an overseas tour in For many years none of the tour matches were recognised by the Scottish Football Association as full internationals, and so Ferguson was deemed to have never played for Scotland.
A BBC Sport article in June identified him as one of the best Scottish players to have never played a full international.[22] The SFA announced in October that some of the tour matches would be reclassified as full internationals, which meant that Ferguson was belatedly awarded an international cap.[3]
Managerial career
East Stirlingshire
In June , Ferguson was appointed manager of East Stirlingshire, at the comparatively young age of It was a part-time job that paid £40 per week, and the club did not have a single goalkeeper at the time.[33] He gained a reputation as a disciplinarian, with club forward Bobby McCulley later saying he had "never been afraid of anyone before but Ferguson was a frightening bastard from the start."[34]
St Mirren
In October , Ferguson was invited to manage St Mirren.
While they were below East Stirlingshire in the league, they were a bigger club and although Ferguson felt a degree of loyalty towards East Stirlingshire, he decided to join St Mirren after taking advice from Jock Stein.[35]
Ferguson was manager of St Mirren from until , producing a remarkable transformation of a team in the lower half of the old Second Division watched by crowds of just over 1,, to First Division champions in , discovering talent like Billy Stark, Tony Fitzpatrick, Lex Richardson, Frank McGarvey, Bobby Reid and Peter Weir while playing superb attacking football.[36] The average age of the league winning team was 19 and the captain, Fitzpatrick, was [37]
St Mirren have the distinction of being the only club ever to sack Ferguson.
He claimed wrongful dismissal against the club at an industrial tribunal but lost and was given no leave to appeal. According to a Sunday Herald article on 30 May , the official version is that Ferguson was sacked for various breaches of contract, including unauthorised payments to players.[36] He was counter-accused of intimidating behaviour towards his office secretary because he wanted players to get some expenses tax free.
He did not speak to her for six weeks, confiscated her keys and communicated only through a year-old assistant. The tribunal concluded that Ferguson was "particularly petty" and "immature".[38] It was claimed during the tribunal by St Mirren chairman, Willie Todd, that Ferguson had "no managerial ability".[39]
In , The Guardian published an interview with Todd (then aged 87), who had sacked Ferguson many years earlier.
Todd said that the fundamental reason for the dismissal was a breach of contract relating to Ferguson having agreed to join Aberdeen. Ferguson told journalist Jim Rodger of the Daily Mirror that he had asked at least one member of the squad to go to Aberdeen with him. He told the St Mirren staff he was leaving. Todd expressed regret over what happened but blamed Aberdeen for not approaching his club to discuss compensation.[40]
In , Ferguson turned down the manager's job at Aberdeen.
The role went to Billy McNeill, who returned to Celtic after only a year, leaving the role available for Ferguson once again.[41]
Aberdeen
Late s
Ferguson joined Aberdeen as manager in June , replacing Billy McNeill who had only managed the club for one season before he was offered the chance to manage Celtic.
Although Aberdeen were one of Scotland's major clubs they had won the league only once, in under Dave Halliday. The team had been playing well, however, and had not lost a league match since the previous December, having finished second in the league the previous season.[42] Ferguson had now been a manager for four years, but was still not much older than some of the players and had trouble winning the respect of some of the older ones such as Joe Harper.[43] The season did not go especially well, with Aberdeen reaching the semi-final of the Scottish Cup and the Scottish League Cup Final, but losing both matches and finishing fourth in the league.
Aberdeen lost the –80 Scottish League Cup Final, this time to Dundee United after a replay. Ferguson took the blame for the defeat, saying he should have made changes to the team for the replay.[44]
s and silverware
Aberdeen had started the –80 season poorly but their form improved dramatically in the new year and they won the Scottish league that season with a 5–0 win on the final day.
It was the first time in 15 years that the league had not been won by either Rangers or Celtic. Ferguson now felt that he had the respect of his players, later saying: "That was the achievement which united us. I finally had the players believing in me".[45]
He was still a strict disciplinarian, though, and his players nicknamed him "Furious Fergie".[46] He fined one of his players, John Hewitt, for overtaking him on a public road,[47] and kicked a tea urn at the players at half time after a poor first half.[48] He was dissatisfied with the atmosphere at Aberdeen matches, and deliberately created a "siege mentality" by accusing the Scottish media of being biased towards the Glasgow clubs, to motivate the team.[49] The team continued their success with a Scottish Cup win in Ferguson was offered the manager's job at Wolverhampton Wanderers but turned it down as he felt that Wolves were in trouble[50] and his "ambitions at Aberdeen were not even half fulfilled".[51]
European success and Scottish national side
Ferguson led Aberdeen to even greater success the following season, – They had qualified for the European Cup Winners' Cup as a result of winning the Scottish Cup the previous season, and impressively knocked out Bayern Munich,[52][53] who had beaten Tottenham Hotspur 4–1 in the previous round.[54][55] According to Willie Miller, this gave them the confidence to believe that they could go on to win the competition,[56] which they did, with a 2–1 victory over Real Madrid in the final on 11 May [57] Aberdeen became only the third Scottish team to win a European trophy and Ferguson now felt that "he'd done something worthwhile with his life".[58] This was followed up with victory in the European Super Cup in December , when Hamburger SV, the reigning European Cup champions, were beaten 2–0 over two legs.[59][60] Aberdeen had also performed well in the league that season, and retained the Scottish Cup with a 1–0 victory over Rangers,[61] but Ferguson was not happy with his team's play in that match and upset the players by describing theirs as a "disgraceful performance" in a televised interview after the match, a statement he later retracted.[62]
After a sub-standard start to the –84 season, Aberdeen's form improved and the team won the Scottish league and retained the Scottish Cup.
Ferguson was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the New Year Honours,[63][64] and was offered the managers' jobs at Rangers and Arsenal during the season.[65][66][67] Aberdeen retained their league title in the –85 season.
In –86, Aberdeen won both domestic cups, but finished fourth in the league. Ferguson had been appointed to the club's board of directors early in , but that April he told Dick Donald, their chairman, that he intended to leave that summer.[citation needed]
Ferguson had been part of the coaching staff for the Scottish national side during qualifying for the World Cup, but manager Jock Stein had collapsed and died on 10 September – at the end of the game in which Scotland qualified from their group for a play-off against Australia.
Ferguson promptly agreed to take charge of the Scottish national side against the Australians and subsequently at the World Cup. To allow him to fulfil his international duties he appointed Archie Knox as his co-manager at Aberdeen. However, after Scotland failed to progress past the group stages of the World Cup, Ferguson stepped down as national team manager on 15 June [68]
Around this time, Tottenham Hotspur offered Ferguson the chance to take over from Peter Shreeves as manager, but he rejected this offer and the job went to Luton Town's David Pleat instead.
There was also an offer for Ferguson to replace Don Howe as Arsenal manager, but he rejected this offer as well, and fellow Scot George Graham took the post instead.[69] That summer, there had been speculation that he would take over from Ron Atkinson at Manchester United, who had slumped to fourth in the English top flight after a ten-match winning start.[23]
It was not the first time that Ferguson had been linked with a move to England.
In February , Wolverhampton Wanderers had approached him about succeeding John Barnwell as manager as they were heading for relegation from the First Division.[70] He rejected this offer, perhaps concerned about the club's financial stability, as they were more than £2&#;million in debt at the time and narrowly avoided going out of business.
At the end of the –85 season, it was reported that Ferguson was being considered for the Liverpool manager's job after the retirement of Joe Fagan was announced, but the job was quickly accepted by Liverpool striker Kenny Dalglish.[71]
Although Ferguson remained at Aberdeen over the summer, he did eventually join Manchester United when Atkinson was sacked in November [72]
Manchester United
Appointment and first FA Cup title
Ferguson was appointed manager at Old Trafford on 6 November [73] He was initially worried that many of the players, such as Norman Whiteside, Paul McGrath and Bryan Robson were drinking too much and was "depressed" by their level of fitness, but he managed to increase the players' discipline and United climbed up the table to finish the season in 11th place, having been 21st (second from bottom) when he took over.[74]
His first game in charge was a 2–0 defeat at Oxford United on 8 November, followed seven days later by a goalless draw at newly promoted Norwich City, and then his first win (1–0 at home to Queens Park Rangers) on 22 November.[75] Results steadily improved as the season went on, and by the time they recorded what would be their only away win of the league campaign at title challengers and rivals Liverpool on Boxing Day, it was clear that United were on the road to recovery.[76] The year began on a high note with a 4–1 victory over Newcastle United and United gradually pulled together in the second half of the season, with relatively occasional defeats on the way, and finished 11th in the final table.
Ferguson's mother Elizabeth died of lung cancer, aged 64, three weeks after his appointment.
Ferguson hired Archie Knox, his assistant at Aberdeen, in the same role at Manchester United in [76]
In the –88 season, Ferguson made several major signings, including Steve Bruce, Viv Anderson and Brian McClair.[77][78][79] The new players made a positive contribution to a United team who finished in second place, nine points behind Liverpool.
Liverpool's points lead, however, had been in double digits for most of the season and while United had lost only five league games all season, they drew 12 games, leaving some way to go before United could match their northwestern rivals.[citation needed]
During the season, United played two friendly matches in Bermuda against the Bermuda national team and the Somerset Cricket Club.[80] In the match against Somerset, both Ferguson himself and his assistant Archie Knox took to the field, with Knox even getting on the scoresheet.
The match was Ferguson's only appearance for the Manchester United first team.[80]
United were expected to do well when Mark Hughes returned to the club two years after leaving for Barcelona, alongside Jim Leighton from Aberdeen; but the –89 season was a disappointment for them, finishing 11th in the league and losing 1–0 at home to Nottingham Forest in the FA Cup sixth round.[81] They had begun the season slowly, going on a nine-match winless run throughout October and November (with one defeat and eight draws) before a run of generally good results took them to third place and the fringes of the title challenge by mid February.
However, another run of disappointing results in the final quarter of the season saw them fall down to mid-table.[82]
For the –90 season, Ferguson further boosted his squad by paying large sums of money for midfielders Neil Webb, Mike Phelan, and Paul Ince, as well as defender Gary Pallister and winger Danny Wallace.[83][84] The season began well with a 4–1 win over defending champions Arsenal on the opening day, but United's league form quickly turned sour.
In September, United suffered a humiliating 5–1 away defeat against fierce rivalsManchester City. Following this and an early season run of six defeats and two draws in eight games, a banner declaring, "Three years of excuses and it's still crap&#; ta-ra Fergie." was displayed at Old Trafford, and many journalists and supporters called for Ferguson to be sacked.[85][86] Ferguson later described December as "the darkest period [he had] ever suffered in the game", as United ended the decade just outside the relegation zone.[87][88]
Following a run of seven games without a win, Manchester United were drawn away to Nottingham Forest in the third round of the FA Cup.
Forest were performing well that season and were in the process of winning the League Cup for the second season running,[89] and it was expected that United would lose the match and Ferguson would consequently be sacked, but United won the game 1–0 due to a Mark Robins goal and eventually reached the final. This cup win is often cited as the match that saved Ferguson's Old Trafford career.[89][90][91] United went on to win the FA Cup, beating Crystal Palace 1–0 in the final replay after a 3–3 draw in the first match, giving Ferguson his first major trophy as Manchester United manager.
United's defensive frailties in the first match were blamed on goalkeeper Jim Leighton. Ferguson dropped Leighton for the replay, bringing in Les Sealey.
United's European firsts and Ferguson's seconds
Although United's league form improved greatly in –91, they were still inconsistent and finished sixth.
There were some excellent performances that season, including a 6–2 demolition of Arsenal at Highbury, but results like an early 2–1 loss at newly promoted Sunderland, a 4–0 September hammering by Liverpool at Anfield, and a 2–0 home defeat by Everton in early March (the game where year-old talented prospect Ryan Giggs made his senior debut) showed that United still had some way to go.[92][93]
Even after the FA Cup victory in the previous season, some still had doubts about Ferguson's ability to succeed where all the other managers since Matt Busby had failed&#;– to win the league title.[91] They were runners-up in the League Cup, losing 1–0 to Sheffield Wednesday.
However, they won the European Cup Winners' Cup, beating that season's Spanish champions Barcelona 2–1. It would be United's only Cup Winners' Cup title.[94] After the match, Ferguson vowed that United would win the league the following season, and at long last he seemed to have won over the last of his sceptics after nearly five years in the job.[95]
During the close season, Ferguson's assistant Archie Knox departed to Rangers to become assistant to Walter Smith, and Ferguson promoted youth team coach Brian Kidd to the role of assistant manager in Knox's place.[96] He also made two major signings – goalkeeper Peter Schmeichel and defender Paul Parker – to bolster his side.[97][98] There was much anticipation about the breakthrough of the young Ryan Giggs, who had played twice and scored once in the –91 campaign, and the earlier emergence of another impressive young winger in the shape of Lee Sharpe, who despite their youth had made Ferguson feel able to resist plunging into the transfer market and buying a new player to take over from the disappointing Danny Wallace on the left wing.
He had also added Soviet midfielder Andrei Kanchelskis to the right wing, giving him a more attacking alternative to older midfielders Mike Phelan and Bryan Robson.[6][7][99]
The –92 season did not live up to Ferguson's expectations and, in Ferguson's words, "many in the media felt that [his] mistakes had contributed to the misery".[] United won the League Cup and European Super Cup;[] both for the first time, but lost out on the league title to rivals Leeds United after leading the table for much of the season.
A shortage of goals and being held to draws by teams they had been expected to beat in the second half of the campaign had proved to be the undoing of a United side who had performed so well in the first half of the season. Ferguson felt that his failure to secure the signing of Mick Harford from Luton Town had cost United the league, and that he needed "an extra dimension" to the team if they were to win the league the following season.[]
During the close season, Ferguson went on the hunt for a new striker.
He first attempted to sign Alan Shearer from Southampton, but lost out to Blackburn Rovers.[] He also made at least one approach for the Sheffield Wednesday striker David Hirst, but manager Trevor Francis rejected all offers and the player stayed put. In the end, he paid £1&#;million for year-old Cambridge United striker Dion Dublin – his only major signing of the summer.[]
After a slow start to the –93 season by sitting 10th at the beginning of November, it looked as though United would miss out on the league title yet again.
However, after the purchase of French striker Eric Cantona from Leeds for £&#;million, the future of Manchester United, and Ferguson's position as manager, began to look bright.[] Cantona formed a strong partnership with Mark Hughes. On 10 April , United were second in the league when they faced Sheffield Wednesday at home.
United were losing with four minutes to go before Steve Bruce equalised. After seven minutes of injury time – which was subsequently dubbed "Fergie Time", alluding to extra minutes allegedly being granted to Ferguson's teams to get a goal – Bruce scored the 97th-minute winner, with Ferguson celebrating the goal by running from his dugout on to the touch line, while assistant Brian Kidd ran on to the field.[] Seen as being a decisive victory, it put United top of the league, where they remained.
Winning the title ended United's year wait for a league title, and also made them the first Premier League champions. United finished with a ten-point margin over runners-up Aston Villa, whose 1–0 defeat at Oldham Athletic on 2 May had given United the title. Ferguson was later voted Manager of the Year by the League Managers' Association.[]
– Double win and loss
The –94 season brought more success.
Ferguson added Nottingham Forest's year-old midfielder Roy Keane to the ranks for a British record fee of £&#;million as a long term replacement for Bryan Robson, who was nearing the end of his career.[] United led the –94 Premier League table virtually from start to finish.[] Ferguson was the first winner of the Premier League Manager of the Month award, introduced for the start of the –94 season, when he collected the accolade for August [] Cantona was top scorer with 25 goals in all competitions despite being sent off twice in the space of five days in March United also reached the League Cup final but lost 3–1 to Aston Villa, managed by Ferguson's predecessor, Ron Atkinson.
In the FA Cup final, Manchester United achieved an impressive 4–0 scoreline against Chelsea, winning Ferguson his second League and Cup Double, following his Scottish Premier Division and Scottish Cup titles with Aberdeen in –85, though the League Cup final defeat meant that he had not yet achieved a repeat of the treble that he had achieved with Aberdeen in [][][]
Ferguson made only one close-season signing, paying Blackburn £&#;million for David May.[] There were newspaper reports that Ferguson was also going to sign highly rated year-old striker Chris Sutton from Norwich City, but the player headed for Blackburn instead.[8]–95 was a harder season for Ferguson.
Cantona assaulted a Crystal Palace supporter in a game at Selhurst Park, and it seemed likely he would leave English football. An eight-month ban saw Cantona miss the final four months of the season. He also received a day prison sentence for the offence but the sentence was quashed on appeal and replaced by a hour community service order.[] United paid a British record fee of £7&#;million for Newcastle United's prolific striker Andy Cole, with young winger Keith Gillespie heading to the north-east in exchange.[] The season also saw the breakthrough of young players Gary Neville, Nicky Butt and Paul Scholes, who provided excellent cover for the long periods that United were left without some of their more experienced stars.
However, the championship slipped out of Manchester United's grasp as they drew 1–1 with West Ham United on the final day of the season, when a win would have given them a third successive league title. United also lost the FA Cup final in a 1–0 defeat by Everton.[][]
–98
Ferguson was heavily criticised in the summer of when three of United's star players were allowed to leave and replacements were not bought.
First Paul Ince moved to Internazionale of Italy for £&#;million, long-serving striker Mark Hughes was sold to Chelsea in a £&#;million deal, and Andrei Kanchelskis was sold to Everton.[][][] Ferguson felt that United had a number of young players who were ready to play in the first team.
The youngsters, who would be known as "Fergie's Fledglings", included Gary Neville, Phil Neville, David Beckham, Paul Scholes and Nicky Butt, who would all go on to be important members of the team.[9][10] And so the –96 season began without a major signing, at a time when the likes of Arsenal, Liverpool and Newcastle were making the headlines with big-money signings.[citation needed][]
A youthful United team lost 3–1 in their opening league game of the –96 season, against Aston Villa.[] On Match of the Day, pundit Alan Hansen criticised their performance, ending his analysis with the words, "You can't win anything with kids."[] United won their next five matches and were boosted by the return of Cantona, who made his comeback against Liverpool in October For much of the season, the team trailed league leaders Newcastle and found themselves ten points behind by Christmas; this later was narrowed to seven points after defeating them on 27 December [] The gap increased to 12 points, but a series of wins, coupled with Newcastle dropping points, meant by late March, United moved to the top of the table.
In a televised outburst after his team's win against Leeds, Newcastle manager Kevin Keegan responded angrily to Ferguson's comments: "We're still fighting for this title, and he's got to go to Middlesbrough I would love it if we beat them, love it."[] A win against Middlesbrough on the final day sealed the title for United and the team beat Liverpool by a goal to nil to win the FA Cup Final; this was their second double in three years.
A week after the cup final, Ferguson agreed a four-year contract to remain at United.[][]
United started the following season thrashing the previous year's league runners-up Newcastle in the Charity Shield.[] They went on to win their fourth league title in five seasons at the end of the –97 campaign, made easier by the fact that their rivals were "not up to the job".[] Under Ferguson, the team made a better go in the Champions League and reached the semi-final stage for the first time in 28 years.[] United did not advance any further, after defeat by Borussia Dortmund of Germany.[] Norwegian signings Ole Gunnar Solskjær and Ronny Johnsen were the notable additions to the squad, with the former ending the season as the club's top goalscorer.
In May , Cantona informed Ferguson of his decision to retire from football.[] The player "felt exploited by United's merchandising department" and questioned the ambition of the club, reasons which Ferguson understood.[] Striker Teddy Sheringham was signed as Cantona's replacement from Tottenham Hotspur, with Blackburn defender Henning Berg the other significant purchase that summer.[][] In the close season, United appointed Keane as their new captain.
Ferguson described him as "the best all-round player in the game" after the team's FA Charity Shield win and believed Keane had "all the right ingredients" to succeed from Cantona.[]
Defeat by Leeds United in September was the team's first league loss in seven months; Keane during the match injured himself and was subsequently ruled out for the rest of the season with ligament damage.[] Goalkeeper Peter Schmeichel was placed as captain in his absence.
By November, United opened up a four-point lead in the league, which prompted talk of whether any team could catch them.[] After Arsenal's defeat of United in the same month, Ferguson acknowledged a one-horse race was "not good for the game" and admitted his opponents "&#;deserved to win on their second-half performance".[] The fallibilities of Liverpool, Chelsea and Blackburn as league challengers allowed United during the winter to extend their lead by 11 points, albeit with Arsenal having games-in-hand.[] This was enough for Manchester bookmaker Fred Done to pay out on punters who backed the champions retaining their title.[]
Arsenal collected maximum points, sealing the title with a win against Everton on 3 May [] Ferguson congratulated his opponent Arsène Wenger, who in his first full season at the club, later completed the double: "I think it's good for my young players to lose on this occasion.
I wholeheartedly acknowledge what Arsenal achieved between Christmas and the end of the season."[] United straight after paid £&#;million for PSV defender Jaap Stam, a new club record fee.[] Ferguson wanted to strengthen the squad's attacking options and identified Aston Villa's Dwight Yorke as his main target.[] Attempts to sign Yorke were rebuffed at first, before Ferguson persuaded Edwards to increase United's initial offer of £10&#;million.[] A £&#;million deal was reached a week into the league campaign; Yorke signed minutes before the deadline to submit United's squad for the Champions League.[]
– Treble success
United opened the –99 season with a 3–0 loss to Arsenal in the FA Charity Shield.[] The beating did not concern Ferguson, though he described his team's defeat by Arsenal in September as "a lot less tolerable".
In December , Kidd left his role as assistant to become the manager of Blackburn Rovers. Ferguson instructed Eric Harrison and Les Kershaw to find suitable replacements, "in terms of coaching ability and work ethic." Both recommended Steve McClaren, the assistant to Jim Smith at Derby County. McClaren was Ferguson's initial choice and appointed him in February His first game as assistant was United's 8–1 victory over Nottingham Forest.[]
Ferguson felt United's bid to regain the Premier League began indifferently because of their commitments to other competitions.
He was willing to "pay for the progress" made in the Champions League; the team finished second in their Champions League "group of death", behind Bayern Munich and ahead of Barcelona. United's win against Liverpool in the FA Cup fourth round was a portent for the remainder of the season. A goal down after three minutes, the team equalised in the 86th minute and scored the winning goal through Solskjær in stoppage time.[] On reflection, Ferguson said it was "a demonstration of the morale that was to be every bit as vital as rich skill in the five months that lay ahead of United".[]
In the final weeks of the league season, Arsenal emerged as a creditable challenger to United.
Both clubs were also paired together in the semi-final of the FA Cup, decided by a replay as the original game finished goalless.[11] Keane was sent off in the second half and United conceded a penalty late into the match with the score 1–1. Dennis Bergkamp's effort was saved by Peter Schmeichel.[] Ferguson hoped his team "could at least take it to a penalty shoot-out", but instead the match was settled in extra time: Giggs ran the length of the pitch and evaded several Arsenal players to score the winning goal.[] United went on to beat Newcastle United in the FA Cup final and completed the double – a week earlier the team had regained the Premiership title.[]
United's progression in the Champions League was promising compared to previous seasons.
The team eliminated Inter Milan at the quarter-final stage and faced Juventus in the last four of the competition.[11] A late goal scored by Giggs in the first leg earned the team a 1–1 draw, but in spite of conceding an away goal, Ferguson was adamant of United's chances of reaching the final: "&#;something tells me we are going to win.
The nature of our club is that we torture ourselves so much that the only way to get relief is by winning over there."[] At the Stadio delle Alpi, striker Filippo Inzaghi scored twice to put Juventus 3–1 up on aggregate.[] Keane headed in a Beckham cross to halve the deficit just before half-time, but was later shown a yellow card for a foul on Edgar Davids, which prevented him from playing in the final.[] Yorke equalised, before Cole added a third to win the match outright.[] Keane's performance merited praise from Ferguson:
It was the most emphatic display of selflessness I have seen on a football field.
Pounding over every blade of grass, competing if he would rather die of exhaustion than lose, he inspired all around him. I felt it was an honour to be associated with such a player.[]
Days after the FA Cup final, United travelled to Barcelona, the setting for the UEFA Champions League final. Ferguson contemplated his team selection against Bayern Munich; suspensions to Scholes and Keane ruled both players out of the match.[] Beckham was positioned in centre midfield, while Giggs moved to the right wing and Blomqvist started on the left – changes the manager felt would prevent the opposition from playing narrow.[] United conceded in the first six minutes of the final, from a Mario Basler's free kick.
Sheringham, who came on for Blomqvist, equalised from a corner in the first minute of additional time.
My Autobiography - Critical summary review - Alex Ferguson: Ferguson told journalist Jim Rodger of the Daily Mirror that he had asked at least one member of the squad to go to Aberdeen with him. Evening Express. I finally had the players believing in me". He was sure he had reached the pinnacle of his career and he was not getting any younger.
McClaren told Ferguson to get the team organised for extra time, to which he replied, "Steve, this game isn't finished."[] Three minutes into added time, Solskjær scored the winner, which for United completed an unprecedented treble. Ferguson, interviewed moments after, said, "I can't believe it.
Football, bloody hell. But they never gave in and that's what won it."[17] He and Schmeichel, the stand-in captain, jointly lifted the cup during the trophy presentation.[]
A crowd of over , people[14] turned out on the streets of Manchester to greet the players, who paraded through the city in an open-top bus.[] As European champions, United were invited to play in the Intercontinental Cup.
The club also entered the inaugural Club World Championship, which was held in Brazil. This brought about a potential fixture congestion so United accepted the FA's recommendation of withdrawing from the FA Cup, the first holders to do so.[] In later years, Ferguson elaborated on the club's decision: "We did it to help England's World Cup bid.
That was the political situation. I regretted it because we got nothing but stick and terrible criticism for not being in the FA Cup when really, it wasn't our fault."[]
– Title hat-trick, retirement plan
Schmeichel's decision to leave United after eight seasons prompted Ferguson to bring in replacements: Mark Bosnich from Aston Villa and Italian Massimo Taibi.
The latter featured in four matches, the last of which a 5–0 defeat at Chelsea in October ; he was not selected again by Ferguson. United ended the – league season as champions, with just three defeats and a record points margin of [] In December , the club beat Palmeiras in Tokyo to win the Intercontinental Cup,[] but a month later exited at the group stage of the inaugural Club World Championship,[][] although Ferguson stated the tournament was "fantastic".[] United failed to retain the Champions League, as they lost in the quarter-final stage to eventual winners Real Madrid.[][] Ferguson sought to strengthen his squad and signed Fabien Barthez from Monaco for £&#;million.[] He also monitored the progress of Ruud van Nistelrooy, "a striker of the highest calibre".[] He met the player and his agent in Manchester to discuss formalities and was informed of Van Nistelrooy's troubled right knee.[] Ferguson was not agitated by this; he recalled from experience a similar niggle that did not stop his playing career.[] Van Nistelrooy, however, failed his medical, but Ferguson reassured him that "we might yet find a way out of the nightmare".[] The deal was resurrected in April for a British record transfer fee of £19&#;million.[]
In the –01 season, United retained the league title for a third season, becoming only the fourth side in history to do so.
Sir alex ferguson And he proudly says in his book:. I finally had the players believing in me". United also lost the FA Cup final in a 1—0 defeat by Everton. An eight-month ban saw Cantona miss the final four months of the season.The achievement was overshadowed by reports of a rift between the club's board and Ferguson.[] He told the club's television channel MUTV that he was prepared to sever all ties with the club, once his contract ended the following year: "The decision has been taken. I'm going to leave the club. I'm disappointed with what has happened because I was hoping something would be sorted out.
It hasn't happened as I thought it would and that's all there is to it."[] Both parties eventually reached a compromise which pleased Ferguson: "I am delighted we've settled this. When you have been at the club as long as I have it gets in your blood."[] Age was one of the factors in Ferguson's decision to retire: reaching 60 acted as a "psychological barrier It changed my sense of my own fitness, my health."[]
In May , McClaren left to become Middlesbrough manager,[] with Jimmy Ryan being named assistant to Ferguson for the duration of the campaign.[] United once more broke their transfer record with the purchase of Juan Sebastián Verón from Lazio for a reported £&#;million.[] In August , Stam was transferred to Lazio for £16&#;million.[] The player reportedly moved because of claims in his autobiography Head to Head; Stam implied that Ferguson illegally contacted him about a move to Manchester United, before informing PSV.[] Ferguson said he sold the player because the club needed to cut back on its "massive wage bill".[] He replaced the defender with Laurent Blanc, a long sought-after target.[] In an interview with Alastair Campbell eight years after, Ferguson described his biggest mistake at the club was "letting go of Jaap Stam.
No question".[]
The club endured a poor first half to the season and languished in ninth position after a home defeat by West Ham in December [] On the night of Christmas Day, Ferguson shelved his retirement plan.[citation needed] His family convinced him to remain in charge of United and Ferguson informed Watkins of his u-turn the following day.[citation needed]
Once Ferguson publicised his decision to remain in February ,[] United's form improved.
The team won 13 out of 15 matches, though finished third in the league behind Arsenal and Liverpool. United were unsuccessful in Europe, losing their Champions League semi-final on away goals to Bayer Leverkusen.[] Early exits from the League Cup and FA Cup meant they ended the season trophyless. Ferguson himself said that the decision to announce his retirement had resulted in a negative effect on the players and on his ability to impose discipline.[]
– Rebuilding and transition
In June , Ferguson appointed Carlos Queiroz as his new assistant.[] The recommendation came from Andy Roxburgh, at a time when United began scouting for southern-hemisphere footballers and wanted a multilingual coach.
Ferguson was so impressed with Queiroz after their first meeting, he offered him the job "right away".
Sir alex ferguson biography We have had plenty of stuttering starts. In , Ferguson was named in a list of the biggest private financial donors to the Labour Party. Autobiography by Morrissey. Ferguson's playing career began as an amateur with Queen's Park , where he made his debut as a striker , agedIn July , United paid £ million for Leeds United defender Rio Ferdinand. The club broke the British transfer record once more, though this did not concern Ferguson: "We have the right to try and improve ourselves and there's nothing wrong with that."[]
The –03 season began rather poorly for United; the club made their worst start to a league campaign in 13 years.[] In a column for The Daily Telegraph, Hansen said Ferguson "will recognise this difficult start to the season for what it is: the greatest challenge of his career".[] Ferguson's response was typically bullish:
I don't get paid to panic.
We have had plenty of stuttering starts. My greatest challenge is not what's happening at the moment. My greatest challenge was knocking Liverpool right off their fucking perch. And you can print that.[]
Several players were sent away for surgery in this period, a "minor gamble" Ferguson took in the hope they would return energised.[20] Defeats, such as the one to Manchester City at Maine Road in November , forced United to change their playing style.
The team "moved the ball forward more and quicker rather than concentrating on possession ratios," and the coaching staff tried accommodating Diego Forlán with Ruud van Nistelrooy, before settling with Paul Scholes. United's league form improved as the season went on despite defeat by Liverpool in the Football League Cup Final and they overhauled Arsenal to win the Premier League for an eighth time in May [] The team were eliminated in the Champions League quarter-final to Real Madrid over two legs; Ferguson described the second match, a 4–3 win at Old Trafford as "epic".[citation needed]
After a season at United, Queiroz left to manage Real Madrid in June [] Ferguson anticipated his deputy would return – "Three months later, he was wanting to quit Madrid," and for that reason did not appoint a replacement.
In the summer, David Beckham also moved to Real Madrid, while Juan Sebastián Verón joined Chelsea.[27][] United in the meantime rebuilt their team: Tim Howard replaced Barthez in goal and Kléberson, Eric Djemba-Djemba and Cristiano Ronaldo came in to bolster the squad.[][][]Ronaldinho might have also joined "had he not said yes, then no, to our offer".[]
In December , Rio Ferdinand was banned from playing football for eight months after he failed to present himself at a drugs test.[] Ferguson in his autobiography ten years later blamed the drug testers, who "didn't do their job.
They didn't go looking for Rio". The absence of Ferdinand hampered United's defence of the Premier League in the –04 season; the team finished third behind Arsenal's "Invincibles" and Chelsea. In Europe, they experienced defeat at the hands of eventual winners Porto. Ferguson felt it was possible "not because of the performance of the players but because of the referee", who disallowed a legitimate Scholes goal that would have been enough to progress.
Summary of sir alex ferguson autobiography They had qualified for the European Cup Winners' Cup as a result of winning the Scottish Cup the previous season, and impressively knocked out Bayern Munich , [ 52 ] [ 53 ] who had beaten Tottenham Hotspur 4—1 in the previous round. United won the game 3—2 thanks to another hat-trick from Van Persie. Manchester Metropolitan University. Ferguson had been part of the coaching staff for the Scottish national side during qualifying for the World Cup , but manager Jock Stein had collapsed and died on 10 September — at the end of the game in which Scotland qualified from their group for a play-off against Australia.United ended the campaign as FA Cup winners, beating Millwall 3–0 in the final.[]
At the beginning of the –05 season, teenage striker Wayne Rooney (the world's most expensive teenager at more than £20&#;million) and Argentine defender Gabriel Heinze joined United while Cristiano Ronaldo continued where he had left off the previous season by putting in more match-winning performances.[] But the lack of a striker after Ruud van Nistelrooy spent most of the season injured saw the club finish third for the third time in four seasons.
In the –05 FA Cup, they lost on penalties to Arsenal in the final. A second-round exit from the Champions League at the hands of Milan and a semi-final exit from the League Cup at the hands of eventual winners Chelsea (who also clinched the Premier League title) meant that –05 was a rare instance of a trophyless season for United. During the season, Ferguson managed his 1,th game in charge of United in a 2–1 home win against Lyon.[][]
Ferguson's preparations for the –06 season were disrupted by a high-profile dispute with major shareholder John Magnier