On December 31st, 2011 Sir Alex will turn 70 years of age. And age where most people are retired to the garden or to the television set in between bridge games and cups of tea and biscuits. But for Sir Alex Ferguson there is no such mundane program planned for him--or is there. At 68 he is coming ever so close to that dreaded D-Day that most of us have stuck our heads in the sand over and surrendered to denial. But it is coming friends, whether Fergie wants it or not, he isn't getting older and this job is getting more and more demanding by the year for him. Thank God he loves it so or he would have retired back in 2001, when he originally promised he would.
Now United is going through a serious crisis period with the instability and blatant extortion of it's owners, the Glazer's, and it's evident decline on the pitch as the club looks to be getting much older amongst it's starting squad and too young, inexperienced and lacking in true skill with it's youth brigade. The club has kind of lost it's 20 somethings of great players who are just at the right age to contribute their very best. Sure we have Rooney, Fletcher, Nani and a few others, but clearly, this club has counted on the old guard for far too long. And part of that old guard is indeed the manager himself, Sir Alex.
The time is coming for a radical change and redirection of the club's fortunes both in ownership as well as leadership of the team. There is little doubt that the vast majority of United supporters are demanding the sale of the club in order to be rid of the Glazer's. But would such a move also mean the end of Sir Alex's reign of the team, which began back in 1986? Well here's me going out on a critical limb saying I CERTAINLY HOPE SO.
The time has come. It's time for Fergie to step down as manager of United and allow another talented man who is experienced, confident and capable of leading this team for another generation. Fergie's time has run it's course. This season may have been one of his greatest managerial feats, yet it's also one of his worst. OK, I know, I'm confusing you all, but bare with me for a bit.
Fergie has done magic tricks with this current club because in my opinion, this club is very ordinary and actually, rather dull, but he managed to keep them in the Premier League race as well as the hunt for the Champions League despite losing one of the world's two best players in Cristiano Ronaldo. Without Ronaldo as well as the well forgotten Carlos Tevez we have managed to survive and although we have lost more games this season than in the past two combined, we still managed to be in contention for two major trophies and won the less coveted Carling Cup.
United have far from collapsed without Ronaldo but the fact is that there is something drastically wrong with the club and although we just came off a fairly decent season in regards to points in the standings, this season has been a year of tolerance, poor performances and boring football for long periods of time that were occasionally interrupted by a few great performances here and there. No, this is not the United I have supported for almost 35 years. This is a ship that is slowly but surely showing cracks in the foundation and is steadfast heading towards a massive iceberg. Do I need to paint the obvious analogy?
Manchester United is at a crossroads. For twenty years we have dominated and basically reigned as Kings of English football as well as being a major player in Europe as well. We are the most popular team in the world and were one of the wealthiest. Based on the money we make, we are either the top or second from the top team in earnings but we are also the top when it comes to debt. If that isn't a ying & yang effect, I don't know what is.
Through this financial turmoil brought on by the Glazer Clownship, Fergie has steered the ship on a steady course. We had won three EPL titles in a row, a Champions League title, a FA Cup back in 2005, three League Cups including two in a row and have also won the adoration and respect of millions around the world for the way we carried ourselves and for the brand of football we played. And "played" is the operative word here.
We "played" wonderful football for two decades under Fergie, but starting last season, the champagne football stopped flowing on a regular basis. Quite often what flowed was stale ale instead. Fergie dismissed the United mantra which was always 4-4-2 and an attacking fast paced brand of football. Instead he started to institute a system based on his education by Italian giants like AC Milan and Juventus and decided that caution and defensive ball possession was the sure fire way to success. After all, it seemed to have worked for Italian teams for decades.
Gone was the attacking style and in was the defense possession style that depended on opponent mistakes, late game fatigue and a counter attack in order to score goals. Personally, I had grown very concerned and in fact very upset with the way this club was playing. The problem of course was trying to convince the masses that there was something wrong. After all, we were still winning games and silverware. My question to all of them of course was for how long?
Fast forward to last years debacle in Rome as United got soundly beaten and humiliated by a far superior and infinitely more entertaining Barcelona side. It took that game for many to finally join along with my chorus of boos and start questioning the manager about what was going on. But we all felt the problem would be solved in the off-season with some major player purchases. Instead we were witness to a horror show. Instead of spending big and buying the players we needed, we instead allowed the best player in the world at the time Ronaldo to be sold to Real Madrid for 80 million pounds. What was this treachery? How could we allow a player who was under contract to dictate the terms of his sale and to then not get a penny of that money put back towards team building make to make up for the loss?
Then soon after Ronaldo's departure, we are stunned by the war between Fergie and Carlos Tevez. A war that Tevez was never going to win but what ended up hurting us greatly if one considers Tevez' contribution this season for Manchester City. And who replaced Ronaldo and Tevez in our lineups? Was it a combination of players like Karim Benzema, David Villa or Sergio Aguero? How about some midfielder's like Wesley Sneijder or Yoann Gourcuff or Felipe Melo? Or were we finally going to go after some great speedy wingers like Angel Di Maria, Franck Ribery, Milos Krasic or David Silva. And lets not forget that our keeper was soon to turn 40 and so going after a Manuel Neuer, Rene Adler, Hugo Lloris or Igor Akinfeev should be something taken very seriously. What players were we going to buy?
The answer of course was none of the above. Instead we dug deep into the bargain basement and over spent on a very decent player in Luis Antonio Valencia, scraped the bottom of the barrel with Michael Owen on a freebie and then spent money on a real mystery, left winger who has no left foot, no crossing ability and who has the first touch of an ox and the finishing skill of Anderson. I am referring to none other than Gabriel Obertan. And before I end there, lets not forget the shrewd purchases (I'm being sarcastic) that will change the world as we know it. The purchase of Mame Biraf Diouf from those Norwegian giants Molde and Mexican teenage phenom Javier Hernandez was quite the coup. Future stiffs if you ask me.
Simply put, we went to the local Goodwill store and bought second hand goods, and not very impressive ones at that. Valencia has been good if not overly spectacular, Owen has had a few moments of greatness but time on the bench didn't do him any favors nor did getting injured yet again do us any either. As for our three kids Obertan, Hernandez and Diouf, the jury is still out on them and from what I have seen, the names Djemba Djemba, Tosic, Tiabi and Kleberson come to mind. Yet more roster failures based on poor scouting and the inability to spend money in a wiser and more dramatic manner.
This all leads me to the belief that this team has a very precarious road ahead of it and that radical change is needed ASAP. Let us not forget that we have been dethroned in England and also embarrassed by Bayern Munich in Europe. The club is at an low not felt since 1990 and I do not see things getting better.
Many of us have been in denial or just waiting with optimistic breathlessness for Fergie to prove people like myself wrong and to open up the checkbook this summer for a good old fashioned spending spree. Our deficiencies have been determined and we know where we have to improve, but alas, Fergie does not get it. As of June 22ndth of 2010, he has gone on record with a statement that says the following;
“No wholesale buying is needed, as we have a very good squad that just needs tweaking here and there,”
“We have some ideas at the moment but not many players will be joining the club. But in any case, I feel the transfer market prices have been terribly inflated over the last year.”
“Looking at potential squad additions is an ongoing process – it's not just confined to a certain time of year – although we obviously don't reveal our plans.”
Depressing news indeed, and a sure fire indication that the club is not only broke due to the extortion and theft of the Glazer family but that Sir Alex Ferguson is either a dirty faced liar protecting his bosses or the most stubborn and idiotic of fools to think his team only needs “some tweaking”. Some tweaking? Is he serious or is he just having a laugh? This club is in need of a major overhaul, not some fiddling around in Southern France wearing his baseball cap backwards and using his phone to chat it up with local wine merchants. Is this going to be the second straight year that we have to scrounge in the garbage bin for a player or two that nobody else wants. I guess by tweaking he means Joe Cole. Well from where I stand that's not good enough.
This club needs at least three or four big name players to rejuvenate it and to once again bring it up to where it belongs, amongst the top 2 teams in all of Europe and indeed the world. But most of all, this team needs a change of ownership and soon after that, the club needs a change of Manager, coaching staff and scouts, basically a complete regime change. The present old school and old boys network that has done the job for over two decades has run out of ideas and mojo. It's time for a change. But no change in manger is worth the effort or trouble unless there is a change of ownership. The Glazer's must go before Fergie's successor is found. And who be that successor?
This long rant has finally gotten to the part that it's heading was alluding to. Who is the right heir to Fergie's throne? One thing we can all agree on is that it must be a very special individual who cannot only manage, but motivate, lead and judge talent as well as balance the pressures of winning all the time with the pressure to entertain and stay within a realistic budget. A man who has the character and ego to take on the most unenviable job in all of football. That of replacing the legend Sir Alex Ferguson. Even Fergie himself never had to be the actual successor to Sir Matt Busby. Instead, he took over a team in shambles that was being run by a true muppet known as Big Ron Atkinson and a series of pretenders before him.
Who takes over for a man who has won 11 EPL championships, 5 FA Cups, 4 League Cups, A European Cup Winners Cup, World Club Cup and of course two very special European Cups not to mention all the Charity Shields and European Super cups etc etc? Nobody can or ever will match or exceed that record unless Fergie himself does so. So the man who takes over needs to feel comfortable in his own skin and isn't one who has a problem with ghosts. Certainly not in the way Brian Clough was brought down by the ghost and accomplishments of Don Revie at Leeds United. The man will have to be strong in character, ego, self- belief and in determination in order to do a job and not worry about matching a legacy. So who will that be?
Well I have made the case for one man by hinting in the title of this rant. I used the term Special One. Well who else could that refer to but one Jose Mourinho, currently the manager of Real Madrid, just coming off a historic Treble with Inter Milan where he captured the Champions League, Italian League and Italian Super Cup by doing it in his own unique efficient and successful way. Yes for me the only man who is truly capable and available to take on this massive job is Jose. Why? Well besides the fact that he is fantastic, he is more than capable of being United manager because he is a master man manager, a savvy tactician and chess master and a man with a king sized ego and belief in himself. A man whose nature will not allow him to stumble due to the ghost of Fergie and who doesn't care what has happened but instead, what is going to happen. Above all, the man has won nearly everything that there is to win as a club manager and a man who has made no bones about the fact he would love this job. He is not afraid of the challenge and fears nobody. Above all, he is loved by many fans of the game, adored by the media and has the love, support and respect of all his players who buy into his mantra and system. Unlike Fergie, I personally think it would be nice if United were the media's darlings for a change thanks to Mourinho's presence.
Soince accepting the job with Real Madrid, a few leaks have surfaced that send a clear message over his intent and desire to one day manage Manchester United. He demanded an out clause in his contract on the chance Manchester United came a calling and as well, he has said he would be honored to manage the club in the future. He knows Ferguson is bound to stay another year or two and so he seemingly has taken the Madrid job to tie him over until then. To add to this, he told Real Madrid President Perez to not pursue Wayne Rooney as he did not want to upset Ferguson and the hierarchy at Old Trafford so as not to burn his bridges. For anyone with an IQ, that is code for him saying he wants the United job.
And let me go on record right now that I too want Jose Mourinho to be the next manager of Manchester United. He has all the skills and accomplishments to be the ideal man to takeover this great position that comes with a lot of pressure and a lot of expectations. As for his detractors I offer in simple terms, the royal raspberries.
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