SIR ALEX FERGUSON 25 MOST MEMORABLE MOMENTS AT MANCHESTER UNITED
Beckham’s boot, Roy’s rant signing Schmeichel and being thrashed
by Man City- Mark Odgen looks back on 25 unforgettable moments from Ferguson’s
time at Old Trafford.
25) Selling Norman Whiteside & Paul
McGrath (summer 1989) Despite both being huge fan’s favorites and two of
the outstanding player’s of the United squad, Ferguson ignored supporter anger
and sold both due to concerns over their fitness and off-field lifestyle.
24) Signing Cantona (Nov 26, 1992) Ferguson
had missed on Alan Shearer and then failed with a £4m
bid for Sheffield Wednesday’s David Hirst, before a broken leg suffered by Dion
Dublin forced him to sign Cantona, who proved to be the catalyst to United’s
success.
23) Losing 5-1 to Manchester City (Sept 23, 1989) Newly-promoted City inflected a 5-1 hammering on Ferguson’s expensively-assembled team and ensured the United manager’s worst moment in management – until they went one further with last month’s 6-1 victory.
22) Mark Robins goal against Forest (Jan 7, 1990) The goal that saved Ferguson’s job? Senior figures insist not, but without this goal in the FA Cup third round tie, would Fergie really have survived much longer at Old Trafford ?
21) Signing Peter Schmeichel (Jun 1991) Ferguson later described the £530,000 deal for the Danish keeper as the “bargain of the country”. Schmeichel proved to be the world’s best goalkeeper for almost a decade while at United.
20) 9-0 win against Ipswich (Mar 4,1995) United have hit teams for six, seven and eight under Ferguson, but the rout against Ipswich was the biggest of the lot, with five goals from Andy Cole. Despite the win, United finished second in the league to Blackburn that season.
19) First trophy, 1990 FA Cup (May 1990) Taken to a Cup Final replay by Crystal Palace, a goal by full-back Lee Martin secured Ferguson’s first trophy as United manager, who had dropped goalkeeper Jim Leighton in favour of Les Sealey after the 3-3 draw in the first game.
18) EWCW Final win v Barcelona ’91 (May 1991) With the Heysel ban lifted in 1990 United won their first European trophy since 1968 by defeating overwhelming favorites Barcelona with two Mark Hughes goals on a rain-sodden night in Rotterdam.
17) Promoting the kids in 1995 (summer 1995) After finishing the 1994-95 season empty handed, Ferguson sold Paul Ince, Mark Hughes and Andrei Kanchelskis and promoted unheralded youngsters Paul Scholes, David Beckham, Nicky Butt and the Neville brothers.
16) Ryan Giggs’s debut (Mar 2, 1991) A nondescript 2-0 defeat at home to Everton was marked by a skinny 17- year-old winger making his debut as a substitute in place of Denis Irwin. Ryan Giggs has since become the most decorated player in English football history.
15) Losing title to Leeds in 1992 (May 1992) United had seemed certain to end their 25- year wait for a league title having led the way for months, but a disastrous loss of form enabled Leeds to deny them. The killer blow for United was a 2-0 defeat at Liverpool.
14) The Treble (May 1999) The ultimate moment of Ferguson’s career. In the space of ten days, United became the first English club to win the league, FA Cup and European Cup, with the achievement sealed by an injury-time victory against Bayern Munich in Barcelona.
13) Retirement U-turn (Feb 2002) Having declared his intention to retire at the end of the 2001-02 campaign, and with Sven-Goran Eriksson lined up to replace him, Ferguson abandoned his plans in Feb 2002, insisting he would instead go on for at least three more years.
12) Keeping Wayne Rooney (Oct 2010) Rooney’s decision to force a move from United, citing the club’s ‘lack of ambition’, appeared final, but Ferguson turned the situation around with two seismic press conference which heaped pressure on the Rooney camp to change their tune.
11) Getting rid of Roy Keane (Nov 2005) Sideline with a broken foot and angered by United’s, 4-1 defeat at Middlesbrough, Keane castigated his team-mates in an unseen MUTV interview. Ferguson reacted by cancelling Keane’s contract and giving the youngsters their head.
10) Signing Cristiano Ronald (Aug 2003) Having sold David Beckham to Real Madrid, Ferguson failed to lure Ronaldinho to United as his replacement, but he instead signed Sporting Lisbon teenager Ronaldo, who went on to become an iconic figure at Old Trafford.
9) Second European Cup(May 21, 2008) A penalty shoot-out slip by John Terry and a save by Edwin van der Sar from Nicolas Anelka secured Ferguson’s second European Cup and United’s third following a tense battle against Chealsea in Moscow.
8) Winning the first title in 1993(May 1993) In the first season of the Premier League, United finally ended their 26-year wait for a league title, edging out Aston Villa and Norwich City in the final month of the season to secure a cathartic success.
7) Fergie ‘noisy neighbors’ jibe (Sept 20, 2009) With Manchester City emerging as a genuine threat following Abu Dhabi investment, Ferguson delivered his infamous ‘noisy neighbors’ put down after seeing Michael Owen’s injury-time goal seal a 4-3 derby win at Old Trafford.
6) Arsenal 2 Man Utd 6 (Nov 29, 1990) The game which signaled United’s upward momentum. Defending champions Arsenal were dismantled in a League Cup tie at Highbury, with Lee Sharpe scoring a hat-trick in United’s cavalier victory against George Graham’s team.
5) The 19th title (May 2011) The league title which finally knocked Liverpool off their perch. When Ferguson arrived at United, the title haul was 16-7 in Liverpool’s favor, but a point at Blackburn confirmed United’s 19th title, surpassing Liverpool’s 18.
4) World champions twice 99/2008 United became the first club to win the Inter-Continental Trophy by defeating Palmeiras in Tokyo in Nov 1999 and then claimed a second world crown, regarded as a major success by Ferguson, by winning the Fifa Club World Cup against LDU Quito in Dec 2008.
3) Alan Wiley ‘unfit to referee’ jibe (Oct 2009) Ferguson’s history of rows with officials reached a nadir when he accused Alan Wiley of being ‘unfit’ to referee in the Premier League. A lengthy ban and heavy fine followed after Ferguson was condemned by the referees’ union.
2) Knight of the Realm (June 1999) A month after guiding United to the Treble, Ferguson emulated Sir Matt Busby and Sir Bobby Charlton by becoming Old Trafford’s third knight in recognition of his achievements in the game.
1) Beckham boot (Feb 2003) The breakdown of Ferguson’s relationship with David Beckham was given a defining image when the England captain was left with a gash to the head after a boot kicked by the manager caught his forehead following an FA Cup defeat against Arsenal.
Source: EPL magazine (Nepal) fixtures.com.np
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