The legendary Red Devils coach: The road to success

Chapter 111 Have Some Shame

"Manchester United played poorly in the final few games of this season, causing the team to fall in the standings and the media to boo them. Every reporter was full of ridicule and disgust."

--Inscription

Manchester United's three consecutive defeats are very ugly.

This unexpected blow also made Ferguson directly reject interviews invited by multiple media, and he even directly cancelled multiple media's questions at regular press conferences. Ferguson's behavior was a bit rude, but he knew that he could only grit his teeth and swallow his anger. He would only bring shame upon himself if he argued with anyone.

Ferguson suppressed his anger, and he didn't have much to discuss with the players. Even with the coaching team, Ferguson thought there was not much to discuss for the time being.

Despite this, the Red Devils team was secretly alert in the locker room. Robson said: "How could we become such a vulnerable team?"

"The whole world is laughing at us, it's a really humiliating thing."

McClair said: "I really think the owner (Ferguson) is angry. This is all our fault and we should all be ashamed of it."

Hughes said: "There is nothing to say. We didn't score any goals and our defense didn't hold. That's the fact and the reason. We brought this shame upon ourselves. How are we going to play next? I don't have too many other ideas. I'll just do my job well and leave the rest to the boss."

Bruce said: "I'm not worried, I just feel ashamed. Hope to win is the goal of each of us, but I haven't been able to stand up many times. In fact, I'm not that kind of leader. I just hope that someone can stand up and take on everything, and then we can really keep up."

Three consecutive defeats triggered an emotional conflict among fans. Some die-hard fans found it harder to accept this humiliating record than the Manchester United coaching staff and players. How has their love for the team changed? Of course, the deeper the love, the more severe the criticism. Few people silently endure it, and there are indeed cases of love turning into hate. No one will be happy because of the current Manchester United, and no one will be proud of it. This is the reverse output of their emotions. All the emotions of the fans are actually due to the team's performance, and the fans' positions are determined by this. They will cheer for victory, they will also be tired of the team's malaise, they will directly make their voices heard, and they will directly vote with their feet, not watching the game, not participating in the team's activities, which makes Ferguson and the board of directors feel very disappointed.

After losing to Coventry, Ferguson took the Red Devils to training with an expressionless face before preparing to face Wimbledon in the 34th round of the league.

The match was scheduled for Tuesday, May 1989, 5, and Old Trafford was barely occupied. Less than half of the seats were occupied, a scene that made Ferguson blush and feel ashamed.

On the one hand, the Red Devils fans could not take leave to watch the game because it was a weekday, and on the other hand, the team's recent poor performance did affect their interest in watching the game. Of course, there is another reason, that is, Manchester United has started to expand the stadium, and the construction area has also occupied a lot of seats.

Ferguson sent Whiteside, Bearsmore, Martin and Donaghy to start, let Bruce and McGrath partner as central defenders, Robson as midfield commander, and Hughes and McClair as forwards. This is a 442-based formation, but it can be changed to 433, 451 or 343 at any time.

At this stage, everyone was expecting the Red Devils to win a reasonable victory. Ferguson was already familiar with the characteristics of Wimbledon's style of play. Although the starting lineup was a bit risky, he had already talked to several main players early on and made positive mobilization.

At the beginning of the game, the two teams quickly entered the familiar midfield battle. Manchester United played more efficiently against such an opponent. In the 17th minute, they launched a very sharp attack. Robson controlled the ball in the midfield and passed it directly behind the opponent's defender. McClair ran to the empty space to receive the ball, withstood the pressure of the opponent's defender, dodged the gap and shot directly to the lower left corner of the goal. The opponent's goalkeeper was unable to save the ball, and Manchester United led 1-0!

The team finally won, which made Ferguson feel relieved. In the final stage of the game, Ferguson assigned the young Italian player Maiorana to come on as a substitute. The new player, who played street football, performed a lot of extraordinary skills like a juggler, which was eye-catching and made the fans feel like they had discovered a new world.

After the game, Charlton and the stadium operations department specifically found Ferguson to discuss how to face subsequent challenges.

It was because of Ferguson and Charlton's suggestions that Edwards and the entire board agreed to allocate special funds to renovate and expand Old Trafford. Not only should it be renovated to the most modern standards, but the audience area should also be expanded. At that time, the Theatre of Dreams provided a mixture of seats and standing seats, and the maximum capacity under normal conditions, but today the number of fans who came to the stadium to watch the game was less than half, which was unacceptable in any way.

Ferguson feels a deep sense of crisis. He is not only under tremendous pressure to achieve results, but also under commercial pressure.

The Times pointed out the crux of the matter, "Everything depends on competitive performance. If a team wants to have good commercial income, get better and better, or even reach a new level, it cannot just rely on its past achievements. Manchester United has actually consumed too much of its historical heritage. If it continues like this, the club may be ruined. Ferguson should first think about how to win games and how to win a championship, instead of always thinking about increasing seats, increasing commercial activities, and increasing revenue."

Four days later, on Saturday, May 1989, 5, the Red Devils traveled away to challenge Southampton, their opponent in the 6th round of the league.

Ferguson used the same starting lineup as in the previous game, but the opponent did not go head-to-head with the Red Devils like they did in Wimbledon. Southampton was not strong, but they kept a low profile and dealt with the Red Devils, and they waited patiently for the opportunity to sneak attack. Manchester United took the initiative for a long time, but they could not break through the opponent's two layers of defense. In the 17th minute, McClair's shot in the penalty area was blocked, in the 19th minute, Hughes' header was saved by the goalkeeper, in the 27th minute, Robson's powerful shot outside the penalty area was barely saved by the goalkeeper, in the 29th minute, McClair and Hughes both missed the pass that slipped past the goal post, in the 33rd minute, Whiteside's header in the penalty area was not powerful, and in the 36th minute, Mullen tried another long shot outside the penalty area but missed it... Manchester United tried everything, but they just couldn't seize the opportunity.

Southampton had been focusing on defense, and their counterattacks were often just to deal with, without any threat. But in the final stages of the game, Southampton suddenly launched a strong attack, catching the Red Devils off guard. In the 77th minute, the Saints counterattacked immediately after stealing the ball in the frontcourt, and the striker Shupton received the ball and shot directly to score, and Manchester United fell behind 0-1.

In the 86th minute, Southampton launched another quick counterattack. After successfully defending in the backcourt, they quickly turned the ball to the wing, and then immediately passed it to the middle near the top of Manchester United's arc. At this time, Manchester United's back line had no time to chase back, and could only watch goalkeeper Leighton leave the goal, but in the end they still failed to defend the opponent's single shot.

In this way, Southampton scored two goals in a row. Although the Red Devils scored a goal in the stoppage time, they still lost to their opponents and suffered another defeat.

In the 36th round, Ferguson led his team to challenge Queens Park Rangers, and the Red Devils played away. Manchester United's players were generally in poor condition and played very passively. Whiteside was injured again and missed the game, while McClair seemed a little lost and was intercepted many times. Manchester United's entire lineup was in low spirits and was beaten by the opponent's attack. Queens Park Rangers, who were at home, were in great form. They actively deployed their formation, increased their running, and continuously attacked Manchester United's defense. Although Ferguson's team sent Robson to start, the captain's condition was obviously not reassuring. Not only that, McGrath also had problems in the central defender position. Not only could he not compete with his opponent for high balls, but the forward attackers who intercepted the opponent head-on also seemed clumsy and slow.

There were problems with the players on all three lines. The entire Manchester United team was in a slump and was completely unable to withstand the opponent's onslaught.

After taking the advantage, Queens Park Rangers did not show any mercy. They became more and more courageous with the cheers of the fans. After scoring the first goal to open the door to victory, they scored two more goals and finally defeated the Red Devils with a score of 2-3.

In the last two home games, in the 37th round, the Red Devils played against Everton at home, and there were only less than spectators at such a huge stadium as the Theatre of Dreams.

This fact shows that the Red Devils fans are voting with their feet, silently condemning Ferguson and his team.

After the game started, the Red Devils continued to be in a very bad state. The entire midfield and backcourt were very depressed. The defense line was almost leaky, and it was difficult to withstand the opponent's fierce attack. Everton played very confidently and smoothly. Their offensive surged into the heart of the Red Devils in waves, making Manchester United's midfield and backcourt defense difficult to defend. Although Hughes scored a goal for the team in the frontcourt, the Red Devils eventually lost to the Toffees with a score of 1:2.

After the game, the commentator Taylor said: "Please Ferguson, have some shame. The team played so badly and the scene was so terrible. Someone should be held accountable."

After the game, Ferguson clearly heard the team's die-hard fans roaring and venting their dissatisfaction. At the end of the game, many Manchester United fans could not accept the result of the loss. In addition to clashing with the opponent's fans, they also directed their anger at the Red Devils players.

When Ferguson led the team off the field, he also heard the sharp boos from Old Trafford. Although there were still many diehard fans who tried to applaud and cheer for the team, and more fans sang to cheer for the team, the boos mixed in made Ferguson feel uncomfortable.

Ferguson was in agony, but he had to suppress his emotions.

Finally it was the final battle, the Red Devils mustered up their remaining courage and faced Newcastle United at home.

The home ground is always the support of the team and the players. In this game, Manchester United fans filled the stadium early to encourage and cheer for their players. There was almost no booing in the whole stadium, only ups and downs of singing, shouting and cheering. The Red Devils, with the cheers of the home fans, bravely cheered up and played very actively, pressing Newcastle United to the ground and rubbing hard. Robins and Blackmore played very actively, and McClair and Hughes scored two goals to help Manchester United beat the opponent 2-0, and completely knocked this struggling old team out of the English League Two.

Newcastle United had been fighting for relegation the entire season, but they finally lost their dream of being relegated to the English Football League One. More than 3 fans came to the Theatre of Dreams to cheer for the home team, which was also a final testimony to the team's difficult season. In addition to enjoying a victory, they also sarcastically ridiculed Newcastle United for being short-sighted and selling the team's most promising new star Gascoigne. The most despicable thing was that they went back on their words and were finally defeated by Manchester United and sadly relegated, which was purely their own fault.

In this way, the Red Devils played their last league game and ended this very painful season.