The legendary Red Devils coach: The road to success

Chapter 129 "If you can't win, you'd rather lose"

"In this match where the Red Devils lost to Manchester City by a large margin, Ferguson could have made the defeat less ugly, but his stubborn tactics and stubborn thinking led to the worst possible outcome."

--Inscription

The Red Devils' defeat to their city rivals Manchester City in the league was not only a blow to the team's spirit, but also a huge impact on the team's spirit. This defeat was completely unexpected by everyone, and after the game, the players were completely dejected and had no spirit at all. They looked like a group of defeated soldiers.

Ferguson had to give the players a day off, and when the Red Devils regrouped after the holiday, the players were still in low spirits. They sat in the locker room in silence, their eyes empty, like a punctured tire with air deflated.

Ferguson was not able to recover. He later reflected on himself at an internal analysis meeting. He was very frustrated. "I'm very sorry to the fans. We feel deeply guilty. We may have underestimated our opponents. Reality has taught us a big lesson. The way the game turned out is mainly my responsibility. This is very clear."

Ferguson wanted the players to let go of their psychological burdens, but he himself wanted to analyze the situation and learn some lessons. Ferguson and the coaching staff studied the game video in the office, but they didn't come up with anything special after a long time.

Ferguson took full responsibility at the internal meeting. He did not want the dressing room to fall apart and be completely ruined because of this game.

What was the reason for the crushing defeat to Manchester City?

The Times made an observation, "Arrogance and stupidity." They conducted an in-depth investigation after the game and reviewed the whole process in detail based on some signs before the game. The reporters finally believed that Ferguson and the players looked down on their opponents and were very arrogant. Ferguson made mistake 3 in the starting lineup and tactical deployment. When the situation was behind, his response and the performance of the players also seemed very stupid.

The Red Devils had their own problems in this match. The Red Devils had underestimated the opponent before the game started, and this idea was fatal from the beginning. Many teams have a little inexplicable confidence when playing against weak teams, but Manchester United had just finished a fierce battle and was at a disadvantage in terms of physical strength and mental exhaustion compared to Manchester City. Inexplicable arrogance would lead to the danger of misjudging the situation. Although they were stronger than their opponents on paper, they were too disrespectful to set up a strong offensive posture at the beginning, thinking of directly breaking the opponent's defense and confidence.

In addition to underestimating the opponent and rushing to succeed, Ferguson was missing Bruce and Robson before this game. He should have played more conservatively and chosen to strike back, but Ferguson still insisted on the original tactical play. When the battle started, Manchester United's midfield was not strong enough and was quickly overwhelmed, and then quickly collapsed to the central defender position.

Not only that, Ferguson's starting fullback Anderson was in a very bad state. Not only could he not move to the middle to help, but he also couldn't keep up with the opponent in his own area. He failed to defend this side many times, allowing the opponent to directly penetrate, which was more fatal. In the middle, Pallister couldn't control the situation. Without Bruce by his side, he seemed to have lost his backbone. He seemed to have lost his soul and lost his composure early. The blind panic on the defense line and the arrogance of the entire team were strangely entangled, causing Ferguson's team to fall into chaos from the beginning of the game. In fact, in this game, Ferguson arranged Ins, who has a strong interception ability, in the starting midfield, and also let McClair, who can run and endure, actively retreat to help, so there was not much pressure. Unfortunately, whether it was Ins or McClair, when they played, they were more thinking about attacking in advance and did not pay attention to protecting the defense line.

As a result, it was difficult for the team to maintain balance and stability. The Red Devils players were stronger than their opponents, but the starting lineup had serious structural problems and many hidden dangers. They needed to make up for the shortcomings with their playing style, but Ferguson was too aggressive in tactics, always thinking that he could defeat the opponent through attacking. Even Ings frequently overwhelmed the opponent in the penalty area, thinking only of scoring goals. The defense also suffered from a lack of attention.

The team should have been cautious when they were tired, and the defense would inevitably be in danger if they failed to attack actively. The game was not favorable to the Red Devils from the beginning, and there was nothing to say about the subsequent counterattacks.

If there were only the above reasons, Manchester United would not have lost so miserably in this game, and would not have been defeated by the opponent by 5 goals, leading to an unprecedented rout. There is another key reason for this, that is, Ferguson's will to win is particularly strong, and he even has a bit of a gambler's mentality, that is, "I would rather lose than win." For Ferguson, he had expected to defeat the opponent at the beginning of this game. When he suddenly fell behind in the score, all he thought about was how to quickly equalize and how to quickly reverse the situation. Only victory can never be accepted. When the score is behind, the only way is to attack fiercely and move forward with all your strength. In the end, if you can't win, it doesn't matter whether the score is 0-1 or 1-5.

This is Ferguson, a Ferguson full of desire to win.

This was also the fundamental reason why the game eventually turned from a small loss into a big defeat. Later in the game, Ferguson almost gave up on defense and was ready to fight his opponent to the end.

Losing big or losing small is the same thing for a game, that's what Ferguson thinks. But for Manchester United fans and the media, it's completely different.

This fiasco warned Ferguson, but the adventurous spirit and the desire to win were still strong. Even in the years that followed, Ferguson's style always had a bit of a paranoid desire to win. He always hoped that the team would defeat the opponent, and when he fell behind, he would definitely go all out to win. There was no word in his dictionary for actively admitting defeat, and he would never accept a negative mentality of a small loss. His team had to win, no matter what. If he had to gamble and lose, he would still dare to put all his chips on the roulette wheel.

Ferguson's personality traits are very distinct, and this spirit has been deeply imprinted in the Red Devils' team spirit in the years that followed. From the beginning of Ferguson's coaching until now, the Red Devils have played with a sense of winning or losing, "If you can't win, you'd rather lose", this is Ferguson's competitive thinking. Even if the opponent catches them off guard, scores first, or is suppressed by the opponent's strength, the Red Devils will always try their best to attack.

Later, Ferguson lost 1-6 to Manchester City, and even in the Champions League final, his hands were shaking because of his eagerness to win, but he still let the team fight bravely... This style of team will certainly play with passion, enthusiasm, and entertainment, and it must be the best portrayal of Ferguson's imprint.

Back in 1989, Ferguson had to endure the humiliation and attacks alone in the face of such a devastating defeat. He also had to protect his players in front of the media to prevent the entire team from collapsing.

The constant criticism from the media put Ferguson under tremendous pressure, and he could still feel the negative impact until the end of the season.

In October 1989, the Red Devils faced Portsmouth in the second round of the League Cup. The Red Devils had already defeated their opponent 10-3 away in the previous game. In this game, the Red Devils were busy cleaning up the mess and did not play many offensives. The opponent's performance was also very sluggish and could not create any threats. In the end, the two sides shook hands and the Red Devils advanced to the next round.

Back in the league, the Red Devils played at home against Sheffield Wednesday in the 8th round of League One.

Where will the Red Devils go after this crushing defeat?

In response to media questions, Ferguson fielded the strongest lineup that could play. Robson and Ings partnered in the midfield, Wallace and Lee Sharpe worked together on the wing to strengthen the attack, Bruce partnered with Pallister as the double center back, Lee Martin and Garton became the full backs, McClair partnered with Hughes as the double forward. This 442 lineup can almost be regarded as the Red Devils' strongest defense and the most balanced offense and defense.

The Red Devils players are much more famous than their opponents. Sheffield Wednesday is a real underdog. They don't have any particularly famous stars in the team. This season, Sheffield Wednesday has not played well. At the end of the season, they ranked second from the bottom and were relegated. They had already shown their weakness at this time, and they started with cautious defense and counterattacks. After the game started, the Red Devils players took the advantage very early, but they didn't have much to do with their opponents. Sheffield Wednesday defended intensively. Not only did everyone give up the midfield at the beginning and condensed the defense intensively, but they also kept a close eye on Manchester United's two fast horses on the wing, leaving Wallace and Lee Sharpe with little space to advance. In the 12th minute, Ince took the ball to the outside of the penalty area and shot from a distance, but was blocked by the opponent's dense defensive crowd. In the 17th minute, Manchester United took a corner kick, Bruce's header was not strong enough, and was easily cleared by the opponent's goalkeeper. In the 19th minute, Hughes and McClair made a two-on-one at the top of the opponent's penalty area, and then passed it to Robson who was inserted in the back row. As a result, Robson's volley did not hit the right angle and was easily saved by the opponent's goalkeeper. In the 23rd minute, Manchester United made a cross from the flank, and Hughes headed the ball away; in the 27th minute, McClair received a cross from the left and made a sudden shot from the penalty spot in the penalty area, but the opponent's goalkeeper made a heroic save to resolve the crisis.

Manchester United continued to attack, breaking through, long shots, penalty area shots, headers... taking advantage of the opponent's confusion to make up, corner kicks and set-piece tactics... the Red Devils tried all kinds of methods, but they couldn't break through the opponent's goal. Sheffield Wednesday team shrank tightly, and at one point all the players returned to their own penalty area to defend, and only went out to interfere when Manchester United shot from a distance. Ince and Robson, two midfielders, bombarded outside the penalty area, but they couldn't get into the opponent's goal and were blocked.

Ferguson was not angry about the 0-0 situation at halftime, and he had nothing more to say. In this completely one-sided game, all Ferguson could do was hope that the players would have a smoother foot and seize the opportunity. After the start of the second half, Manchester United continued to attack, but most of the attacks were fruitless near the opponent's penalty area, or ended with a simple shot. In the 52nd minute, Manchester United finally formed a one-on-one opportunity in the area near the penalty area line on the left through patient strong and weak side transfers, but unfortunately Lee Sharpe did not seize the opportunity, his fake move was seen through by the opponent, and the offensive came to an abrupt end. Even in the 73rd minute of the second half, Wallace took advantage of the opponent's carelessness and rushed forward at high speed, but his shot in the corner of the penalty area did not suppress the kicking angle, and finally fired a cannon. In the 81st minute, Manchester United won consecutive corner kicks, but unfortunately these crosses were finally simply resolved by the opponent, and there was no chance to threaten the goalkeeper.

In this way, Manchester United, who surrounded the opponent's goal and attacked fiercely, still failed to score. The embarrassing thing happened again. The fierce Red Devils finally shot more than 18 times in the whole game, but still failed to defeat the opponent.

踢完第8轮的联赛，红魔仅仅取得2胜2平4负积8分的成绩，弗格森执教红魔以来最差的联赛开局。