The legendary Red Devils coach: The road to success

Chapter 217 There is Only One Sharp

"Every Manchester United player has 'Sharp' printed on their jerseys, but there really is a Sharp in Ferguson's team, a winger who Ferguson personally brought in and trained. Sharp was the first youth player to succeed on the pitch during Ferguson's Manchester United era. He was so talented and had extraordinary qualifications that he was the first generation of rising stars under Ferguson. He had an advantage in the competition of his career, but when he met Giggs, who was in the same position as the Red Devils' Class of 92, he could only lament his bad luck because he was not talented enough."

—— Preface

Before Giggs, Ferguson's Red Devils had produced many youth players, the most dazzling of whom was Lee Sharpe. And this Lee Sharpe was the protagonist of Han Qiaosheng's funny commentary back then.

Han Dazui explained it this way: "Now let's look at the Red Devils' possession of the ball. We see that No. 7 player Sharp passed the ball to No. 9, who is also called Sharp. They may be brothers. There are many brothers active in the football world, such as the De Boer brothers in the Netherlands, the Keane brothers in Ireland, and the Charlton brothers in England. Good shot! This ball was very well passed to No. 9... No. 10 is also called Sharp. It may be like this, foreign players only have their surnames printed on their jerseys, and these players are all named Sharp, just like many Korean players have the surname Park. Beautiful! No. 10 dribbled past two players and scored, and No. 10 came forward to congratulate him. No. 11 is... Sharp (long pause)... Sorry, audience friends, Sharp is the company name of the sponsor printed on the jersey."

Fans can imagine Mr. Han’s tone of voice, as well as his nervousness and embarrassment when he made a major mistake, and the picture will come to mind.

Han Qiaosheng fell into the trap because of the "sharp" printed on the Red Devils jersey. This "sharp" is the name of the sponsor, Japan's Sharp Corporation. He thought it was a player's name, so he made such a big joke and a big rollover scene.

That "Sharp" is not this "Sharp", but it happened that when Lee Sharp became a main player of Manchester United, the sponsor printed on the Red Devils' jerseys was also "Sharp", so the joke becomes even funnier.

Lee Sharpe was not actually trained entirely by Manchester United's youth training system. In the 1987-88 season, Lee Sharpe played for Torquay United in the fourth tier of English football. After starting only six times and coming on as a substitute five times for Torquay United, Sharpe was recommended to Ferguson by the head coach. Ferguson personally watched his game, and then signed him the next morning, bringing him to the Manchester United youth team.

Sharp was only 16 years old at the time, and Ferguson readily paid 20 pounds for him.

In the 1988-89 season, the 17-year-old Sharp thought he would hone his skills in the Red Devils reserve team and wait for the opportunity to enter the first team. However, because Olsen, the first choice for left forward, left the team, the new players played well and sometimes not, and Sharp got 30 appearances throughout the season.

When fans recall the series of measures taken by Sir Alex Ferguson to reform the team after he first arrived at Manchester United, "cultivating young players" is a topic that everyone talks about with great relish. The introduction of Sharp was one of Sir Alex Ferguson's most important moves in those years.

Lee Sharpe was born in the United Kingdom on May 1971, 5. He has loved football since he was a child. He is very flexible in dribbling and breaking through with both feet. At the age of 27, he became famous in the youth training camp of Torquay United and attracted attention from all sides. In 13, Ferguson personally observed him and bought him from Torquay United for 1988 pounds. This price set a record for the transfer of young players, and no one broke it for a long time. This transfer also caused a lot of doubts. Many people thought that Ferguson was crazy and spent money to buy young people who had never played in the first team. Ferguson used a large amount of money that could buy a strong player to sign a child. This is just like scratching a lottery ticket.

For Ferguson this is a gamble, but also an investment in the future of the Red Devils.

Lee Sharpe was only 17 years old when he came to the Red Devils, but Ferguson signed him directly to a professional contract. Ferguson was very optimistic about Lee Sharpe's skills and made him a key training target for the youth training from the beginning, hoping to train him into a left-wing attacker.

Ferguson often accompanied him in practice, personally fed him the ball, and guided him in training. Lee Sharpe himself has amazing talent. He grew rapidly after receiving Ferguson's careful guidance, and was soon promoted to the first team by Ferguson. This young man who is skilled with his left foot, fast, and brave enough to make all kinds of fake moves is bold and enthusiastic, full of confidence, always has endless energy, and always has ideas that can't be stopped. Lee Sharpe is keen on attacking. He always likes to dribble the ball to the opponent's side and tear open the opponent's side defense. Lee Sharpe has outstanding dribbling ability, good sense of rhythm, and outstanding speed advantage. He dares to face the opponent's defender and try all kinds of breakthroughs. He often breaks through before the opponent is ready. Not only that, his passing and shooting are also excellent. The pass from the bottom can pass a variety of special balls, including rotation, loop, straight line, and the control of strength and the choice of landing point are all excellent.

The Red Devils club soon knew about this future star, and everyone was looking forward to Lee Sharp's performance in the Red Devils first team.

Lee Sharpe was favored by Ferguson because he was good at playing on the wing and Ferguson tried to attack from the wing. He was a sharp knife that Ferguson was looking forward to. Lee Sharpe soon played for the Red Devils first team. He started playing for the Red Devils in the 1988-89 season. At the age of 17, Sharpe had already played 26 times for the Red Devils and became one of the important substitutes in the Red Devils lineup.

In the 89-90 season, Sharp had more opportunities to play. On September 1989, 9, Lee Sharp scored his first goal for the Red Devils in the match against Millwall, and thus began a new star journey. Although due to the frequent injuries of the Red Devils' left back, Lee Sharp had to change his position and play as a full-back. In this season, Sharp played awkwardly, his specialty could not be brought into play, and the defensive awareness and assistance requirements of the full-back were too difficult for him.

Lee Sharpe's brilliance began in the 1990-1991 season. By then he had become a young but experienced player, his skills and awareness were constantly improving, and he could play his favorite left midfielder position. Lee Sharpe showed his unique offensive characteristics, with fast speed, many fake moves, and frequent changes in rhythm, which made the opponent confused. Lee Sharpe constantly attacked the opponent on the left and actively created opportunities for his teammates, which was a nightmare for the opponent's defenders and goalkeepers.

Lee Sharpe was radiant and full of energy in the winger position, quickly becoming a sharp knife that Ferguson could rely on. Ferguson had always focused on the wing attack, and now he had a good handle. He hoped to continue to learn from the Soviet Union and Eastern European teams' quick opening of the wing gap and make a name for himself in English football. Lee Sharpe lived up to Ferguson's high expectations and played well in the left wing position of the Red Devils, exerting great power.

Lee Sharp played a huge role in the Red Devils' campaign in the European Cup Winners' Cup. In the final, he was full of energy, actively involved, brave and tenacious, and performed very well. Lee Sharp was fearless in the dialogue with the star players of Barcelona. He was full of fighting passion, very active and positive, and would not be at a disadvantage in the confrontation. The abundant physical energy ensured his running. He could keep turning back and forth on the left side of the road, helping the Red Devils get more resources on both offense and defense. Lee Sharp used a unique rhythm and gorgeous feints to win many face-to-face dialogues with the opponent. Sharp's power prevented Barcelona's right side and midfield from launching an offensive smoothly, and they had to retreat frequently.

Although he didn't score, Lee Sharpe created a lot of threats in the game and helped the team win the championship. At the age of less than 20, he has become a hero in the hearts of the Red Devils fans along with Mark Hughes, Bryan Robson, Bruce and others.

Lee Sharpe played brilliantly in not only the European Cup Winners' Cup, but also in the League Cup for the Red Devils. In November 1990, the Red Devils played against Arsenal. In this extremely crucial match, Lee Sharpe was in great form, scoring three goals with his head and feet, performing a hat trick and making great contributions to the team's victory.

Because the fight in the previous league game sparked a conflict between the two sides, this game attracted much attention. In the game full of gunpowder, the young Sharp was like a god descending from the sky on the court. He was almost omnipotent. The fans at Arsenal's home stadium had to admit that he was an extremely sharp killer and very difficult to deal with. Lee Sharp made the whole of England see the explosion of a supernova. He played tricks on Arsenal's right back, midfielder, and center back, humiliated the Gunners' goalkeeper, and scored three goals gorgeously. Lee Sharp's flying speed, clever dribbling, accurate shooting, timely back-ins, and unbridled celebration after scoring made Arsenal's defense extremely depressed.

"Oh my god, who is that young man flying up into the air?" The commentator in the commentary booth was so surprised that he could hardly believe it. "He scored another goal by himself! This is his third goal. Do you dare to think that you can score three goals against Arsenal's defense?"

The Red Devils finally won a luxurious victory over the Gunners 6-2 away from home. Lee Sharpe became famous in one battle and shone brightly.

Lee Sharpe won the Players Association's 1990-91 Young Player of the Year Award after the season ended. This award is almost an indispensable coronation ceremony for every superstar in their growth process. Giggs won this honor in the next two seasons. Later, Beckham, Ronaldinho, Pogba and others have also won this award.

At that time, the English football world was cheering for Lee Sharpe. This young Red Devils star was full of youth and handsome, so he naturally won the favor of the media and the fans.

Red Devils fans who are not familiar with Lee Sharpe may not know that he is almost the last Beckham. Lee Sharpe has a household registration like Beckham. When Beckham was still a young child, Lee Sharpe had already shown the charm of youth. Sharp has a handsome appearance, delicate facial features, tall stature, and a body contour as clear as a sculpture. He has sword-like eyebrows, star-like eyes, a bit of charm, a tall and heroic nose, and a face that often ripples with an addictive smile.

Lee Sharpe quickly replaced Whiteside's star status in the Red Devils. The number of Red Devils fans increased rapidly and his jersey sales ranked among the top in the Red Devils team, second only to the more legendary Robson.

The media began to create stars, and Lee Sharp quickly became the target of praise and became a media darling. Sharp's training, his games, his activities, his advertisements... everything about him became the focus of football and entertainment media reports. He had a shirt brand named after him very early on, and appeared in endorsement occasions many times, becoming a darling of the advertising and fashion industries.

Lee Sharpe won the opportunity to play in the 90-91 season and was trusted and relied upon by Ferguson. This season, Lee Sharpe started 20 league games and came off the bench in 3 games. In all competitions, he started 36 games and came off the bench in 5 games, scoring 9 goals. He is undoubtedly a starter.

And his performance is also very good, and he has won the love of the fans. If he seizes this opportunity, continues to maintain a positive attitude, trains hard, and constantly improves his skills, he will definitely be on the road to becoming a real superstar. You should know that this season Giggs only played as a substitute and started once, and the newly joined Kanchelskis only started once. The two important wing core players who came later were far less dazzling than him at this time.

Unfortunately, Lee Sharpe did not follow the path planned for him by Ferguson.

Although Lee Sharp is a genius, he has a fatal weakness, that is, he is not hardworking enough and lacks the determination to strive for greater success. He is not as crazy as those players in the Red Devils Class of 92, and lacks the idea of ​​actively practicing. After the game, he prefers to call friends and pursue a life of pleasure. Although he is also very brave and is not afraid of the roughness and toughness of his opponents, he is also very imaginative and dares to conceive and implement some fancy moves.

But whether in training or in the game, Lee Sharp did not have the spirit of selfless dedication to the team and doing everything possible to win.

Lee Sharp had no conscious desire to pursue higher honors. In 1991, he felt that he was successful enough. He felt that he had signed contracts with advertisers, had a lot of salary and sponsorship, and various off-field income, which was enough for him to live a very chic life. He felt that he was very good to have fans' love and support and beautiful women throwing themselves at him.

The biggest challenge for players in their careers is injuries. After the 90-91 season, Lee Sharp was injured in the pre-season and did not recover until the start of the 91-92 season, and was unable to play for the Red Devils.

At this time, Kanchelskis entered the first team's starting lineup. He was a strong player brought in by Ferguson himself. He was very capable and was the starting right winger. Giggs started as a substitute in the first two games and got a chance to start in the third game of the league, gradually opening up his career as a starting player.

Lee Sharpe was injured and did not play as a substitute in the Red Devils' match against Leeds United until December 1991, 12. This was his first official appearance in the entire season. At this time, Giggs had already emerged and was far ahead of the former leader in the competition for the winger.

Lee Sharp was in poor form throughout the 91-92 season and was not competitive enough. In the end, he only started in 8 league games and was a substitute 6 times, and started in 1 cup game and was a substitute 4 times, and scored only 2 goals in all competitions.