The legendary Red Devils coach: The road to success

Chapter 268 Give the Media a Slap

"The media questioned Ferguson on behalf of the fans? Accused him of abusing his power for personal gain? Accused Ferguson of putting his family and personal interests above the team? Ferguson was completely dismissive of this. He even disdained to explain to the media. Of course, if he could, he would not hesitate to give these blind guys a slap in the face."

--Inscription

After playing against Manchester City, the Red Devils continued to advance in the league in November.

Other opponents include Wimbledon, Ipswich and Coventry, and there is also a League Cup match against Everton.

With the strong momentum inspired by the away reversal of Manchester City, the Red Devils played very bravely in the match against Wimbledon. The Red Devils were in high spirits, with Mark Hughes, Kanchelskis and Pallister each scoring a goal, leaving the opponent almost powerless to fight back. In the end, the Red Devils destroyed Wimbledon's resistance with a score of 3-1 and won the victory.

Three days after this game, the Red Devils played against Ipswich at home.

Having played nine games in a row, the Red Devils were a little tired mentally and physically. Ferguson's solution was to rotate the players. He let veteran Robson start the game, and kept Keane and Giggs in the bench. Ince, Cantona, Kanchelskis, Lee Sharpe and Hughes were sent to the frontcourt.

Although most of the Red Devils players were a little tired and a little arrogant during the game, they did not give Ipswich, who played away, any chance to take advantage. Throughout the game, the Red Devils played a little listless, while Ipswich attached great importance to it and defended it tightly. The Red Devils' dominance made the opponent retreat at the beginning of the game, so they had an absolute advantage on the field, with a ball possession rate of more than 55%, many times entering the opponent's defensive third zone, and creating some opportunities. But even so, the Red Devils' offensive was not fierce enough and did not completely destroy the opponent's defense. In the 29th minute, Manchester United sent a throw-in from the left frontcourt. Lee Sharp passed the opponent's full-back and immediately accelerated to the bottom line. After getting past the opponent's two interceptions, Sharp made a cross from the bottom to create a killing opportunity. Hughes got a position in front of the opponent's penalty area and jumped up to head the ball. Unfortunately, the shot was too straight and was saved by the opponent's goalkeeper. In the 37th minute, Ince and Robson passed the ball in the middle of the midfield to get rid of the opponent's interception, and then passed it directly to Cantona. Cantona came to the front court near the right to receive the ball. He advanced the ball for a short distance and passed it directly to McClair who was retreating in the penalty area, and then ran back to the other side to receive it. Kanchelskis crossed his positions tacitly and took away one of the opponent's full-backs. McClair leaned sideways against the opponent's defender, protecting the ball with his feet and waiting for the opportunity to come. He quickly passed it directly to his teammate who cut into the penalty area. Cantona adjusted his posture while running and shot directly when he met the ball. The Ipswich goalkeeper was fully focused. Seeing the shot coming towards him, he immediately blocked the ball with both hands.

The Red Devils were actively attacking in the first half, but in the end their shots were unlucky and they were unable to open up the situation.

In the second half, the situation was still stalemate. Even though Ferguson replaced the new players to attack the opponent's defense, he also asked the players to try to dribble through the opponent's penalty area, but in the end it was ineffective. Ipswich team implemented a defensive strategy throughout the game and almost did not consider counterattacks from Manchester United. Especially in the last 15 minutes of the second half, almost 11 players of Ipswich team retreated to their own penalty area to defend. No matter how Manchester United tried, they would not change their formation, let alone actively launch an attack.

Ferguson didn't have much to do against such a weak team. He didn't want his players to over-attempt at attacking the opponent's defense and cause unnecessary injuries. In this way, the score of 0-0 was maintained until the end.

Ferguson said after the game: "I am not dissatisfied with the score. Of course I want to win, but the opponent played very well. It is acceptable for our team to have ups and downs after a hard battle. No one can maintain the highest level and the best condition indefinitely."

The media's targeting after the game was very direct. They did not focus on the fact that the team did not win, but instead asked why Ferguson let his son Darren Ferguson come on as a substitute instead of choosing Keane or other main midfielders.

The Guardian reporter asked, "Does Mr Ferguson think Darren, as a youngster, has surpassed Keane's level?"

"If young people are needed, does Manchester United still have players like Butt to choose from?"

Ferguson's face turned pale and the anger in his heart began to rise.

Objectively speaking, Darren's performance in this game was not outstanding, but he did not make any big mistakes. After all, when the whole team was pressing the opponent and attacking fiercely, but they all lost the ability to break the game, it was impossible to turn the game around by relying on a player who was not a superstar. Moreover, Darren was mainly responsible for the connection and transition of the midfield after he came on the court, and did not have many offensive tasks.

The reporters didn't care about that. Their assumption was that if Keane played, the team would definitely win. But now it was because Darren played that the Red Devils failed to win. There was something wrong with Ferguson's use of players.

Ferguson was not happy with the reporters' repeated questions. He responded directly: "My decision to make substitutions is based on the progress of the game and the situation of the team. I will make adjustments if I think it is necessary. I don't think I need to ask you for advice, let alone your approval!"

"What bullshit, who should I hire? Do I need to ask you idiots for advice?!"

Back in the locker room, Ferguson muttered to himself viciously.

The reporters were humiliated by Ferguson and turned to Keane. Keane, who was still too young at the time, was fooled. He said: "I am in good condition and can play anytime. No one can say that we will win against a team like Ipswich, but I have to say that my teammates did not play well enough. They lacked sharpness and were not in good enough condition."

"Do you think it would be better to start with you? Would it be more worthy of replacing Darren?"

"Of course I'm ready for everything. I don't think I'm worse than anyone else in the team. Darren's level is definitely not good enough to play. His play lacks aggression."

When Keane came to his senses, he realized that something was wrong.

Ferguson called him over and scolded him, "What bullshit are you talking about? When will it be your turn to complain about the coach's deployment?!"

After leaving Ferguson's office, Keane went to ask other teammates, only to find that not only him, but also Bruce, Robson, Cantona, Ince and others were visited by reporters and asked similar questions. However, these Manchester United players were very secretive about it and would not say a word to the media.

Keane then realized that he had been fooled by the media, and that he had been induced to say so many things without knowing it. No wonder Ferguson was furious and thought he was backstabbing the coach.

The media is the most likely to curry favor with the powerful and to take advantage of others' misfortunes. What they pursue is not justice, but pure traffic and the money behind it. Keane, Robson, and Bruce are now beginning to realize that the power of public opinion is as deep as the ocean, and they will be swept into it if they are not careful.

In the 17th round of the Premier League, the Red Devils traveled to Coventry.

Ferguson continued to be stubborn, or he just wanted to give the media a slap in the face. He not only included his son in the roster, but also made him the starting player.

Considering the strength of the opponent and the thinness of Manchester United's lineup, Ferguson's arrangement is not wrong. Even if Darren starts in midfield, he will have Ins to protect him, so it is just a little difficult for Darren to concentrate on interception and coverage.

The Red Devils have recovered their form in this game. The fact that they didn't win the last game also made them adjust their mentality and their desire to win has become stronger. Giggs's threat on the left wing was huge, while Cantona showed his skills at critical moments, repeatedly causing the opponent's midfielders and defenders to make mistakes and be unable to defend. Manchester United launched an attack at the beginning of the game and quickly took the initiative. In the 11th minute, Giggs dribbled the ball through the opponent's left defense and made a triangle pass into the penalty area. Although the ball passed to the penalty spot was cleared by the opponent's defender, it also sounded the alarm in the opponent's penalty area. In the 17th minute, Manchester United sent a throw-in from the right, and Hughes received the ball outside the penalty area line, moved sideways and made a powerful long shot, which almost hit the blind corner; in the 23rd minute, Manchester United's Cantona and Ings played a clever two-on-two, and then continued to dribble the ball in the frontcourt and moved towards the middle. Before entering the penalty area, Cantona passed the ball to Hughes, but unfortunately Hughes didn't hold it with his back turned; in the 31st minute, Manchester United made a straight pass from the backcourt, and this long-distance pass broke through the opponent's midfield blocking defense. Cantona accelerated with the ball, passed an opponent's defender in front of the penalty area and passed to Ings. Ings took the ball and advanced to the top of the penalty area where he was blocked. He immediately passed the ball to the right side of the penalty area. At this time, Cantona quickly responded and shot directly, and the ball hit the upper left corner cleanly. Manchester United led 1-0!

The game then entered a stage of attack and defense between the two sides. Manchester United's defense also suffered a certain amount of pressure. The opponent Coventry team still tried to launch several attacks despite falling behind, but they were all resolved by Manchester United's defense in the backcourt. Darren was in the right position of Manchester United's midfield. His defensive pressure became very great at one time. The opponent frequently launched attacks targeting his area, making Manchester United's entire defense feel a little shaky. But fortunately, Darren was relatively calm and played well. He was active enough in defense, very confident in his feet and shovels, and did not have too many loopholes. Even though there were deficiencies in positioning and movement, and one-on-one defense was not too outstanding, there were not too many problems after all.

The game ended smoothly and Manchester United won the crucial three points 1-0.

In an interview after the game, Ferguson downplayed the victory, but specifically responded to the lineup of this game. "I have my own standards and considerations on how to use players." After the game, Ferguson repeated his old words and continued to hit back at the media reporters who believed that he was "partial" before the game. "I will never need to explain to you, and I will not reveal any information about the players to you. You are not worthy of speaking nonsense in the field of football coaches. Those are all bullshit."

Not only did Ferguson criticize the media, but he also called Keane to his office after the game and gave him a severe lecture.

Ferguson said: "I don't need to explain to you why Darren started. I just need you to understand that your task now is to recover as soon as possible and return to the main lineup as soon as possible. Our current lineup is not strong enough and everyone has his own responsibilities. If you don't want to concentrate on football, you can also consider other things."

Keane broke out in a cold sweat and could only bow his head and admit his mistake.

After this game, it was the end of November. The Red Devils continued to expand their points lead, far ahead of second-placed Leeds United.

On the 30th of this month, the Red Devils challenged Everton away in the fourth round of the League Cup.

Ferguson still attached great importance to the League Cup in 1993. He continued to use the main starting lineup, hoping to swallow the Toffees in one bite. In contrast, Everton made a lot of rotations, which also greatly reduced their strength. The game was one-sided at the beginning. The Red Devils took the lead and played confidently and sharply. In the end, Mark Hughes and Giggs scored one goal each, and the Red Devils eliminated their opponents with a score of 2-0 and successfully advanced to the next round.

In this game, Ferguson still let his son Darren come on as a substitute. The game ended with the Red Devils' victory, and the victory continued to cover up all the noise.

Manchester Evening News said: "What can we say? The course of the game? The result of the game? Ferguson took responsibility for his starting lineup and substitutions. We can't criticize and blame a team that won endlessly."