The legendary Red Devils coach: The road to success

Chapter 302 Beautiful August

"Ferguson's team won the opening game easily, easily defeated Wimbledon, their bitter rival for many seasons, and continued to shock the crowd with a wave of outstanding results. Their momentum excited the fans and made the red figure shine in the first month of the season."

--Inscription

The 1994-95 English Premier League season began on August 8, with the Red Devils' first league game being at home against the newly promoted Queens Park Rangers.

Against the newly promoted team, the Red Devils naturally hoped to defeat their opponents in one fell swoop. The Red Devils players played with all their strength amid the cheers of more than 10,000 spectators. Because Cantona was suspended and Keane returned to the team too late after his vacation and his physical data was not enough to start, Ferguson fielded David May and Irwin as full-backs, Ince and Lee Sharpe as midfielders, Giggs and Kanchelskis as two wingers, and Hughes and McClair as forwards. This formation once again stunned the opponent's coach and players on the field at the beginning of the game, and also made the commentators on the sidelines open their mouths wide, as if they could swallow a big goose egg. Mitten exclaimed on the sidelines, "What the hell is Ferguson doing? Three wingers and a central midfielder? When did McClair become a forward again? How to put Giggs and Lee Sharpe?"

Not only the fans were surprised, but the opponents were also confused. However, the Red Devils' attack didn't care whether you understood their position or not. They launched a fierce attack right from the start. Mark Hughes was full of energy. In the 7th minute, he received a cross pass from Kanchelskis at the top of the penalty area. He swung his foot and shot the ball like a cannon. This powerful long shot was so fast that the opponent's goalkeeper had no time to react. Hughes had already scored the ball into the upper left corner, and the Red Devils led 1-0. Then Ins scored in almost the same position, but his luck was a little worse. The ball whizzed off the crossbar. This shot caused chaos in the opponent's penalty area. McClair rushed over and seized the fleeting opportunity in the chaos. He headed the ball in time and headed the ball into the dead corner.

The Red Devils led 2-0 and basically secured the victory.

In the latter part of the second half, Ferguson, Keane and Parker came on as substitutes respectively, taking the time to recover. Keane's injury was not a big problem, as his beast-like body could handle a minor injury without any difficulty. Parker had some problems, as his knee was an old injury, and he had a muscle strain before the season, and he was also old, so his recovery was very slow.

In the second round of the league, the Red Devils went away to Nottingham Forest, a traditional and established team that had been promoted to the Premier League. The Forest team was strong and still insisted on an offensive style after being promoted to the Premier League. Ferguson repeated the starting lineup of the previous game, and still had the momentum of attacking at the beginning. This game was very exciting. The Forest team would naturally not retreat at home, so both teams played strong offensive football and showed the strong and passionate characteristics of English football. After the opening, the Red Devils attacked the two flanks and launched a fierce offensive. Lee Sharp's starting position was arranged in the midfield, but he was very flexible and often changed positions, which caught the opponent off guard. In the 17th minute of the first half, Sharp ran to the left front court to receive the ball, and then made a long diagonal pass in time. This pass flew across the entire half and came to the Forest team's penalty area. Before the opponent's defender had time to clear the hidden danger, the Red Devils' lightning Kanchelskis on the right had already rushed to the ball and shot the ball into the dead corner of the goal like a cannonball before the ball landed. The Red Devils led 1-0!

This was a wonderful performance by the Red Devils' left and right blades, and it was also the essence of the Red Devils' wing tactics. After taking the lead, the Red Devils still insisted on attacking and continued to play several good opportunities in front of the goal, but unfortunately they missed the goal one by one. The Nottingham Forest team, which was behind, attacked bravely, determined to equalize the score, showing an unyielding fighting spirit. Collymore, the front knife of the Forest team, played at a super level. In the 38th minute, when he switched from defense to offense, he got the ball in the midfield and immediately controlled the ball to advance. He used his head to stop the ball like a juggler to unload the power, and his body continued to move forward at high speed. This difficult dribbling action allowed him to quickly leave the Red Devils' chasing defender behind and go straight into the Red Devils' defense in the back of the penalty area. Collymore was very calm. When the Red Devils' defenders came up to block him, he had already observed Schmeichel's position and shot directly from the edge of the right penalty area instead of seeking a sudden attack. The shot was not powerful, but the angle was extremely tricky, aiming only at the blind spot. Schmeichel tried his best to reach the ball but could not do so and could only watch the goal being lost.

1-1, Forest equalized the score.

After that, both sides attacked and defended each other, but both missed many excellent chances to score. In the second half, Forest took the initiative with the advantage of home court and launched many fierce attacks. Schmeichel performed bravely, saving the opponent's shots in the second half, and also deftly resolved the opponent's supplementary shot in front of the goal in the melee. His timing, reaction, ground movement and saving posture were all impeccable.

In the last 20 minutes or so of the game, the Red Devils replaced Keane to strengthen the frontcourt interception, and the Red Devils also launched several powerful attacks. Giggs broke through the opponent's defense several times on the left, but unfortunately his crosses were not grabbed by Hughes and McClair; Ince's advancement and Irwin's cooperation also created opportunities for crosses from the bottom, and Ince even had a great opportunity to get into the penalty area to grab a point, but all the Red Devils players lacked luck. In addition to the shot being blocked because it was too straight, another shot hit the post and missed the best chance to score.

In the end, the Red Devils, who had wasted many good scoring opportunities, could only shake hands and make peace with their opponents.

This season, Nottingham Forest is determined to make progress. Newcomer Collymore is in great form as an offensive spearhead, with excellent passing and shooting. He is fast and has delicate skills, making him a rare striker killer. Collymore has almost maintained this excellent performance throughout the season, and it is precisely because of his help that Nottingham Forest has been actively attacking in the league and dared to fight against various powerful teams, which should not be underestimated.

Nottingham Forest also became the dark horse of this season, ranking third in the standings at the end of the season, just behind Blackburn and Manchester United, and ahead of many other giants such as Liverpool, Arsenal and Tottenham. After this season, Collymore also became a transfer target that Ferguson paid close attention to, and he hoped to bring this spiritual fast horse to the Theatre of Dreams.

In the third round of the league, the Red Devils traveled to White Hart Lane in London to challenge Tottenham away.

The Red Devils were still very active and aggressive in this game. They created many opportunities in the front court and could have scored many goals, but they missed them. Manchester United actually had a very smooth start. In the 22nd minute, Giggs made a cross from the right corner. His powerful delivery sent the ball to the back post. The Red Devils captain Bruce made an accurate judgment, moved to the back post in advance, and jumped up in time. While the opponent's defensive players were still at a loss, he headed the ball to the near post and directly hit the ball into the opponent's goal. Manchester United took the lead 1-0.

Bruce has always been known as a "sword-wielding guard" and a "high-altitude bomb among defenders". He is not only good at defense, but can also score goals. The Red Devils played more easily and freely after taking the lead, but the chances they created were wasted. Forward Mark Hughes once again hit the post, Ince also had a good chance to score from 6 yards in front of the goal, and Giggs missed two single-handed chances in a row!

The Red Devils almost caused a disaster because they failed to expand the score. Tottenham became more and more courageous in the second half, and their offensive became more and more sharp. Bruce was not close to the opponent in the penalty area and was passed by the opponent's forward. He had to knock down the opponent from behind, and the Red Devils were awarded a penalty!

Schmeichel stood up at the critical moment. The Danish goalkeeper miraculously predicted the opponent's shooting angle, accurately jumped in the right direction, and finally saved the opponent's penalty kick, defusing the crisis.

The Red Devils walked out of White Hart Lane with their heads held high with a 1-0 win. Bruce was still in shock after the game. "My goal gave the team the lead, which is a happy thing. But I want to thank my old buddy Schumi more. My mistake resulted in a penalty. I was completely knocked down by my opponent and had to tackle him. I regret it very much. This was undoubtedly a penalty. If the opponent equalized or reversed the game, the boss would probably let me take the ball directly! I have to admit that it was a stupid foul, but my old friend Schumi saved me."

In the fourth game, the Red Devils welcomed Wimbledon at home, and the fans welcomed back the hero they had been waiting for - Cantona. The King of Old Trafford, wearing the No. 7 jersey, had been banned by the FA before, and this game was his official debut in the new season.

Cantona was unstoppable. As soon as he came on the field, he became the biggest threat to the Red Devils. In his eyes, the opponent's defense was like tofu. In the 9th minute of the first half, Giggs made a precise long pass, and Cantona, who entered the penalty area in time, headed the ball directly. This cooperation was like an antelope hanging on the horns, which was untraceable and unstoppable. Cantona's header broke through the opponent's goalkeeper's ten fingers, and the Red Devils led 1-0. In the second half, Cantona's performance was still outstanding, and the opponent had to send the midfielder and central defender to specifically mark him. This arrangement made the entire midfield and backcourt unbalanced, and there were many defensive gaps. Cantona retreated at the right time, and McClair immediately rushed forward with the ball after successfully stealing the ball in the frontcourt. Cantona moved in time to take away the defensive player, and McClair rushed to the outside of the penalty area and shot hard. This shot also left the goalkeeper helpless, and the Red Devils led 2-0.

With the score at 2-0, the Red Devils basically secured the victory.

McClair's attack was full of the characteristics of the Red Devils: fast, simple, and powerful. From the sharp interception in the front court to the unhesitating advance, and then the tacit pull of his teammates, McClair fired a heavy shot at the right time. Simple, direct, without any drag, the powerful shot was full of violent beauty.

After scoring two goals in a row, the Red Devils were still not satisfied. They adjusted their rhythm slightly, withstood the opponent's attacks several times, and then started to attack again. After Pallister got the ball in the backcourt, he passed it directly to David May on the right, and David May passed it to Cantona with a short pass. The Frenchman likes to retreat to launch an attack, and at this time he has returned to the midfield area of ​​the court. Cantona quickly moved forward with the ball at his feet. The two opposing defenders did not dare to neglect and directly double-teamed, blocking Cantona's attack. The Frenchman quickly passed the ball to Giggs who came to meet him. Giggs ran from the left and pulled away, and the opponent's defense naturally had no time to pay attention. The free Giggs dribbled forward like an elf jumping in the forest. His body shape and rhythm changes were confusing. When Giggs met the opponent's defender at the penalty area line, he cleverly passed the ball to Mark Hughes in the diagonal direction, and he turned around and rushed into the penalty area without stopping. Mark Hughes understood and made a nearly perfect two-pass-one-wall cooperation, directly flicking the ball to Giggs who was inserted. Giggs flashed into the open space, received the pass from Mark Hughes tacitly, cut into the opponent's territory like an assassin, and then deftly shot the ball into the dead corner.

3-0, the Red Devils won easily and without any pressure.

At the end of August, the Red Devils had 8 wins and 4 draw in 3 league games, and were tied with Newcastle United in the standings, ranking first. Newcastle led the standings with a goal difference advantage, and the Red Devils ranked second; Blackburn had two big wins, but also two draws, and ranked behind the Red Devils in the standings, but also seemed to be chasing closely.

The start of this season was good for the Red Devils. Although they failed to win four games in a row to lead the standings, 3 wins and 1 draw were already very good. This August was also good for the Red Devils fans. Their home team was in good shape, able to control the rhythm of the game and take advantage of the situation, just like the lion king sitting on the throne, with strong self-confidence, strong strength, and unparalleled dominance.

The Times said: "The Red Devils easily overcame the difficulties without Cantona - strictly speaking, it was not a difficulty, and the Premier League opponents did not intend to take advantage of such an opportunity to make it more difficult for Ferguson. The opponents that the Red Devils encountered this month were very polite, and only the tougher Forest team finally took a point. Wimbledon, who have always restrained the Red Devils with roughness, have not actually changed their style, but they now find that they can no longer cope with more rigorous, sharper and more efficient opponents."