The legendary Red Devils coach: The road to success

"Manchester United lost both the games against Liverpool and Leeds United. There were many accidental factors in these two defeats, but losing always makes Ferguson angry, especially the loss to Leeds United made Ferguson feel a crisis."

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On December 1995, 12, the controversial Bosman Act in European football officially came into effect. This act completely abolished the rule that players must obtain permission from the team before they can transfer, and gave players more freedom to transfer. This immediately set off a huge wave in European football. The act also abolished the restrictions on the number of players from EU countries in European football matches, especially in the three major cups, no restrictions on player nationality were allowed.

Major European clubs immediately began to scout out stars from other teams, and a very sensitive atmosphere emerged in all major leagues.

In this atmosphere, Manchester United's next opponent in the Premier League is their arch-rival Liverpool, which will be another extremely fierce match between the two Reds.

Compared to Liverpool, the Red Devils were in a more difficult situation. The draw with Sheffield Wednesday sparked criticism from the media, and some media even began to blame Ferguson. Ferguson said: "Of course I am not satisfied with the result of the game, and even more dissatisfied with the three games without a win, but life is like this, there will always be some disappointments, and you must try to accept them, and then put them aside and prepare for new games."

"I am not pessimistic, on the contrary I have become more optimistic," Ferguson said. "The match against Sheffield Wednesday was a great game. Our young people have gained confidence and they are also growing. Young people need to mature in real competitions. This game is a good example of the setbacks on their way to growth."

Ferguson remained confident. "We are always confident no matter which team we play against, and this game against Liverpool is no exception. We are obviously a much better team than them now. We have won multiple league titles since the start of the Premier League, but they have not. This is the gap."

The importance of England's national derby has attracted much attention. Various public opinions have created a great atmosphere before the game. Both historical achievements and the strength of current players have been compared. Liverpool's new goalkeeper coach Joe Corrigan even brazenly claimed that James is a better goalkeeper than Schmeichel. Liverpool's head coach believes that Collymore, who joined the team for £850 million, is far better than Cole, who signed with the Red Devils for £700 million. Fowler and Owen are also far better than Giggs and Scholes. In addition to the battle of high-priced strikers, the media also compared Cantona and Reece Knapp, and compared who is the youth training talent team between the Red Devils' "Ferguson's children" and the "hot boys" of Anfield... The media don't know whether it is because of Ferguson's bad attitude or other reasons, they all intentionally or unintentionally belittled the Red Devils' youth training, and almost all of them are optimistic about Liverpool's young talents such as Fowler, McManaman, Reece Knapp and Owen, believing that their style is more gorgeous, more passionate, and more hot-blooded.

Ferguson was faced with a dilemma in the midfield, with Keane and Butt both absent, which seriously affected the balance of the team. The core player Pallister was missing from the defense, so Ferguson could only temporarily use David May and Bruce to play together. Lee Sharpe, Beckham, McClair and Giggs were sent to the midfield, and Cantona and Cole were sent to the forwards.

This improvised starting lineup put the Red Devils in a passive position right from the start. Beckham was very uncomfortable playing in the middle, and McClair was very slow in running and had a hard time in confrontation. Lee Sharpe and Giggs were under much more pressure in defense than in attack. Cantona and Cole could only retreat frequently to help defend. Soon after the start of the first half, the Red Devils fell behind in the midfield and suffered from Liverpool's pressure. The situation became completely passive. At the 45th minute of the first half, Liverpool won a free kick in an excellent position. Fowler took the penalty and kicked an extremely tricky arc ball. The ball bypassed the wall and flew straight into the blind corner of the Red Devils' goal. Schmeichel could only watch the ball go into the net, without any time to react.

The Red Devils continued to be sluggish in the second half, and they seemed unable to attack. Giggs sprinted to the wing several times, but it didn't have much effect. Cantona retreated frequently, and it was difficult for him to launch a sharp attack even after he had the ball. Cole's performance was still very sluggish, and he was almost threatening before being replaced by Scholes in the 53rd minute. Liverpool, who were leading, played steadily and did not give the Red Devils any chance to counterattack. In the 86th minute of the second half, McMaraman counterattacked from the left and advanced to the corner of the Red Devils' penalty area. After attracting the defense, he passed the ball to Fowler in the middle. Fowler got the ball in the penalty area and rushed to the penalty spot. After easily passing the Red Devils' central defender, he had enough time to adjust the angle and shoot, easily hitting the dead corner.

Liverpool eventually won 2:0 at home.

The media criticized the game one-sidedly, saying, "It is rare for the Red Devils to be unable to fight back against their arch-rivals and lose so thoroughly and cleanly."

Ferguson was furious after the game. He locked the players in the locker room and yelled for more than half an hour. Ferguson was extremely angry. "When we came to Anfield, when we faced Liverpool, I hope you understand what kind of game this is! You need to fight, not just give up. You are really a bunch of garbage, a pile of stinky shit! No one player can stand up, no one responds to the provocation of the other side, this is damned!"

Ferguson has not forgotten this humiliating battle many years later: "I can't bear that kind of humiliation. I think the players didn't even think about fighting, had no desire to kill the opponent, and didn't have the blood to fight the opponent to the end. This is the worst game for the Red Devils in the past few years."

Ferguson was extremely angry. Although he knew that the reasons for the players' poor form were complicated and sometimes not because they lacked fighting spirit or blood, Ferguson really could not accept this game. He had to stimulate the players to learn from their mistakes and make complete changes in the next game.

After the defeat at Anfield, the Red Devils' next opponent on the Christmas Express schedule was Leeds United. This Rose Derby was scheduled for December 1995, 12, which was Christmas Eve.

Ferguson adjusted the Red Devils' starting lineup. Gary temporarily partnered with Bruce to play as a central defender, Parker started as a right back, but in actual combat, not long after playing, Parker was replaced as a central defender, allowing Gary to return to the wing; Keane and Butt were used in the midfield. He gave Giggs and Lee Sharpe a rest, put Cantona on the left, Beckham on the right, and McClair and Cole formed a double striker.

This starting lineup still seemed very twisted. The Red Devils suffered a blow in the first five minutes. In the corner defense, Butt and the opponent's Jobson touched the ball with their hands when competing for the header. The referee awarded Leeds United a penalty kick. Leeds captain McAllister scored the penalty kick steadily and the home team led 1:0.

The Red Devils, who were behind, were very motivated and launched a fierce counterattack. In the 25th minute, Gary and Bart successfully counterattacked in the frontcourt, and Bart immediately passed the ball into the penalty area. Cole even advanced to the penalty area to grab the ball and scored the equalizer for the Red Devils!

After equalizing the score, the Red Devils started making various low-level mistakes. In the 35th minute, Leeds United's Ghanaian striker Yeboya stole the ball from Parker near the midfield and drove straight in. After entering the penalty area, Yeboya easily shook off Irwin and showed off his skills, dribbling the ball over Schmeichel and accurately sending it into the net.

The Red Devils were behind 1-2 in the first half, and the players were scolded by Ferguson again. In the second half, the Red Devils stepped up their offensive and the number of shots soared wildly, but they still failed to break the opponent's goal. Ferguson replaced Scholes and Giggs in the second half to strengthen the attack, but the opponent's iron bucket formation was very solid. In the 73rd minute of the second half, Leeds' Carlton Palmer got the ball along the right side of the counterattack and went down the bottom. He successfully shook off Irwin and passed back. When Swedish international Brolin led the ball at the edge of the penalty area, there was no one defending him. Captain Bruce could only rush out of the small penalty area at full speed to make up for the defense, and the entire defense system completely collapsed. Brolin did not shoot directly from a long distance, but accurately lifted the ball to the front of the goal. At this time, three Leeds United attacking players had already rushed to Schmeichel's front, and at this moment there were even more than the Red Devils' defensive players. Leeds United's Dean easily headed the ball into the goal, helping the team to lock in the victory 3-1.

Another serious defeat for the Red Devils. What is even more regrettable is that the Red Devils lost another player. Cantona was injured in the head during the game, and his shirt was soaked with blood. Captain Bruce was also injured in the game and was replaced midway.

Five games without a win in all competitions and two consecutive defeats in the league, such a record really makes the Red Devils fans extremely depressed.

The media once again launched a bombardment on Ferguson, saying that there were serious problems with Ferguson's lineup, that his tactical style had become extremely radical, and that the players played in a mess. They pointed out that the Red Devils had no one who could replace Pallister or Bruce, and that Parker and Irwin were too old to withstand the impact of the young players who broke into the Premier League.

The Times said: "Watching Bruce being teased by Fowler, watching Yeboya score after intercepting Parker's clearance, watching Brolin break into the Red Devils' riddled position, I really feel sad for this Red Devils team that is leaking everywhere."

Ferguson still insisted, "We have nothing to explain. The game is out of control? I don't think so. We did make low-level mistakes, and we must let the young people try to avoid them in the future. Let's talk about Cole's goal, which is actually very important. The facts prove that Andy Cole has not lost confidence, and neither have my players. We will adjust our state and get back to where we should be."

The media did not believe Ferguson's bold words. Sky TV said, "The Red Devils coach watched his team lose consecutive games within 8 days and watched the team drift away from the Premier League trophy. This helplessness makes people realize the reality and cruelty of football."

A reporter from The Sun even said: "Is the era of Ferguson over? Can a coach who has no support from the board and blindly believes in youth training really bring the Red Devils back to the top? We are full of doubts."

While the Red Devils were struggling, their title rivals Newcastle were already 10 points ahead of the Red Devils after defeating Nottingham Forest.

Ferguson will never lose confidence, he always emphasizes that there is still a chance to win the championship. His stubbornness is also reasonable. The league is only halfway through, and the points gap is only 4 games. As long as Newcastle loses a few games in a row, everything will be fine. Ferguson believes that his team can withstand the difficult schedule, but the opponent may not be able to do so. On the other hand, Ferguson also knows that there are still two opportunities to face Newcastle face to face. This is undoubtedly the key to overtaking the opponent, and it is even worth 12 points!

At the end of December, Ferguson will have a conversation with Newcastle. Ferguson firmly believes that the team will beat the Magpies on Boxing Day. He wants to boost morale and effectively undermine the opponent's momentum through a head-to-head victory.

Newcastle United temporarily has an advantage in points, but Ferguson is not worried about it. In Ferguson's dictionary, a short-term deficit in points does not mean anything. However, many media once again believe that this will be Ferguson's only chance. If Newcastle United beats the Red Devils at Old Trafford, Ferguson's hope that the Red Devils will snipe and surpass their opponents will become a daydream, and his bold words will become a complete joke.