The legendary Red Devils coach: The road to success

Chapter 73 Humiliated Again

"After losing to Wimbledon for the third time in a row, Ferguson once again marveled at the 'lenient' refereeing in English football, and was once again embarrassed by his team's weak defeat in front of the Mad Gang. This should not be his team's style, and even if they lose, they should not lose so miserably."

--Inscription

In the 16th round of the league, the Red Devils played against Wimbledon away.

Wimbledon is a team that is considered to be the Red Devils' "victim", and has become Ferguson's concern. Last season, his Red Devils lost to their opponents twice, not only losing the game, but also the scene was horrible.

In this match, Ferguson was determined to wash away the shame. Not only did he want to show the team's bloodiness on the away field, but he also wanted to defeat the opponent and overthrow the crazy gang in front of nearly 10,000 fans of the opponent to get back the ground.

Wimbledon played at home and played even more wildly and unbridled. Amid the crazy cheers of the home team, this team was very fierce and showed its fangs right from the start. They played traditional English football, with a simple and efficient style of play, high crosses and long passes. Behind these simple tactics was their confidence in their bodies, strength and speed, so they fought fiercely with the Red Devils players, constantly looking for confrontations, and always put on a meat grinder posture.

The entire Red Devils team was ready for a head-on confrontation, but the players were quickly overwhelmed by the opponent's beast-like collision after the start of the game. In terms of strength and physical strength, the Red Devils players were far inferior to their opponents, and it would be even worse if they were scared of being robbed right away. Among the entire Red Devils team, only McGrath, McClair and Robson could withstand such a physical fight, but they could not fight for the others. After Wimbledon avoided a few tough opponents of the Red Devils, they could do whatever they wanted to the remaining Red Devils players.

Not long after the game started, Wimbledon's typical English football tactics made the Red Devils suffer. After the game started, Wimbledon quickly opened up their formation and did not fight with the Red Devils in the midfield. They started with long passes from the backcourt, then crossed from the wing, then rushed to the goal or scrambled in the penalty area, looking for opportunities to shoot in the melee... The three axes of the "crazy gang" looked simple and crude, but after opening up their formation, they still made the Red Devils flustered and unable to resist.

Another reason for the Red Devils' passivity is the referee. Ferguson found that the referee's whistle in this game was really biased, and the Red Devils were always the ones who suffered. Some of the Red Devils players were not afraid of the opponent's rough actions, but when they fought back, they were frequently called for fouls, and suddenly became restrained. The Red Devils players found that as long as their confrontational actions were a little bigger, the referee would always call for a foul, and the opponent would cooperate with the referee to perform a "screaming" show; even in some 50-50 chances of both sides, the referee's penalty was always not in favor of the Red Devils. Such a biased refereeing standard quickly restrained the performance of the Red Devils players. Even if the Red Devils players played cautiously, they could not avoid receiving two yellow cards soon.

The Red Devils played more and more restrained, while Wimbledon played more and more "boldly".

Ferguson was furious.

He found it difficult to understand the atmosphere of the game and could not accept that Wimbledon was always blessed by the referees. Ferguson kept rushing to the fourth referee to complain and question, but the other party ignored him.

With the malicious connivance of the referee, Wimbledon easily took the advantage and unscrupulously launched the "woodcutting style". They committed countless fouls in this game, and their actions became increasingly vicious. The players of the Mad Gang were as excited as if they had been injected with chicken blood. They scrambled all over the field, constantly knocked down the Red Devils players, and constantly used brutal actions to snatch the ball from the Red Devils. The referee seemed to have forgotten to wear glasses and the whistle at his lips. He actually tolerated the Mad Gang's wildness so openly, and even turned a blind eye to those rough fouls that seriously injured people.

Ferguson, who was directing the game on the sidelines, was shaking with anger.

The referee was so disgusting, which left the Red Devils players at a loss.

Ferguson kept yelling and even cursing on the sidelines, but there was no way to make the players play more aggressively, but this did not help the whole team.

Of course, Ferguson knew where the problem lay. He was lonely and helpless at this time and could only vent his anger alone.

The core reason for all this was the referee's biased whistle, and also the immaturity of the Red Devils players, who lacked the means to deal with such an opponent. In this match, Ferguson was without Strachan, the most technically skilled player, and the organization in the midfield was very messy and inefficient, making it difficult to effectively move the ball to the frontcourt. The Wimbledon team simply locked on Robson, directly cutting off the Red Devils captain's connection with the forwards, and also cutting off his efficient transmission and transfer lines to the two wings, which immediately hit the Red Devils to be disconnected from front and back, and broken from left to right.

At the end of the game, the Red Devils lost to their opponents 1-2.

Ferguson could not respect his opponents, let alone the referee. Even a rough opponent like Wimbledon. He believed that his opponent could do anything to win, including such unreasonable play and foul tactics. He could always think of ways to win, but it was impossible for him to respect such dirty tactics. He was most angry about the referee. He was so "blind and black-hearted" that he favored one side and harmed the legitimate interests of the other side. This was really rare.

After the game, Ferguson fiercely criticized the English Football Association and the referee. "I hope everyone will pay attention to the brutality and injuries on the field. It's not that we can't accept losing, it's not that we can't bear collisions and fights, but please open your eyes and see what is kicking the ball and what is kicking people."

Ferguson knows that the FA is biased and is very afraid of the head coach criticizing the referee. He often defends the referee's authority at all costs and punishes the relevant clubs and personnel afterwards. However, he still speaks out: "For a healthy league, a progressive league, the most important thing is to make fair referees and put the protection of players' lives and health at the core. I don't believe that any team or anyone can accept the scale of today's game. In fact, even Wimbledon protested after some of our fierce counterattacks, but for us it was just tit for tat. I don't need to question the injustice of the referee, everyone saw the whole process. What I want to emphasize is the effectiveness of law enforcement and truly protect all players who work hard and play normally."

After scolding the referee, Ferguson did not let the team go. He was not stingy with his temper and turned on the "hair dryer" again, yelling at every player, making all the players feel scared.

Ferguson first scolded goalkeeper Walsh, "What the f*ck are you doing? All you can do is hide behind the door and cry? All you can do is ask your mother for help? Can't you use your f*cking strength? Are your hands just for show? People have put their hands on your face, and you can't f*cking fight back?!"

"You can't even guard the goal, but you can't fight?!"

The defense was also severely criticized. Ferguson said: "I have never seen such a weak defense, nor have I seen a defense that can only shrink near the penalty area line. You are like a group of fleeing soldiers and a group of hooligans. You just retreat and surrender. What a shit! Stinking shit!"

Ferguson even didn't let Robson go, "Have you completely lost your ability to be a leader now? No matter how the opponent invades us, shouldn't we start the counterattack from you? Is it any use for you to fight the opponent alone? Why can't you command? Why don't you let your teammates work together?! The opponent's Vinnie Jones killed our entire midfield, you are the laughing stock! ! Do you know that the Red Devils' midfield actually lost because of you?!"

Robson did not refute or defend himself, he chose to endure it silently.

Ferguson found it hard to accept the team's loss to Wimbledon, but when the "Crazy Gang" broke out, everyone in the league would have a headache. Even a strong team like Liverpool would suffer if they were not careful, and even if they deployed defenses as if they were facing a formidable enemy, they still did not get any good results.

At the end of the season, after winning the league championship, Liverpool faced Wimbledon in the FA Cup final, but was eventually defeated by the crazy fight of these muscular players of Wimbledon.

Ferguson's successive defeats at Wimbledon reminded him that the Red Devils still had problems with their strength and team. He had a deeper understanding of the team's flaws. After all, this kind of defeat against fierce and tough opponents was not the first or second time. If he wanted to win against a team with a tough style and rough play, and gain the upper hand on the field, he needed to do more.

After losing to Wimbledon, Ferguson bluntly stated that the Red Devils must bounce back and must not collapse.

In the 17th round of the league, the Red Devils played away against Queens Park Rangers. Ferguson had done enough homework before the game. He not only replaced the main goalkeeper, but also replaced the defender Blackmore, and also welcomed back Strachan. Facing the weak team, the Red Devils launched an offensive at the beginning and took the initiative. Under Ferguson's strict order, the players went all out, strengthened the offense, and always occupied the advantage of the game. While constantly creating opportunities in the frontcourt, the defense line was not tested too much. Queens Park Rangers did not play conservatively at home. They also hoped to grab points. In the game, they insisted on starting the confrontation with the Red Devils in the middle and frontcourt, leaving a lot of space for the opponent. The Red Devils' tactics happened to be used by the Red Devils, and they quickly took the lead in the midfield competition. Taking advantage of the opponent's position too far forward in the offensive and defensive exchanges, they could not shrink the defense in time, and took the opportunity to launch a quick attack and created many opportunities. In the end, striker Davenport and midfielder Robson scored for the Red Devils respectively, and the Red Devils finally won the opponent 2-0.

In the 18th round, the Red Devils defeated Oxford United at home. Oxford United has a rough style and simple play, but its organization is not tight enough, which is exactly the type of opponent that the Red Devils like. The Red Devils quickly suppressed their opponents with their personal skills, and the defense line also paid close attention to their fast long pass counterattacks. In this game, Strachan, who was very skilled, was in the limelight. He was like a fish in water in the opponent's midfield and backcourt, fully demonstrating his advantages of delicate skills and excellent dribbling. Strachan was almost unstoppable in the midfield and frontcourt. The two midfielders of Oxford United could not defend him. His organization and planning and attacking alone in the frontcourt were extremely powerful. Oxford United's defense was leaky everywhere and there was no way to resist. In the end, Strachan shone throughout the game and easily scored 2 goals. Olsen also scored a goal. The Red Devils won 3-1 at home.

The Red Devils have won two consecutive games, but the team is facing difficulties as the team gradually loses players.

After many games, the Red Devils have fewer and fewer key players, especially in the midfield and backcourt. Central defender McGrath has missed many games due to injury and cannot return in time. His absence is like the Red Devils have been deprived of the mainstay of their defense. The defense is always in danger of being under high pressure and there are always some dangerous situations.

Ferguson can't wait for this situation. It is a huge problem no matter what if the team does not have a core central defender.

Ferguson believed that the Red Devils had to bring in a new central defender. He applied to the board of directors, explained to the boss, and asked the veterans to help lobby the management to finally make up their minds. As for the candidate, it was decided early on that it was Norwich's core player, the outstanding central defender Steve Bruce.

Ferguson wanted to bring in Bruce, but it was not easy. Although Norwich was mediocre, the team had to avoid relegation and the pressure was very high. A core player like Bruce would not be let go easily.

They have always rejected Ferguson because they are unwilling to lose the team's core defender and the most trusted defensive leader in the middle of the season.

Ferguson didn't have much choice but to keep raising the price until the "greedy" demands of the Norwich chairman were met.