Alex Ferguson
I used to disregard Alex Ferguson, as another of British football's overrated products. Then I used to hate him, for succeeding so often. The hate then turned to grudging respect, and even appreciation for all that he had achieved. That respect became admiration, occasionally jealousy, and then finally when he retired, it became the respect I reserve for those I consider the greatest in any sport - whether I liked them or not.
Alex Ferguson at United reminded me of the typically Indian middle class father. As a son, you might be more talented, gotten more opportunities and learnt everything much faster than him - but at home, daddy was always the boss. Even though he wasn't perfect, he was right far too often in almost everything. He gave you all the freedom you wanted, and deserved, but the moment you started getting too big for your shoes, you were put in your place. It did not matter if you had just topped an exam, or won 3 man of the matches on the trot.
As you grew up, and started talking more sense, you even got more responsibilities and power at home, but in the end - daddy was always the boss, and far more often than not, right too.
In an increasingly super star and media driven world of sports, he stood as a the still-respected father. Whether it was Beckham or van Nistelrooy, it did not matter how big the star was, what his performances had been and how much he meant to the continuing success of the club. Just like at home it did not matter to daddy whether you were more talented or your brother - everyone had to fall in line.
Having said this, he was not a dictator. As I have said enough times by now, he was like Pappa at home. Strong enough that you fear him when you do wrong, but he gave enough love that you knew he was always in your corner. Like Pappa, he was also very good at coaxing things out of you which even you did not think were possible of you. Just look at the number of average to good players he has made look good to great, and the phenomenal self belief and attitude which allowed United to sneak many a victories in the dying seconds of a game
You get the point, dont you?
Being a really great and consistently successful football manager requires two sets of skills - tactical football acumen, and man management. That Fergie was a class apart in the second is beyond doubt. In fact, a very famous school of thought that goes around in sports (not very wrongly, I may suggest) is that a coach can get stale in 3-4 years, as the players need to hear newer messages. We see it all the time - either this happening, or we see coaches (like Pep Guardiola) who leave stating this as their logic. In the face of such trends, and the tantrums of the modern day footballer, what Fergie pulled off was extra terrestrial. He may or may not be the greatest football coach ever, but he must the greatest man manager in sport. I cannot recall a better one, or even anyone close. Jose Mourinho is considered a great motivator too, but he doesn't seem to outlast that cycle of 3-4 years anywhere.
Now, about the tactical side of Fergie. As I read in some recent piece, Fergie's style was the scorecard. He was a winner, who probably did not care how. Under him, United generally always played attacking soccer, and if I had to pin him to one style, then it would have to be that of a counter-attacking team that liked to use pacy wingers. But really, his only style was that of winning.
In the debate around the greatest football managers, where Fergie often seems to lose out is that he did not have a particular style that he inspired (catenaccio, total football, tiki taka). While those who point this out have their right reasons, I feel it allowed him to flexible. The other benefit is that what we see with all the a/m styles is that there very soon emerges a counter-style that is designed specifically to beat the dominant team, which then fails to recover quickly, because their ego about the righteousness of their playing style leads to their downfall.
The other thing I find missing in Fergie's glittering resume is the absence of any of his United teams to have 4-5 year spell of consistent domination at home and in Europe. As we survey the greatest teams in football, this is a common thread that runs through all of them. While it must be said that building, re-building and then doing that a few more times at a single club for 27 years is by itself an unparalleled achievement, even the most die hard of Fergie and United fans would agree that this is somewhere he did fall short. Over 27 years, he had many chances to build exactly such a team which could be remembered amongst the greatest of any era.
As someone who hated United until Roman came along, it is needless to say that I have often said to myself - 'bas ek baar ye buddha retire ho jaaye, dekhte hai kya karte hain ye!' You see, Alex Ferguson did not play like Lionel, but he could keep United stable, keep them in contention and attract top talent. While Barcelona are not concerned domestically with United, we do compete with them to be the best in the world - and as long as they had SAF in their corner, they were always assured of either being fairly good, or recovering quickly.
I am not sure about who is the greatest manager in football, which is a sport where finding a 'greatest' for even a single position is a very useless activity. I is the only truly global sport, and that is reflected in the richness of the game, which allows many successful players, coaches and systems to co-exist - taking their turns at the top.
So, in the end, I am obviously happy to see him go. I want to see how United copes without him on the sidelines. My feeling is that United will do okay - they will never be as stable as they were, but I do not see them spiralling into failure as well. Just that United fans will also have to get used to new managers every few years, with the occasional bout of instability.
But, having said that, I am also in awe of what he has achieved, and can only hope that my favourite sport teams are someday lucky enough to find a man who can last successfully for 13.5 years!
Lastly, while SAF received all the coverage and praise he deserves, I thought not enough people praised the United board and management over the years to have had the good sense to keep him there, and ensure he feels like coming to work everyday. Even if every club was gifted an Alex Ferguson today, most would never have the sense, the patience or the good fortune of keeping him this long.
I used to disregard Alex Ferguson, as another of British football's overrated products. Then I used to hate him, for succeeding so often. The hate then turned to grudging respect, and even appreciation for all that he had achieved. That respect became admiration, occasionally jealousy, and then finally when he retired, it became the respect I reserve for those I consider the greatest in any sport - whether I liked them or not.
Alex Ferguson at United reminded me of the typically Indian middle class father. As a son, you might be more talented, gotten more opportunities and learnt everything much faster than him - but at home, daddy was always the boss. Even though he wasn't perfect, he was right far too often in almost everything. He gave you all the freedom you wanted, and deserved, but the moment you started getting too big for your shoes, you were put in your place. It did not matter if you had just topped an exam, or won 3 man of the matches on the trot.
As you grew up, and started talking more sense, you even got more responsibilities and power at home, but in the end - daddy was always the boss, and far more often than not, right too.
In an increasingly super star and media driven world of sports, he stood as a the still-respected father. Whether it was Beckham or van Nistelrooy, it did not matter how big the star was, what his performances had been and how much he meant to the continuing success of the club. Just like at home it did not matter to daddy whether you were more talented or your brother - everyone had to fall in line.
Having said this, he was not a dictator. As I have said enough times by now, he was like Pappa at home. Strong enough that you fear him when you do wrong, but he gave enough love that you knew he was always in your corner. Like Pappa, he was also very good at coaxing things out of you which even you did not think were possible of you. Just look at the number of average to good players he has made look good to great, and the phenomenal self belief and attitude which allowed United to sneak many a victories in the dying seconds of a game
You get the point, dont you?
Being a really great and consistently successful football manager requires two sets of skills - tactical football acumen, and man management. That Fergie was a class apart in the second is beyond doubt. In fact, a very famous school of thought that goes around in sports (not very wrongly, I may suggest) is that a coach can get stale in 3-4 years, as the players need to hear newer messages. We see it all the time - either this happening, or we see coaches (like Pep Guardiola) who leave stating this as their logic. In the face of such trends, and the tantrums of the modern day footballer, what Fergie pulled off was extra terrestrial. He may or may not be the greatest football coach ever, but he must the greatest man manager in sport. I cannot recall a better one, or even anyone close. Jose Mourinho is considered a great motivator too, but he doesn't seem to outlast that cycle of 3-4 years anywhere.
Now, about the tactical side of Fergie. As I read in some recent piece, Fergie's style was the scorecard. He was a winner, who probably did not care how. Under him, United generally always played attacking soccer, and if I had to pin him to one style, then it would have to be that of a counter-attacking team that liked to use pacy wingers. But really, his only style was that of winning.
In the debate around the greatest football managers, where Fergie often seems to lose out is that he did not have a particular style that he inspired (catenaccio, total football, tiki taka). While those who point this out have their right reasons, I feel it allowed him to flexible. The other benefit is that what we see with all the a/m styles is that there very soon emerges a counter-style that is designed specifically to beat the dominant team, which then fails to recover quickly, because their ego about the righteousness of their playing style leads to their downfall.
The other thing I find missing in Fergie's glittering resume is the absence of any of his United teams to have 4-5 year spell of consistent domination at home and in Europe. As we survey the greatest teams in football, this is a common thread that runs through all of them. While it must be said that building, re-building and then doing that a few more times at a single club for 27 years is by itself an unparalleled achievement, even the most die hard of Fergie and United fans would agree that this is somewhere he did fall short. Over 27 years, he had many chances to build exactly such a team which could be remembered amongst the greatest of any era.
As someone who hated United until Roman came along, it is needless to say that I have often said to myself - 'bas ek baar ye buddha retire ho jaaye, dekhte hai kya karte hain ye!' You see, Alex Ferguson did not play like Lionel, but he could keep United stable, keep them in contention and attract top talent. While Barcelona are not concerned domestically with United, we do compete with them to be the best in the world - and as long as they had SAF in their corner, they were always assured of either being fairly good, or recovering quickly.
I am not sure about who is the greatest manager in football, which is a sport where finding a 'greatest' for even a single position is a very useless activity. I is the only truly global sport, and that is reflected in the richness of the game, which allows many successful players, coaches and systems to co-exist - taking their turns at the top.
So, in the end, I am obviously happy to see him go. I want to see how United copes without him on the sidelines. My feeling is that United will do okay - they will never be as stable as they were, but I do not see them spiralling into failure as well. Just that United fans will also have to get used to new managers every few years, with the occasional bout of instability.
But, having said that, I am also in awe of what he has achieved, and can only hope that my favourite sport teams are someday lucky enough to find a man who can last successfully for 13.5 years!
Lastly, while SAF received all the coverage and praise he deserves, I thought not enough people praised the United board and management over the years to have had the good sense to keep him there, and ensure he feels like coming to work everyday. Even if every club was gifted an Alex Ferguson today, most would never have the sense, the patience or the good fortune of keeping him this long.
