Date: 31st December 2011 at 11:16am
Written by:

70 years of age and still going, it makes you wonder when the evergreen Sir Alex Ferguson is going to stop adding to the already overwhelming  12 Premier League trophies,5 FA Cups,4 League Cups,10 Community/Charity Shields,2 Champions League trophies, a Cup Winners Cup, Super Cup, Intercontinental Cup and Fifa Club World Cup at Manchester United.

He is and has always been a top class manager by all standards, the best British football and arguably the world has ever had. His enthusiasm and winning mentality for the game is astonishing.Sir Alex was a success in Aberdeen before taking over an underachieving Manchester United in November 1986 and eventually ‘knocking Liverpool off their perch’ as he famously lead them to a record 19th League title.

A great manager must have equally great players to achieve set targets and the Scot has been a masterstroke in nurturing young talents into top quality players. Not necessarily captioning the obvious, Paul Scholes, Ryan Giggs, David Beckham, Christiano Ronaldo and the Neville brothers are a fraction of Sir Alex’s eminent outcomes. His determination to stand by his principles against all odds has been an integral part of his success too.

That point of his managerial prowess was rightly proved when Manchester United won the Premier League and League Cup double in the 1995-96 season after Alan Hansen had written off Fergie’s men following their 3-1 defeat to Aston Villa on the opening day of the same season, coining the phrase “You won’t win anything with kids.”

You can understand Fergie’s fury when former Manchester United captain Roy Kean, questioned the ability of his current squad following their Champions League exit in Switzerland.

Despite being protective of his players, Sir Alex is not a man who is left on the seat of his pants when things are not going right. Players who have worked under Ferguson testify to the fact being at the receiving end of the hairdryer treatment is one hell of a thing.

Match officials, the media and opposition managers are also no exception when it comes to being at the receiving end of Ferguson’s fury. This all makes Sir Alex Ferguson an even more interesting character.

Sir Alex turns 70 today and has seen off many challengers in his 25 years reign as Manchester United boss, but has another task to undertake in his billionaire Manchester neighbors.

His wish of being top of the Premier League by New Year’s Day now lies in his own hands and you wouldn’t bet against it happening. Although a little earlier than usual it will mark the start of  raise an exciting period, so as he raises a glass of red when fireworks are shot into the sky to usher in the year 2012, it is also likely to usher in “squeaky-bum time.”

He has lasted the course previously and I don’t doubt his ability to do so this time around either.

Happy Birthday, Sir Alex.

 

One response to “Fergie at 70: A True Football Hero.”

  1. RedScot says:

    Brilliant, well said in this article.
    He is ‘my hero’.Happy 70th Sir Alex Ferguson.