Who Deserved Alex Ferguson Criticism and Who Didn't
Former Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson released his latest book this week, with several chapters apparently dedicated to pouring scorn and vitriol on a whole range of individuals within the world of football.
Former captains and players, signings and rival managers and even some who had nothing to do with Manchester United at all, all come under Fergie's gaze as he recounts his relationships with these folk.
Much has already been made in the media of the people Ferguson opted to criticise, but did they all deserve it? Here's a rundown on nine people who bore his wrath and whether or not he was right to lay into them.
David Beckham
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BBC Sport led with Ferguson's criticism of former midfielder David Beckham, who Ferguson said was destined to be sold as soon as he "thought he was bigger than Alex Ferguson."
This is a tricky one. On the one hand, as manager of a football club, Ferguson indeed had to have absolute authority over his players, but on the other hand he also can't expect every single one of them to need the same treatment or to have the same outlook on life.
Ferguson questioned Beckham's celebrity life outside of football, including his marriage.
"David was the only player I managed who chose to be famous, who made it his mission to be known outside the game. I felt uncomfortable with the celebrity aspect of his life. He fell in love with Victoria [Beckham] - that changed everything.
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There were the frequent publicity stunts with hairstyle, the moves to Real Madrid and LA Galaxy and an insinuation that he stopped working hard in his final year at the club, but the biggest criticism Ferguson had of Beckham was that he refused to acknowledge his part in a goal conceded against Arsenal.
In that regard, perhaps Ferguson is right.
Whatever the level of talent of a player, the boss has to be able to harness that for the good of the team.
If Beckham was no longer contributing to United's cause in the right way, Ferguson was right to sell him and perhaps right to criticise him—though a player cannot be, and Beckham should not have been, castigated for not having the same views on the game as Ferguson himself.
Steven Gerrard
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Matt Lawton and Ian Ladyman at the Daily Mail report on Ferguson's views on England captain Steven Gerrard.
The Scot says that Gerrard was not a "top, top player" and "seldom had a kick" against Manchester United duo Roy Keane and Paul Scholes.
We could stop there and leave the nonsense hanging, but why?
If Ferguson didn't rate Gerrard above those two, and already had those two players plugging his own midfield, why did he continually try to sign the Liverpool midfielder?
If Gerrard couldn't get near a United midfield, why has he scored seven times against the Red Devils, including in a victorious League Cup final that he completely dominated?
Ferguson acknowledged that Gerrard could beat teams by himself at times, which is generous of him considering how many times Gerrard has managed to do just that to United, but really, the question has to be...why is Ferguson speaking about him at all?
Why be publicly critical of a player who Ferguson has never managed, never signed, never had anything to do with at all?
No, Ferguson was not right to comment in this way about Gerrard.
Roy Keane
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Perhaps the two biggest aggressive personalities in the Premier League over the last two decades, it was natural that Roy Keane thrived under Alex Ferguson—and also that it would not end all that well.
According to BBC Sport, Ferguson wrote:
"The hardest part of Roy's body is his tongue. He has the most savage tongue you can imagine. He can debilitate the most confident person in the world in seconds. He was an intimidating, ferocious individual."
The Daily Mail, via Ian Ladyman and Matt Lawton, further cite Ferguson stating it was a relief when Keane left Manchester United and that the player couldn't cope with his own failing standards and ability to impact a game.
Whether that was the ultimate reason or not, there is no denying that Keane crossed the line—a number of lines, even—when he criticised his own team-mates for the club's television channel.
Just as his manager was right to heave him out of the team at the time, so Ferguson was right to criticise Keane further in hindsight at what was obviously a gross misjudgement of circumstance.
Ruud van Nistlerooy
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Jeremy Wilson of the Telegraph also wades in with a report on Ferguson's criticism of former striker Ruud van Nistelrooy.
The argument revolves around the Dutchman's behaviour over the last season he spent at Old Trafford, where he was alleged to have clashed with Cristiano Ronaldo, shown poor behaviour and swore at Ferguson himself for leaving his striker on the bench for a League Cup final.
Whether Van Nistelrooy himself felt he had done all he could at United or whether he lacked faith in young signings such as Ronaldo and Wayne Rooney, a player ultimately has no business treating his manager in that way.
It wouldn't be stood for in any other kind of business, nor should it be within a football club where unity and order is arguably far more important than in an office environment or other such alternative industry.
Ferguson was right to criticise Van Nistelrooy in this instance—but he was also right to point out that the Dutch striker, to his credit, had since apologised for his behaviour.
Rafa Benitez
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Rather than Jose Mourinho, Arsene Wenger or any Manchester City manager, the opposing boss who seems to have come in for the most criticism from Ferguson is former Liverpool (and Chelsea) manager Rafael Benitez.
As per Ben Rumsby at the Telegraph, Ferguson labels Benitez "silly," a "control freak" and "unimaginative," while also attacking his signings and his lack of friends among football managers.
A cynic might think it was something of a relief for Ferguson that Benitez, who came closest to unseating Ferguson and United in 2009, lost his way the following year and was sacked by Liverpool.
On the other hand, you could examine closer Ferguson's assertions that Benitez demanded control over every aspect of the club, and perhaps turn the mirror back on the Scot himself? Ferguson openly admits throughout his book that he would not let any semblance of control over players and the like fall from his own grasp, so why the criticism of a fellow professional boss for the same perceived failing?
As for unimaginative teams, Benitez never had the same starting point as United when he arrived at the club, yet he grew the team to stand within touching distance of Ferguson domestically, and often above them in Europe over a three- or four-year period.
His tactics certainly changed more often than Ferguson's did, too, and Liverpool fans didn't find it particularly dull when they were winning 4-1 at Old Trafford.
Attacking signings is an easy game, one which anybody with half a memory or access to the Internet can do, but Ferguson might do well to remember that many other players and managers will go on to write books in the future.
And for every failed Fernando Morientes or Andrea Dossena, there were plenty of Eric Djemba-Djemba's, Bebe's, Massimo Taibi's and Manucho's during Fergie's reign, just waiting to be dredged up some years down the line.
It's hard to see what Ferguson thought he would get out of criticising Benitez in this way, and it doesn't come across terribly well.
Ferguson had a better United team than Liverpool when Rafa arrived, and he had a better one when Rafa left.
What else is there?
Mark Bosnich, Owen Hargreaves, Wayne Rooney and Roberto Mancini
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Mark Bosnich was singled out for criticism, as per Tom Lutz in the Guardian, on account of being a "dreadful professional."
Ferguson remarked how Bosnich arrived several hours late for his first training session, was overweight and showed no particular inclination to keep that weight off, often over-eating.
Given the goalkeeper's attitude to professionalism later in his career where he was sacked by Chelsea for abuse of cocaine, it might be fair to take Ferguson's word on this one—Bosnich probably deserved it.
Owen Hargreaves was a £17 million signing by Ferguson from Bayern Munich, but Martin Lipton of Mirror Sport reports the former manager labelled him a "disaster" who he didn't like prior to signing him and who flat lied about United's mistreatment of him during his time injured.
Hargreaves joined rivals Manchester City after leaving United but considering he made a total of five league appearances in his last four years as a professional, and failed to recapture fitness after leaving United, it's hard to say anything other than Ferguson was arguably right here.
That perhaps goes especially for Hargreaves' inability to show mental resolve to overcome his fitness issues.
Wayne Rooney remains at Manchester United after Ferguson has left, but the former United boss criticised his lack of form, fitness and focus last season according to Owen Gibson at the Guardian.
Whether it was indeed because Rooney wasn't being played in his best role, because of agent interference or something else is unclear, but there can be nobody who saw the No. 10 play who believes he was at his peak during 2012-13.
Already showing signs of improvement, it's apparent that Rooney needed more fitness to start getting back to his best, so Ferguson was again right—though conflicting stories still surround the "transfer request" Rooney was supposed to have handed in.
Roberto Mancini, finally, was criticised, as per BBC Sport, for playing Carlos Tevez after the forward had gone on strike for Manchester City.
As a manager who himself reinstated players to the team after missing drugs tests, handing in transfer requests and even attacking rival team's fans, the hypocrisy here is ridiculous—City's team selection has nothing to do with Ferguson and this criticism is obviously borne of a frustration that City beat his United team to the title that year.
He was entirely wrong to apportion blame to Mancini for this.
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