Sir Alex Ferguson left Manchester United back in 2013 and ever since it has been a painful experience, with several false dawns.
We knew it was coming. Ever since Sir Alex Ferguson announced his plan to retire in 2002, which he thankfully performed a U-turn on, Manchester United fans knew his tenure would one day come to an end.
Ferguson went on to win a further succession of league titles, domestic cups and another Champions League, continuing the ride before calling his managerial career to an abrupt end in 2013.
The great man went out on top, having won the 2012/13 title. It was a tremendous season, wrestling the trophy back from City for the club’s record 20th, and his 13th.
But it was not quite the top of the mountain. Fergie was incandescent with rage with Nani’s red card leading to defeat against Real Madrid at Old Trafford earlier that year, denying him the chance to win another Champions League title. It was his last chance.
Sir Alex Ferguson retirement reflections
It was a surreal moment when Sir Alex Ferguson’s retirement was announced. The news was leaked to the media hours before, and then the formal confirmation came. It was like a hammer blow.
For myself it was the moment I had feared. I was born in 1986, the same year Sir Alex Ferguson was appointed as Manchester United manager. Fergie’s reign was all I knew. Many in the same boat would not similarly not have been able to imagine a United without him.
Spoiled on years of success, what has followed has been the lean spell Manchester United fans feared.
While Fergie had his blind spots and flaws, his insistence towards the end there was ‘no value in the market’ as he overlooked some obvious potential deals, he was the best in the business.
Since Ferguson retired, Manchester United have won two FA Cups, two League Cups, and one Europa League.
Stacked up against a Newcastle or Tottenham, those five trophies in 12 years look good, yet this is Manchester United. A club Ferguson built into a powerhouse. The powerhouse. Real Madrid should be the comparison.
The destruction since has been appalling. Ferguson’s departure was made more difficult by David Gill’s decision to leave at the same time too.
For years Ferguson and Gill held United together. What followed was amateur-hour.
The recommended successor David Moyes was ‘supported’ by the unqualified new CEO Ed Woodward, who managed to last almost a decade in his post, showing the Glazers’ disdain for football operations.
All the cracks Ferguson was able to paper over, turned into chasms, and at times a club of this size has simply ripped itself apart.
Biggest error of Ferguson departing still clear
Sir Alex Ferguson’s retirement was an event Manchester United knew was coming. We did not know when, but we knew one day it would happen. Those inside the club should have been ready.
And yet the preparation was limited. Ferguson admitted in 2012 that retirement was not on his agenda, and by time he had decided to quit, and he began sounding out successors, in one case it was too late.
Pep Guardiola was the man Ferguson had wanted. But he had already agreed to take over at Bayern Munich by time Fergie reached out. It was too late.
Ferguson also approached Carlo Ancelotti, who had already committed to Real Madrid, the Italian boss revealed, per TNT Sports.
United ended up with David Moyes. This was a once in a lifetime moment to set United up for success, which the club had years to prepare for. And they blew it.
Ferguson centre focus in latest United rebuild chapter
Manchester United have had some fresh energy over the past year after Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s Ineos‘ partial takeover was approved.
Ineos are in year one of their attempts to restore the club to former glory, and they believe this is a multi-year project. And that’s putting it lightly.
Ferguson’s retirement was the destruction-level event Manchester United feared.
United fans wanted an appointment to continue his success. If that was impossible, we at least expected a manager to win, say, one league title in the ensuring 12 years. Even that would have been a failure in context, to be fair.
In 2024 United have not won a league title since Ferguson retired and won’t this season either. Sitting 14th in the table right now, we feel further away than ever.
Ineos have managed to place Ferguson centre-stage in their latest rebuild, after cancelling his expensive ambassadorial contract.
The decision has split fans, and angered Eric Cantona. But ultimately it is a sideshow. An unseemly one and a PR nightmare.
Yet Ineos are here to make tough decisions. United need some of that. Everything since Ferguson’s retirement has been a mess, it’s been rudderless, and strong leadership is needed.
The Glazers and their underlings would have been too scared to cancel Ferguson’s deal. In that sense we commend the fact Ineos have the conviction to make this tough decision as part of their grand restructure.
There is a lot at Manchester United that needs ripping out and starting again. It should have happened before Ferguson retired.
This is a club still reeling from the May 8 2013, when Ferguson’s retirement was announced.
However you imagined the fallout, this has been worse. And the fear is that United may not yet have hit rock bottom.
Receive a digest of our best United content each week direct to your mailbox
