Sir Alex Ferguson has admitted losing control of the Manchester United dressing room would spell the end of his glittering career at Old Trafford.

The Scot has overseen an astonishing period of success since being appointed in November 1986, amassing a huge haul of silverware to make the Red Devils the team to beat in the Premier League and in Europe.

Famed for his 'hairdryer' rants at players, Ferguson accepts that making sure every member of his squad knows who is in charge is vital.

And he warned that any members of the team who step out of line and attempt to question his authority will quickly be shown the door.

Ferguson was speaking to a group of philosophy students at Dublin's Trinity College, and although he had a smile on his face there was no mistaking the stark message.

He said: "If I lose control of these multi-millionaires in the Manchester United dressing room then I'm dead.

"So I never lose control. If anyone steps out of my control, that's them dead.

"Through my development, I've come across two issues - power and control. Control is important, very, very important. My control is the most important thing.

"The most important person in Manchester United is the manager."

The veteran boss moved to Old Trafford from Aberdeen, where he discovered that trying to run every single aspect of the club was counter-productive.

He added: "I always thought that when I became a manager - and I experienced this in Aberdeen - I had too much control.

"I was doing everything - ordering the pies, looking after the programmes. It was getting me nowhere.

"What happens is that you do too much and then you don't do the important things.

"Then, the directors start to say 'He's too big for his boots' and stuff like that."

Despite leading his side to 11 Premier League titles, two UEFA Champions League crowns and five FA Cups among his major honours, Ferguson believes he has never allowed the glory to change him.

And he admits that ensuring his players can cope with such highs and the increased spotlight that brings is an integral part of his job.

The Glaswegian admitted: "Over the years, I've learned to handle success and treat it very, very carefully.

"I'm used to it but I'm more worried about how the players handle it.

"I am very conscious of that and always will be. That's my job."

Source: skysports.com

We kind of new that, although I didn't know he ordered the pies!!!

Sir Alex has confirmed that John O'Shea is OUT for the remainder of the season...


Sir Alex Ferguson is set to be without John O'Shea for the rest of the season.

The defender picked up an injury whilst on international duty for the Republic of Ireland in November and has not played since.

O'Shea was initially thought to have suffered a dead leg, but Sir Alex has revealed the injury is much more complicated and is likely to keep the Irishman sidelined for the remainder of the campaign.

"It's a bad blow for the boy and for the team because he can play anywhere," Sir Alex told the Irish Independent. "When you look at all the problems I've had with the back four this season, he could have played every single one.

"It's one of those sorts of injuries that are unusual. It's like a dead leg except a dead leg usually [lasts] only three or four days.

"The problem is that the blood clot became all knotted and when it gets knotted you get calcification so therefore it's a long process to clear that up. He'll probably miss the season now," he added.

(manutd.com)

This sucks cuz Johnny plays a big part in uniteds line-up as he can play anywhere.

New to the forum, planning a Glazer revolt, prob gonna make a thread about it if that's alright, hope to make it manager.

LUHG

Ok, simple question, are you optimist or a pessimist and why?

I'm pessimist in most of situations, because most things don't come up as I expected so there's no reason to think it will be better the next time if I try to do it.

What about you?

Manchester United Football Club has posted a message on its website explaining that its players do not belong to online social networks.
It advises users to treat any profiles in the names of its players with "extreme scepticism".
The club says this is because of the high numbers of people impersonating team members online.
There are many accounts across social network sites which claim to be in the name of high profile footballers.
"We don't want to stop players doing what they like within reason in their spare time," a Manchester United spokesperson told BBC News.
"But we do advise our players - especially the young lads - to be careful."
Manchester United players Wayne Rooney, Ryan Giggs and Darren Fletcher are believed to have had genuine accounts on Twitter, which are now closed.
"It wouldn't have been us who stopped them," said the spokesperson.
Digital communications expert Louis Halpern said he believes Manchester United is attempting to control the leaking of sensitive information.
However banning players from using Twitter would be "draconian" he said.
"People respond most passionately to other people online, and Twitter provides a huge opportunity for teams to really tap into their fan-base support," said Mr Halpern.
Footballers and Twitter do not always mix well.
Last year, Sunderland striker Darren Bent caused controversy after using the service to rant about the transfer negotiations with Tottenham, his former club.

Source: bbc.co.uk

So, maybe Ben Foster won't be joining us, after all?


Having said that:


A social media expert has warned that Manchester United and Manchester City football clubs have made a mistake in telling players not to use social networking sites.

The footballers have been advised against posting personal information on the internet after they were targeted by a raft of fake accounts.

The Manchester Evening News reported that the players have been told not to use Twitter and Facebook.

Manchester United posted a statement to fans on its website warning fans that no players from the team maintain personal profiles on social networking websites.

City also confirmed to MEN that players at Eastlands have been advised not to set up social networking pages.

Lewis PR digital director Eb Adeyeri said: ‘Millions of football fans from across the globe use social media sites such as Twitter to debate, discuss and interact with their football icons every day. A blanket ban such as this will put a brick wall between the two. Social media sites are not the enemy. They are a medium for clubs to better engage with their supporters, wherever they may be.'

He added: ‘A better policy would be to encourage them to make use of sites like Twitter but draw up a series of robust usage guidelines - so, for example, players can't talk about internal matters or team selection. This would mean footballers can continue to engage with the supporters while minimising the risk of sensitive information being leaked.'

Source: brandrepublic.com