Sir Alex reveals he twice snubbed England
SIr Alex Ferguson has revealed that he was asked to manage England on two occasions and that he thought about it “for about ten seconds”.
“It was my great opportunity in life to relegate them,” joked Ferguson. “There’s no way I could have taken the job. No way in a million years.”
As Ferguson explained at a press conference in central London to publicise his new autobiography, the first approach was made in 1999 and the second in 2001, by “the Scots lad, from the post office”, ie Adam Crozier, the FA’s chief executive from 2000-02, who moved on to the royal Mail. Ferguson writes in his book that Crozier “came to see me before [Sven-Goran] Eriksson was appointed in 2001. The first time was before that, when Martin Edwards was chairman, around the time Kevin Keegan took the reins in 1999.
“There was no way I could contemplate taking the England job. Can you imagine me doing that? A Scotsman? I always joked that I would take the position and relegate them – make them the 150th rated country in the world, with Scotland 149.”
Yesterday, Ferguson elaborated, saying: “I told them, “forget it.” It didn’t take me long [to consider]. About ten seconds. There
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was no way i could manage England. No way in a million years. Think of me going back to Scotland. Dearie me.”
in his autobiography, which is published tomorrow, Ferguson also reveals that he “had some strange dealings on the England front. after [Fabio] Capello resigned [in February 2012], the Fa wrote to me to ask me not to talk about the England manager’s job.” That followed Ferguson’s public backing of Harry Redknapp.
Ferguson is less forthcoming on other potential controversies, including his dispute with irish tycoon John Magnier over the racehorse Rock of Gibraltar, and his dealings, at the end of his final season, with Wayne Rooney. But two other former stars, David Beckham and Roy Keane, are not spared.
Beckham is accused of thinking “he was bigger than alex Ferguson” and of putting fame before football. “He loved the game, he was living the dream. Then he wanted to give it all up for a new career, a new lifestyle – for stardom.”
Keane, who left Manchester United for Celtic in 2005, comes in for savage criticism. Keane had crititicised his teammates in an interview for MUTv and, when Ferguson confronted him, Keane lost his temper.
Ferguson recalls: “What i noticed about him that day as i was arguing with him was that his eyes started to narrow, almost to wee black beads. it was frightening to watch. and i’m from Glasgow.” “He has the most savage tongue you can imagine. He can debilitate the most confident person in the world in seconds with that tongue” “In modern football, celebrity status overrides the manager’s power. In my day you wouldn’t whisper a word about your manager. You would fear certain death” “I am one of the few who felt Gerrard was not a top player” “A terrible professional… we played down at Wimbledon in February (2000), and Bosnich was tucking into everything: sandwiches, soups, steaks. He was going through the menu, eating like a horse” “The mistake he made was to turn our rivalry personal ... I had success on my side” “I would sit in my off i ce in the afternoon, with my work complete, wanting company” “I didn’t think of him as an elite international footballer” “Do you know the difference between the English and Italians? In England they don’t think a game can ever be corrupt. In Italy they don’t think a game cannot be corrupt” “The States always intrigued and inspired me. I fed off America’s energy and vastness, its variety” “I developed a forensic interest in how he was killed, by whom and why”