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Ferguson leads United to new heights Man United coach on threshold of English triple crown
Posted: Monday May 17, 1999 12:13 PM
LONDON (AP) -- By guiding Manchester United to its fifth Premier League title in seven years, Alex Ferguson solidified his status as English soccer's mnager of the decade. With two more victories in the next 10 days, he can challenge for all-time honors. The 57-year-old Scot equaled Sir Matt Busby's record of five league championships at United when the Red Devils beat Tottenham 2-1 Sunday to win the title by one point over Arsenal. Since taking over at Old Trafford in 1986, Ferguson has also captured three FA Cups, one League Cup and one European Cup Winners Cup. Only Liverpool's Bob Paisley has won more trophies -- six league championships in the 1970s and '80s, three League Cups, three European Cups and one UEFA Cup. But Ferguson stands poised to accomplish a feat never achieved in English soccer -- winning the league, FA Cup and European Cup in the same year. United faces Newcastle at Wembley on Saturday in the FA Cup final, then travels to Barcelona to play Bayern Munich in the Champions League final four days later. Based on current form, United looks like a good bet to pull off the historic triple. "The big one now is the Champions Cup," Ferguson said. "The league is the hardest to win but that's now out of the way. Winning the title does take pressure off us in a sense for the two games we have got left. We know that we are going into next season's European Cup as champions." Despite all the accolades, Ferguson insists he and his players will not let the success go to their heads. "This club is not about egos," he said. "Nobody is chasing anybody else's titles or records. It's about maintaining success and we will make sure no one gets carried away." Most observers agree this year's team is stronger than any of Ferguson's previous sides, even the Eric Cantona-led outfit of 1993 and 1994. Ferguson made two key signings last summer which have paid off with huge dividends. Jaap Stam, a 10.75-million-pound ($17.2 million) acquisition from PSV Eindhoven, has been the bedrock of the defense. Dwight Yorke, a 12.6-million ($20 million) buy from Aston Villa, has scored 29 goals and formed a lethal strike partnership with Andy Cole (24 goals). Captain Roy Keane, midfielder David Beckham, winger Ryan Giggs and goalkeeper Peter Schmeichel have all been outstanding this season. While United has been described as a Big Red Machine, Ferguson prefers to compare his team to a bus. "We're going on to the next stop and if anybody gets left behind, it's their own fault," he said. "At the moment, nobody wants to get left behind." With the Champions Cup as Ferguson's top priority, the FA Cup fial has almost an anti-climatic feel about it. Manchester United will be big favorites against a Newcastle side which has been far from impressive of late. Ruud Gullit's Magpies finished the league season Sunday with a lackluster draw with relegated Blackburn. "In the last couple of weeks, my players have been saving themselves so I ask now that next week they go like rockets, because otherwise, I don't understand what they have been saving themselves for," Gullit said. Ferguson is warning his team against complacency. "If the players think the FA Cup is the lesser of the two targets ahead of us, if a lot of them start thinking about Barcelona, they will soon wake up when I pick my team for Wembley next Friday," he said.
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