Sir Bobby Charlton, in his role as a club director, declared yesterday that the only way Manchester United “would ever be separated from Sir Alex Ferguson is if he decides”, yet the most successful manager of his generation will be informed politely during a series of end-of-season discussions with his board that standards must be improved if his glorious reign is not to reach an unedifying conclusion.
David Gill, the United chief executive, has no intention of proving the theoretical point he made recently when confirming that the manager was “sackable”, but, as Ferguson prepares to move to a 12-month “rolling” contract at the end of the season, he will be left in no doubt that his team’s Barclays Premiership and European performances over the past two campaigns have been substandard and that a third consecutive season of transition would be unacceptable.
The two separate debriefings, first with Gill then with the football club board, are annual fixtures in Ferguson’s diary, but whereas in previous years they have been routine, the sense of underachievement means that he will be under pressure to assure the United hierarchy that, at 63, he still has the energy, the enthusiasm and the enterprise needed if United are to recover the ground surrendered to Arsenal and Chelsea.
A second consecutive FA Cup triumph, at the expense of Arsenal on May 21, would help to restore confidence at Old Trafford, but United’s Premiership campaign, in which they have trailed Arsenal and Chelsea from the first weekend, is fizzling out to such a degree that they seem destined to finish third — and be condemned to play a preliminary round to secure Champions League qualification — for the third time in four seasons.
The 1-0 defeat by Everton at
Good news has been in such short supply at Old Trafford lately that United supporters may have been tempted to clutch at the straws offered yesterday over the future of Rio Ferdinand, who gave only a vaguely encouraging response when asked for an update on his contract negotiations, and the situation regarding Neville, who is expected to serve no more than a three-match suspension after being sent off for kicking the ball at a spectator at Goodison Park.
There was slightly more encouragement with regard to Ryan Giggs, whose agent, Harry Swales, revealed that fresh talks on Wednesday had increased his confidence that the winger would agree on a new contract, probably a one-year extension to his present deal, which expires in June 2006, with the option of an additional year. “We’re just that little bit closer to an agreement,” Swales said.
“Ryan wants to stay, but there are just a couple of issues to resolve.”
Giggs, United’s longest serving player, is increasingly likely to remain at Old Trafford beyond next season, but