This is Ferguson's personal experience after Manchester United defeated Galati Steel 2-0 in an away game.
From the time he left the Otru Stadium, got on the team bus, and flew to Bucharest to take the plane, Ferguson was thinking about this problem all the way, and he even became more and more aware of the seriousness of this problem.
Although the game ultimately relied on Rooney's brace to defeat Galati Steel away from home, the game was very difficult. It was not until the 64th minute that Manchester United relied on the opponent's handball in the penalty area and Rooney took the lead.
The penalty kick was the first to score.
But the good times didn't last long. Just two minutes later, Vidic tackled his opponent and was directly sent off with a red card.
Although Manchester United still did not fall behind with one player missing, it was more difficult to open up the situation. Until the final stage of the game, Rooney was tripped in the penalty area again and took another penalty kick, 2-0.
Two goals, both penalties.
The offensive performance was poor. Neither Rooney nor Hernandez performed very well. Valencia and Nani on the wing failed to meet expectations. Neither did Carrick and Anderson in the midfield.
It protected the defense very well, which made Manchester United play very disorganized in this game.
The attack, midfield and defense are all worrying.
What's even more terrible is that Vidic, who was originally calm, also made mistakes.
After Edwin van der Sar retired, Ferguson also had high hopes for De Gea. However, since the Spanish goalkeeper joined Manchester United, he made frequent mistakes. In this game, Ferguson could no longer bear it and directly put him on the bench to let Lin
Degard, this can also be regarded as a warning to De Gea.
They are all young players, but Courtois, who was introduced next door, shines and has the potential to catch up with Van der Sar, while De Gea's performance is sluggish and full of mistakes. It is really far from expectations.
At the post-match press conference, Ferguson pointed out that the reason for the team's sluggish performance was the long journey.
He listed a piece of data.
It takes more than three hours to charter a flight from Manchester to Bucharest, Romania. This does not include the time from the training base to the airport, which is at least four hours.
It is more than 200 kilometers from Bucharest Airport to the small town of Galati, and it actually takes a full four hours.
The reason is very simple. Galati is just a border town in Romania. Last season was the first time in their history that they won the Romanian League championship. After winning the championship, their results this season plummeted.
Whether it is the stadium facilities, the field conditions, or the road conditions from Bucharest to Galati, they are all very bad.
In order to play a game, Manchester United spent eight hours on the road. This is a huge consumption for any team, and this is even if Manchester United charters a flight.
What if I don’t charter a flight?
There is only one flight from Manchester to Bucharest, which is at around six o'clock in the morning.
If you don't fly from Manchester, but fly from London or other cities, it will take longer, and some even have to wait for a day at the transit station.
It is precisely because of this that Ferguson, in the post-match press conference, blamed all the problems of the team's poor performance on the journey, believing that the consumption on the road was far greater than the consumption in away games.
What's even more terrible is that after the game, Manchester United had to drive four hours overnight from Galati to Bucharest, and then take a chartered flight for more than three hours to return to Manchester.
It is expected to arrive in Manchester at dawn.
But as a result, training on the next day is basically impossible.
After resting on Friday and Saturday, the Manchester derby will begin on Sunday.
Ferguson really has the urge to curse!
…
After finally making it all the way to Bucharest, while waiting to board the plane, Ferguson also received news from Manchester. Manchester City reversed Villarreal 4-1.
This is definitely not good news.
"What the hell!"
When the old Scottish coach heard the news, he cursed angrily.
He soon received more detailed information, especially Manchester City's formation in this game, the team's tactics, and the performance of the players. Everything was sent to Ferguson.
"We suffered so much!" Assistant coach Mike Phelan was also very annoyed.
Actually, Ferguson was right. Playing away games in the Champions League like this is really life-threatening.
Who can believe that in today's world, it takes eight hours to play an away game? It is simply unreasonable.
What's more important is that there isn't even an airport near Galati, so we can only land in Bucharest, which is more than 200 kilometers away, and then transfer to a bus, which is a bumpy journey of four hours.
After Ferguson cursed, he stopped complaining.
The reason why he complained at the press conference was more to change the topic, let everyone ignore the team's poor performance, and minimize the pressure on the team.
But in fact, he knew very well that just complaining would not solve the problem at all.
If at the beginning of the season, Manchester United won six consecutive victories, chasing Manchester City with great momentum, and once people thought that the Red Devils had the strength to challenge for the league championship, then as the season progresses, after just two rounds, Manchester United's problem is already
Exposed.
In fact, it was exposed as early as six consecutive victories.
Because in the first two rounds of the Champions League group stage, Manchester United drew.
According to the current situation, Manchester United must win all their opponents in the next three rounds to have a chance to top the group. Otherwise, they are likely to fall behind others.
Manchester United's biggest problem is actually very simple, that is, the players are not strong enough and the bench is not thick enough.
Since the Glazer family transferred their debts, Manchester United has not invested heavily for many years. This has resulted in Manchester United relying solely on Ferguson for support over the years, and the team lineup has become very thin.
On the front line, Berbatov has never shown a stable performance, and Macheda and others cannot be trusted. The only players who can reassure Ferguson are Hernandez and Rooney, but neither player is efficient.
.
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content! The performance of Nani and Valencia on the wing is also good and bad, and it is difficult to have stable performance.
The midfield is the hardest hit area.
There are three main players this season, Carrick, Anderson and Cleverley.
Carrick is already thirty years old. As he is getting older, he can no longer work as hard as before. Anderson and Cleverley have not been able to play their own roles for a long time. The veteran Giggs is not only old, but also suffering from emotions.
Troubled by sex scandals, Fletcher was no longer capable of playing as a main force after suffering a strange illness last season.
After Scholes retired, it has been difficult for Manchester United's midfielder to support the team's current multi-line combat situation.
Just like this time, when Ferguson played against Galati Steel, he asked Carrick and Anderson. The team traveled a long distance and consumed a lot of money. When they returned to Manchester to play Manchester City, who could he arrange to play?
Which one goes up and encounters Manchester City's midfield, and is not abused?
You know, Guardiola has rotated all his players in the last two games and has formed two or three strong lineups. When the time comes, just pick a few and they will be able to suppress Manchester United's midfield.
Once the midfield loses power, what can Manchester United do to stop Manchester City?
Defence?
Vidic and Ferdinand are very strong, but these two central defenders are old, and there have been more and more injuries recently. Smalling, Phil Jones and Evans, not to mention Su Dong,
Even Aguero and Dzeko may not be able to stop them.
Originally, there was still a goalkeeper named Edwin van der Sar, who was in charge and was impregnable, but now it's better. Van der Sar has retired. Who among De Gea and Lindegaard can fill Van der Sar's vacancy?
The answer is, no!
The goalkeeper who is said to have the best chance of becoming the number one goalkeeper in the Premier League after Edwin van der Sar is next door.
…
After boarding the chartered flight in Bucharest, Ferguson had difficulty sleeping.
He is thinking about the current situation of the team, especially how to face Manchester City next?
After being brutally slaughtered by his opponents last season, he confidently shouted for revenge, but after a few games, he suddenly found that his team had nothing that could be used to compete with Manchester City.
So just be on guard and defend yourself to death?
The question is, can it be defended?
He knows how strong Guardiola's passing and controlling style of play is. He also knows how good the passing abilities of Manchester City's midfield and frontcourt players are. With Manchester United's current midfield and defense, the defense
Can you live there?
If you can't hold it, then force it out?
Do not make jokes!
If you can't hold the defense, if you force them out, won't they die even more miserably?
Ferguson suddenly felt a very hopeless feeling of weakness. He felt that no matter what choice he made, it would be wrong and a dead end.
"Maybe we should call Paul back." Ferguson suddenly muttered to himself.
Assistant coach Mike Phelan, who was sitting nearby, didn't react for a moment. He let out an ah sound and looked at Ferguson with some surprise, only to find that Ferguson didn't seem to want to explain anything to him. He was immediately puzzled.
Paul?
Is there Paul in the Manchester United squad?
Could it be Paul Pogba, the young French player from the youth team who was praised by Ferguson as having the potential to become the world's top midfielder in the future?
Well, he is also eighteen years old and can indeed join the first team.
…
They had just finished a game and had a bumpy four-hour drive. Although the players were exhausted both physically and mentally, no one could sleep on the plane.
Ferguson kept his eyes open the whole time, thinking about the problem.
No one knows what he is thinking, and no one knows how he plans to solve the current difficulties the team is facing, but everyone believes that he will always find a way.
This is the trust and reliance that Manchester United has on him.
This trust is built on the brilliant achievements Ferguson has achieved at Manchester United over the past few decades.
After finally surviving the long flight, the plane landed slowly at Manchester Airport.
When the players walked out of the cabin, it was already morning outside.
Including the time difference, they spent more than ten hours on the road.
Ferguson also let out a heavy breath.
After thinking about it all night, he still couldn't figure it out.
In the morning, Manchester ushered in a very rare good weather, but in Ferguson's heart, it was still very cold, and it felt like it was going to rain.
