Is it not possible to assess him with your Arsenal hat off? Or do you think he is repulsive to all neutrals?

I don't think it's possible. Definitely a hate figure for me.

I've always felt one should be able to divorce themselves from their clubs/experiences when evaluating footballers, teams and managers. For example, I hate Spurs, but I think Modric and vd Vaart are rather good players, and wouldn't mind either at our team (although I do think we are generally covered for that type of player). As much as Ferguson has insulted us and humbled our team over the years, I do think it's hard to ignore his brilliance. He just keeps winning trophy after trophy with different players and with different styles. The track record is hard to ignore

In life one is required to be objective about a multitude of things. Football's not one of them.

Nevertheless, I can say with absolute objectivity: Alex Ferguson is a horrible old man and I hate him.

Lol. Life would've been better without him these past few years. Maybe a title defense or three-peat from Wenger would've seen Ferguson resigned to the scrap heap at some point.

Can't wait until he retires and/or dies, I suppose you could count that as a back-handed compliment

Each time he wins, I think he'll retire, but he keeps finding some new target. If he wins this year's Champions League, maybe he will want to stick around to beat Liverpool's European trophy haul. Bloody Fungus.

Imo, looking at the squad Chelsea have had for the last 5 years it's ridiculous that they've only won 1 league title in that time and never won the CL. It's taken severe board level/Abramovich mis-management season after season to stop them winning more.

Caligula wrote:

I was just thinking. 12 Premier League titles in 19 years. That's just pure dominance. In a league where rich owners and great managers have been coming and going, Ferguson has just owned his adversaries. What he has gotten out of his team this season has been extraodinary. Nobody would claim they had better players than us overall, but they had a better balance of skills, size and experience/youth and that helped carry them to the title and a CL final.

Or you could just say that he is a cheque-book manager who has bought every trophy that he has ever won.

And yes, most people will/would have told you that ManU have better players than us overall.

I used to hate the man and I hate to say this but now I have nothing but respect for his achievements, he is everything Wenger isn't. I hate manu as an institution and can't stand their fans but some achievements transcend rivalries, he's the greatest manager in my lifetime bar none!

Having said that, I hope he gets ebola or something!

Captain wrote:

Or you could just say that he is a cheque-book manager who has bought every trophy that he has ever won.

This is what I tend to think. Also gets a massive helping hand from the media, the FA and the general footballing climate. But never mind let's all salute, genuflect, fellate, respect or bow down to/before his genius.

Burnwinter wrote:

I don't care which team you support, I don't care how much it pains you, the day I salute Alex Ferguson I'll be blowing my brains out with the gun in my other hand.

Fuck him.

I have to say i agree with you Burnsy, and yet remember when Chelsea took the title in 05 or 06 they had yet to play Utd, Fergi made his team give a guard of honour and applaud them- Not as a sign of sportsmanship or respect but to ram home to his players how it felt so they wouldn't want to repeat it.
Could you imagine Wenger doing something similar.

No, which is a shame, but in Ferguson's case as you say it's yet more proof that he's an ornery tyrant with a massive joist up his posterior.

I don't think anyone can rightly say he bought this year's title or their last, we were all writing them off and speaking of their demise, aged players, average players and lack of funds due to the parasitic Glazers. As far as the other stuff, well it just shows that He understands that top level football is fought both on and pyschologically off the field, something our purist in his little cocoon still fails to realise! Yes the competition were crap this season but this title was won by the manager, not money or the players. We have better players but a crap manager.

it's one thing to deny it in public or among rivals especially manu fans but it's another to deny it to one's self or among fellow arsenal fans!

They started the season second favourites, odds being only just longer than Chelsea; both around 2/1 with Arsenal being 7/1.

If we have better players it's because of the manager.

It doesn't stop there, being a talent scout is only half the job!

Lagos wrote:

I don't think anyone can rightly say he bought this year's title or their last, we were all writing them off and speaking of their demise, aged players, average players and lack of funds due to the parasitic Glazers. As far as the other stuff, well it just shows that He understands that top level football is fought both on and pyschologically off the field, something our purist in his little cocoon still fails to realise! Yes the competition were crap this season but this title was won by the manager, not money or the players. We have better players but a crap manager.

it's one thing to deny it in public or among rivals especially manu fans but it's another to deny it to one's self or among fellow arsenal fans!

Of course I completely agree Lagos, It's obvious Ferguson is a much better manager the record speaks for itself........
But he's still an obnoxious falsely modest pig- the Great Satan and I'll never respect him.

Seem to be a few things being conflated here. Wenger's and Ferguson's careers cannot be weighed as the same currency.