Short description
Universally respected for his tough, but caring managerial style, Ferguson is an unusually intelligent man. Covering his tough Govan upbringing through to his playing days and onto his shift into management, this book presents his story.
Long description
1999 was an outstanding year for Alex Ferguson - not only did he lead Manchester United, the most glamorous club in the world, to a unique and outstanding treble triumph, but he was also awarded the highest honour for his sporting achievements; a Knighthood from the Queen. Universally respected for his tough, but caring managerial style, Ferguson is an unusually intelligent man with a fascinating life story. Covering his tough Govan upbringing through to his playing days and onto his shift into management, Managing My Life is told with the fine balance of biting controversy and human sensitivity which made it such an unprecedented success in hardback. Alex Ferguson is a legend in his lifetime.
Review
The most publicized parts of this updated version of the hardback book (and they certainly made a splash in the tabloid world) are also its most unnecessary. Did we really need to know about Fergusons's arguments with his best player David Beckham? Was there much to be gained by his re-opening of a long feud with Chelsea chairman Ken Bates? All that such things achieve are better sales figures, but in the end, they belittle one of the better football autobiographies of recent years. One recurring theme is honesty, and Ferguson is often brutally honest, but another is loyalty, and here he lets down a number of current and past players and staff. Beckham is not the first to be let down: so too are former player (at two clubs) Gordon Strachan, and former right hand man Brian Kidd, both of whom let it be known they were none to pleased. Yet this book has much to recommend it. Ferguson is certianly one of the finest managers the British game has ever had and he tells his own story, with the extremely capable help of Hugh McIlvanney. The pivotal point of the story is that astonishing night in May 1999 when Manchester United won the champions League to clinch a unique Treble (also featuring the domestic title and the FA Cup). Ferguson is proud of his triumphs, but he is also proud of his roots in Glasgow, and tells of his difficulties with the religious divides of the city (his marriage crossed the Catholic/Protestant barriers) and his battles as a union steward in the Clyde shipyards, as well as his playing and early managerial traunmas before hitting the big-time at Aberdeen and then Manchester United, which is where we spend the bulk of the book, pleasingly. He has worked with (and against) some of the giants of the modern game and his triumphs and failures with them are frankly recorded. His story is personal, political and human. Amongst football's higher echelons, this autobiography is peerless, easily rising above the usual anodyne offerings, not bad for a man with a day job like his. Highly recommended. (Kirkus UK)