Re: Fergie
I thought The Mirrors McDonnell was part of the clique? Have the media finally had enough of his antics?
By David McDonnell | 22 Jan 2013 14:15
Lost amid the buckshot of criticism aimed at David De Gea, for his late culpability in Manchester United's 1-1 draw at Tottenham, was another blame game masterclass from Sir Alex Ferguson.
Ferguson has turned the diversionary tactic into an art form over the years, highlighting a particular issue to deflect attention from sensitive issues, but this season the United boss has taken the approach to a whole new level.
There is no doubt Ferguson was genuinely aggrieved with referee's assistant Simon Beck, for not awarding what looked to be a clear second-half penalty on Sunday, when Wayne Rooney was tripped by Spurs defender Steven Caulker.
But, after De Gea's feeble punch allowed Tottenham to snatch an equaliser in added time at White Hart Lane, Ferguson's diatribe against Lock was in part designed to take the heat off his bealaguered young Spanish goalkeeper, leaving the United boss to do so in private.
Ferguson, more than anyone, knows De Gea's performances of late have not been up to the standard required of a United goalkeeper. De Gea made several crucial saves against Spurs, but such heroics were swiftly forgotten following his costly late blunder.
Moreover, it's not as if Sunday's gaffe was an isolated incident. De Gea's propensity to palm the ball into the path of opponents, rather than to safety, has cost United goals against Swansea, Newcastle and Liverpool this season, an area of real concern that must be addressed.
But Ferguson's criticism of Beck, for which he can expect to face an FA misconduct charge, continued this season's theme of the United boss looking to apportion blame anywhere else but at the door of his players when they lose or perform poorly.
Ferguson has banned newspaper reporters this season for correctly revealing injury stories concerning his players, blaming them for harming United's competitive advantage by simply doing their job properly.
Sky were also banned from Ferguson's weekly Friday media briefing, although were allowed back in last week having served their time, for their perceived excessive coverage of the United manager's Boxing Day touchline spat with referee Mike Dean.
The blame game approach was there on the opening round of Premier League fixtures this season, following United's 1-0 defeat at Everton where Ferguson implied ref Andre Marriner had been swayed by the home fans.
"You have the crowd influencing the referee all the time here," said Ferguson, whose embittered post-match remarks ensured he remained just the right side of the FA's disciplinary regulations.
Six weeks later, still brooding in the immediate aftermath of United's 3-2 home defeat to Tottenham, Ferguson lambasted the perceived failure of ref Chris Foy to add on enough time once 90 minutes had been played.
"They gave us four minutes [of added time]," said Ferguson. "That's an insult to the game and it's a flaw [of the game] that the referee is still responsible for time-keeping."
But perhaps Ferguson's finest example of his attention-switching skills came after United's 1-1 draw against Swansea two days before Christmas, when Ashley Williams came under fire for kicking the ball at Robin van Persie's head at point-blank range.
"He could have killed the lad," said Ferguson. "He [van Persie] could have had a broken neck. He's lucky to be alive. What that lad did today was the most horrendous act I've seen for many, many years. He [Williams] should be banned by the FA."
Three days later, Ferguson continued his blame-game antics with a touchline broadside at ref Dean, his assistants and the fourth official, for allowing a Jonny Evans own goal to stand.
Astonishingly, given Ferguson strode on to the pitch to confront Dean and the clear invective in his prolonged attack, the United boss once againt evaded disciplinary action.
Which brings us to Sunday's post-match rant, when Ferguson identified ref's assistant Beck as his latest target for blame. "He never gave us a thing all day," moaned Ferguson. "He never saw the penalty kick on Wayne. He had a shocking game."
Ferguson's reluctance to chastise his players in public is as understandable as it is effective, the principle part of his peerless managerial approach that has yielded more trophies and success than any other British manager.
But the tactic has been particularly transparent and tiresome this season and looks to have finally caught up with him with his misconduct charge, which is likely to see him fined and banned from the touchline.
One wonders, if he is found guilty and punished by the FA, who Fergie will blame for that?
