Sir Alex Ferguson has defended the Glazer family, claiming
Manchester United’s American owners have been treated unfairly by
fans desperate to get them out of Old Trafford.
Ferguson has consistently defended the Glazers since their
controversial takeover in 2005 but made his latest comments because
of the unrest caused by United’s inability to match neighbours City
in the transfer market.
Glazer: Criticised by fans
Although chief executive David Gill reiterated this week that
Ferguson has cash for new signings if he needs it, fans fear the
money needed to service the £716million debt heaped on the club by
Malcolm Glazer and his family means their manager has no choice but
to build from within.
But Ferguson said: ‘You know very well that no matter which
business is bought nowadays, it’s usually bought with debt.
‘Because it’s a football club it seems to attract a different
type of negative reporting via the media or particularly some of
our fans.
‘It’s unfair that because a particular family like the Glazers
have bought the club, they should come under criticism when anybody
could have bought it.
‘I have to say they’ve done their job well. They support myself
and they’ve supported the players. I’ve never been refused when
I’ve asked for money for a player so what can I do other than carry
on the way we’re doing it? I’ve no complaints.’
Those waging the green and gold campaign in an attempt to force
out the owners will not bepleased to hear Ferguson’s public show of
support.
But Fergie says he has staked United’s future on his new
generation of players and promised that they will be his legacy
when he quits Old Trafford.
New boy: United defender Chris Smalling
While City's spending is set to exceed £100million, United have
so far paid out £17m - £10m on Chris Smalling and £7m on Javier
Hernandez - during a quiet summer in the transfer market, with
Ferguson instead relying on his young players to make the step
up.He is adamant they will reward his faith by becoming United's
new golden generation.
'There will be a point obviously when I do quit,' said Ferguson.
'Now when the time comes I think the club will be OK. 'Whenever I
do go, and I don't see it being tomorrow, what you have to do is
maintain the success of the club and make sure that the club is
always in good hands and there's no need for a complete overhaul of
the playing squad.
'I've got probably 12 players all under 21 which is a fantastic
average age. The future should be pretty secure with them.
'Over the years we've bought players for quite high amounts like
Berbatov, Ferdinand, Veron and Rooney. We try to equate how we're
going to get the proper value before we do it. 'But we're in such a
competitive world that you're hamstrung in relation to the borders
people will stretch to get the best players.
'When I see some of the values, and you're talking about players
at £40m or £30m-odd, I don't think the enormous amounts of money
they're paid rests easy with supporters, not just for the transfer
fees but for their salaries.
Putting pen to paper: Sir Alex Ferguson signing
autographs in the United States
'Now we take a quite good view of it and say let's look at our
own young players. Have they got the ability? How much can we trust
them? Do we see a top player in that young player?
'And we're not bad, you know. There are some good young players
who have come through the system. They understand the club, they're
loyal to the club and we can build through that.'
Chief executive David Gill reiterated this week that Ferguson
has cash for new signings if he needs it. However, fans fear the
money needed to service the £716m debt heaped on the club by the
Glazers means their manager has no choice but to build from
within.
Those waging the green and gold campaign in an attempt to force
out the owners will not be pleased to hear Ferguson's public show
of support.
The new guard: Fergie has backed his latest
recruits to make the grade
'The debt has come through the club being bought out by an
owner,' he said. 'You know very well that no matter which business
is bought nowadays, it's usually bought with debt.
'It's unfair that because a particular family like the Glazers
have bought the club, they should come under criticism when anybody
could have bought it.
'I have to say they've done their job well. They support myself
and they've supported the players. I've never been refused when
I've asked for money for a player so what can I do other than carry
on the way we're doing it, and the way I'm allowed to carry on?
I've no complaints.'
We do it like this: Fergie with Javier
Hernandez
United continued their tour of North America in Houston against
the MLS All-Stars in the early hours of this morning.
Asked what keeps him going at the age of 68, Ferguson added:
'The most important thing is I'm at the right club. 'It's a
fantastic football club which demands a challenge all the time.
Every day of every year we have the challenge of being at the top.
I think that helps me.
'The second thing is that you need good natural energy which
I've been blessed with. The third is that I can keep going as long
as my health keeps going. If I have my health I will carry on.
'I tried quitting a few years ago and it was a disaster. Agony.
My wife made me change my mind and she was right.'
Jose Mourinho remains one of the favourites to take over from
Ferguson when he retires, and the United boss offered an insight
into the kind of character required to succeed him.
'We're a massive club, there's no question about that, and you
have to ingrain yourself into the fabric of the club immediately,'
he said.
'That gives you a good chance in terms of understanding the
history. It's not a history you should be afraid of. I was never
afraid of it, I was proud to be part of the history. 'Then, after
that you need a strong personality, a strong mentality and, of
course, you need to know the game.'