10 more reasons why Fergie should say sorry

By Chris Hughes in Mirror Football Blog

Published 13:32 11/10/09

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So Fergie has done it at last.

Say "sorry", that is, after the Manchester United manager's groundbreaking decision to apologise to Alan Wiley for claiming that the Premier League referee was unfit.

"You see referees abroad who are as fit as a butcher's dog. He was taking 30 seconds to book a player," claimed Sir Alex, following Wiley's performance in the 2-2 draw between United and Sunderland at Old Trafford last weekend.

On Saturday, however, Ferguson climbed down. "I apologise to Mr Wiley for any personal embarrassment my remarks may have caused," he declared in a statement.

But why stop there? Fergie's mea culpa has got MirrorFootball thinking about some other incidents that the United boss should have apologised for…

1) Telling Arsene Wenger to "keep his mouth shut"
In 1997, Sir Alex attempted to get the Premier League season extended in a bid to avoid a fixture pile-up. New Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger opposed the proposal, incurring the enduring wrath of Fergie in the process. "Wenger has been in Japan, he doesn't know anything about English football," fumed Ferguson. "He's at a big club – well, Arsenal used to be big. He should keep his mouth shut, firmly shut."

2) Claiming the Leeds players were "cheating" Howard Wilkinson
During the run-in to the 1996 Premier League title race, Ferguson slated the Leeds players after his side's hard-fought 1-0 defeat of the Elland Road club, alleging they had been "cheating" their manager Howard Wilkinson by reserving all their energies for the match against United and cruising through the rest. It just so happened that Leeds' next game was against United's title rivals Newcastle… the match that sparked Kevin Keegan's infamous on-air rant.

3) Accusing Rafael Benitez of "arrogance and contempt"
Fergie claimed the Liverpool boss had gone "beyond the pale" back in April for making what Sir Alex claimed was a 'game over' signal after their second goal against Blackburn. In a gallant defence of his pal Sam Allardyce, Ferguson declared "I do not think Sam deserved that. I just thought it showed contempt." For good measure, Fergie slammed Rafa for disrepecting his other disciple David Moyes: "Everton are a big club, not a small one which Benitez arrogantly said." And let's face it, there's nothing more arrogant than branding your rivals as a "small club"…

4) Branding Manchester City as "a small club with a small mentality"
…except when Sir Alex does it, obviously. Three months later, it seems Fergie had changed his tune, criticising City for erecting a billboard featuring Carlos Tevez, their recent signing from United, and the tagline 'Welcome To Manchester' in the city centre: "It's City isn't it? They're a small club with a small mentality. All they can talk about is United – they can't get away from it."

5) Declaring that Keith Hackett wasn't "doing his job properly"
In March 2008, Ferguson blamed referee Martin Atkinson for a series of bad decisions during his side's defeat against Portsmouth in the FA Cup, and slated referees chief Keith Hackett in the process: "I'm assessed as a manager – and that [Atkinson’s] performance should not be accepted. Hackett has a lot to answer for – he is not doing his job properly. His favourites always get the games and that’s disappointing."

6) Ranting at Match of the Day commentator John Motson
Back in 1995, Fergie unleashed a torrent of abuse at John Motson after the BBC commentator asked him about Roy Keane's disciplinary record in a post-match interview. "You've no right to ask that question John, you're out of order. You know fine well my ruling on that. Right, that's the interview finished. I'm going to cancel that interview, the whole f***ing lot of it. Cancel it, right? F***ing make sure that does not go out, John."

7) Criticising the Craven Cottage dressing rooms
Ah, the Cottage… one of the most romantic and evocative venues in English football. For everybody except Fergie, that is. Back in May, the United manager decided to aim his ire at the dressing rooms down in SW6. "They're smaller than my office," fumed Fergie, before branding the Portsmouth facilities as "not great" and the Everton changing room as "so narrow it is unbelievable".

8) Kicking a boot at David Beckham
Not everyone might agree that Fergie had something to apologise for here, but even so, it's hardly conduct becoming of a knight of the realm. In February 2003, Sir Alex accidentally kicked a boot at Beckham in anger after United's 2-0 defeat to Arsenal in the FA Cup, leaving the midfielder needing stitches. And it's a good opportunity to relive our favourite Becks quote of all time: "Alex Ferguson is the best manager I've ever had at this level. Well, he's the only manager I've had at this level."

9) Doing the dirty on Brian Kidd
Kidd had been Fergie's loyal lieutenant for years, and had even been spoken of as the Scot's eventual successor. But when the United assistant manager left the club in 1998 to take up the manager's job at Blackburn, he became persona non grata at Old Trafford. In his autobiography, Fergie described Kidd as a "moaner" and "insecure". And when United beat Rovers in 1999 to send them down, Fergie just shrugged and said, "Oh well" during his post-match interview.

10) Branding Gordon Strachan as "untrustworthy"
During his time at Aberdeen, Ferguson was incensed at Strachan's decision to sign a pre-contract agreement to join Cologne in the summer of 1984. "Though I always felt there was a cunning streak in Strachan, I had never imagined that he could pull such a stroke on me," wrote Sir Alex in his autobiography. "I decided this man could not be trusted an inch – I would not want to expose my back to him in a hurry."

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