Fergie book no worry for positive Moyes
Ferguson is due to launch what seems certain to be another memorable autobiography at a press conference in London on October 22.
It is the same day as Moyes is due to preview United’s Champions League encounter with Real Sociedad.
There is no doubting who the centre of attention will be though, just as Ferguson commanded the headlines on Wednesday with the content of an extensive TV interview in the United States.
With so many potentially explosive comments on the agenda, not least Wayne Rooney and his long-time advisor Paul Stretford, it is difficult to imagine United not being hit by some kind of fallout, no matter how careful Ferguson tries to be.
However, Moyes is relaxed about the prospect.
“I don’t see it being negative in any way at all,” said the Scot.
“Anything Sir Alex does is good for Manchester United. “He was an incredible manager. His success was fantastic.
“To the Manchester United supporters, anything Sir Alex says is gospel.
“They love him and rightly so.”
Yet it was suggested in the summer that one of the chief reasons behind Rooney’s desire to leave United was his breakdown in relations with Ferguson. In particular, there is an issue over Ferguson’s claim Rooney handed in a transfer request, something sources close to the player have denied.
On Wednesday, Ferguson rejected the opportunity to pull back from that position.
Given the time he has taken to talk Rooney round, Moyes could be forgiven some distress at the intervention.
The Scot insists there is no issue.
“If you are alluding to Wayne, I see no problems with that whatsoever,” said Moyes.
“Look at Wayne’s performances. Look at the way he has played. I think he has been fantastic.
“I don’t think anything that comes out will have any effect on us.”
This week’s analysis is a microcosm of the kind of scrutiny any United manager is exposed to.
Performances and statements are not just reported, but dissected and analysed in a manner few other clubs experience, and Moyes was not exposed to at Everton.
“It has surprised me a little bit,” said Moyes.
“But Manchester United is arguably the biggest club in the world. If you lose a couple of games, you are going to get talked about. You deserve to be talked about. It goes with the territory.”
So too comments, positive and negative, from Ferguson’s former coaching team, who all ended up leaving after Moyes opted to bring in his own men.
Eric Steele, who has subsequently joined Steve McClaren at Derby, suggested Moyes had gone against Ferguson’s advice in bringing to Old Trafford the staff he worked so closely with at Everton.
Moyes is unrepentant.
“It is law of the jungle,” he said.
“When they get a job, people can do what they want.
“There is a little bit of an unwritten rule that when you leave the job, you take it on the chin and move on.
“That is life. That is the job of football. There are no guarantees for anybody.”
What can be guaranteed is that if United suffer a third straight Premier League defeat for the first time since December 2001 when they visit Sunderland in today’s late kick-off, Moyes’ tenure will be raked over again during the two-week international break.
“I told people it was going to be a long job,” he said.
“The Manchester United board put me in charge. They know where we are going.
“It is not a short-term fix, it is a long-term one we have got here.”
For his part, interim Sunderland head coach Kevin Ball believes better times lie ahead for his side, despite their position at the foot of the table.
He said: “At times, you either go under or you fight harder.
“What is important is that they keep their focus on that, they keep their focus on working hard in training, understanding there is an end aim, which is to do as well as they can possibly do.
“We need to give them focus, keep things in perspective and keep things real.”
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