Sir Alex Ferguson’s inspiring Man Utd speech to squad revealed after 2012 title heartbreak | Football | Sport
Former Manchester United first-team coach Rene Meulensteen has recalled how Sir Alex Ferguson lifted the Red Devils dressing room after Sergio Aguero broke their hearts on the final day of the 2011-2012 Premier League campaign. United were second in the table at the start of the afternoon on goal difference and needed league leaders Manchester City to slip up against QPR to snatch the title.
And for a while, it looked as though this would be the case. Argentinian full-back Pablo Zabaleta got the opener for City on the stroke of halftime before QPR pegged two back to drop the Sky Blues below their Manchester rivals, who led Sunderland 1-0 courtesy of Wayne Rooney.
Edin Dzeko levelled the scores in stoppage time yet it looked to be too little too late as the final whistle went at the Stadium of Light. But with the final kick of the game, Aguero snatched a last-gasp winner in one of the most iconic moments in football history.
Over in the northeast, the news winded the United players and staff. However, it was quickly put behind them by an inspiring speech from Ferguson which completely “transformed their mentalities”.
“End-of-season disappointments can really fester into your system and the 2012 defeat was one that was felt by the whole staff,” wrote Meulensteen in his autobiography.
“In the moments before the players came back into the dressing room at the Stadium of Light, I can remember thinking that it was our shared responsibility to hide our own disappointment to ensure the players did not feel quite so fatalistic.
“In his post-match address, the boss had transformed our entire mentality as a group, and we were immediately focused on regaining the title. It was something that even our most experienced and successful players hadn’t been through. That was their motivation to go again.
“It’s in moments like this, looking back and putting things into context, when I marvel even more at what the boss was able to achieve over a prolonged period.
“We discussed what he did and how he did it, but the truth is that it’s not easily replicated. The most stunning thing is that we were in such a pressurised situation, coming out of what could be described as a mentally draining way to lose the league, and at a club where you had to win with style in every game, I never felt any pressure.
“The defeats were turned into challenges. It’s an extraordinary thing, and it is all thanks to the work of Sir Alex.”