Manchester United legend Norman Whiteside broke down a key difference that he has noticed between teams under Sir Alex Ferguson and the current side under Ruben Amorim.
Norman Whiteside came through the Manchester United youth academy and was already at Old Trafford long before the arrival of the legendary Sir Alex Ferguson.
Sir Jim Ratcliffe gave Ruben Amorim his support
Ruben needs to demonstrate he is a great coach over three years. That’s where I would be.
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The 60-year-old United legend climbed into the Red Devils’ first-team squad in the early 1980s before Ferguson replaced Ron Atkinson as United manager in 1986.
Whiteside lifted two FA Cups with the Red Devils and the former midfielder and forward made 259 appearances for the club and netted 63 times for United.
The ex-Northern Ireland international’s United run came to an end in 1989 and Whiteside moved to Everton and saw out the rest of his career with the Toffees.
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Photo by Matthew Peters/Manchester United via Getty ImagesNorman Whiteside identifies what Sir Alex Ferguson had in his favour that Ruben Amorim does not at Man Utd
Sir Alex Ferguson is widely regarded as one of the best managers of all time and Manchester United enjoyed incredible success during his remarkable reign.
The 83-year-old Scotsman ushered in an incredible period of dominance over English football for United from the 1990s up to his retirement from management in 2013.
Ferguson engineered United’s historic treble win in the famed 1998-99 season and the Red Devils lifted all 13 of their Premier League titles under the iconic Scot.
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Speaking to Manchester United’s official website, Norman Whiteside insisted that the ‘fear factor’ of Old Trafford’s status as a fortress played a key role for Ferguson.
“I think people are coming to Old Trafford not afraid,” he said.
“That is the thing, certainly with Fergie’s teams, he wanted to build it up so teams should be terrified coming to Old Trafford.
“It doesn’t matter who it is. Whether it’s Liverpool, [Manchester] City, Everton, Chelsea.
“It doesn’t matter. They always thought they were coming here and would be happy with a point, that sort of thing.
“But we’ve started a couple of seasons lately, being beaten in the opening games at Old Trafford, and it has to be a bit more locked up to get to the back old fortress idea.”
Norman Whiteside’s assessment of Old Trafford under Ruben Amorim in the post-Sir Alex Ferguson era
Old Trafford has struggled to maintain the ethos of Ferguson’s legacy as a formidable stadium to play at since the former manager bowed out of the club.
United have not lifted the Premier League title since the 2012-13 campaign and the Red Devils have been left lingering in the shadows of Ferguson’s achievements.
Whiteside was asked about Old Trafford now under Ruben Amorim and he admitted that he could see elements of the fortress factor creeping back to the club’s stadium.
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“Slowly,” he said, before adding: “Very slowly. Yes, there is a little improvement but, as you know, we’re not getting carried away.
“I do the hospitality on matchdays, I’ve been doing that for 30-odd years now, and I would always give my two pennies’ worth before the games.”
Whiteside continued: “I used to say Old Trafford was a fortress and this would be 2-0 or 3-0, but I always said nil!
“But the last few years, you know, we’re giving goals away, which isn’t what we were used to.
“So, I would say 2-1 or 3-2 and, when you start giving the other team a goal start, it’s not quite the same fortress we used to have. But slowly, slowly, they are starting to do okay.”
The Red Devils have won three of their last five Premier League matches and United’s last outing at Old Trafford ended in a 4-2 win against Brighton last month.