December 31st, 2024 was the 83rd birthday of arguably one of the greatest football manager of all times and I dare say a Leadership Icon, Sir Alex Ferguson.
I woke up in the morning and expected at least the Manchester Utd faithful’s to have posted a piece, picture or even a congratulatory message on the two-football forum that I was on which had members from various Premiership club allegiances alas there was none. I was tempted to share in both groups but on second thought I said no let me hold fire – I have been a torn in the flesh of opposition fanbase for a while (a story for another day). It must be said though on social media the great man was celebrated.
After sharing a couple of stats, especially banter related ones, I started smiling and then burst out laughing. Before your mind start saying has this chap lost his mind, I was not going crazy and was very well in my senses.
The laughter though was because of the predicament of Man Utd fans. The once famous great team was in shambles and the fans were terrified. The usual slogan, “We are born to Win”, “There is Only One United”, and “Glory Glory Man United” was gone far into the distant past future if I may add.
For a particular generation of fans, they have never witnessed this type of debacle – stuck in 14th with a goal difference (GD) of -5 after 19 games – is absolutely shocking. For the older ones, they could relate – they once lived in the shadow of the dominant great Liverpool side of old and understood that no King rules forever.
My mind went back to the inspiring and powerful leadership lessons that Ole Gunnar Solskjær had shared at the Oslo Business Forum in 2024. Solskjær shared the story around the 1999 Treble run in. He shared his frustration with Sir Alex Ferguson not using him but also an inspirational speech he had given days ahead of the three last matches to clinch the Treble titles. An aspect of that speech reemphasized the “Power of Spoken Words.”
Two quotes during Solskjær’s session resonated with me – 1. “Mountains are there to be climbed. Coming back from adversity is part of our DNA.”
2. “Those who can learn are the ones you want to bring on the journey with you.”
Solskjær played and managed Manchester United (a rival club to my team Arsenal) but my mind could not just think about Mikel Arteta’s journey so far at Arsenal as the Manager. I will digress a bit, I am of the view that you can learn from anyone – there are always lessons to learn if you really look well and are willing to put your bias aside to learn. One of my favorite quotes from a Chinese movie I watched when I was a kid was, “When the Student is ready, the teacher will appear.”
Back to Football matters, the two quotes from Solskjær fit into “The Process” Arteta talked about when he joined Arsenal and the non-negotiable. Anyone who truly understands football can see how Arsenal, as a team lost in the wilderness, are back to challenging for the big titles in the land.
I had to share Arteta journey because I see same similarities in Ruben Amorim that Man United have given the responsibility to get them challenging again. The big questions are will the Man United fans be patient to go through a rebuilding process of three to four years? Will the owners INEOS, backed by Sir Jim Ratcliffe and Glazers back and give Ruben Amorim the support and resources to work? Will Reuben Amorim be able to adapt his philosophy and style to arguably the best league in the world?
Liverpool versus Manchester United 2-2 draw was fascinating. On form most pundit and football fans expected a whitewashing of the Red Devils at Anfield but to the surprise of many United almost won it in Fergie time. Maguire will play that final chance repeatedly in his head.
Managing a football team and leadership have got a lot of things in common. Leading Strategy, Execution and People are some and are key to any team becoming great.
Bimboh Adekoya is a widely travelled person. He is on X @Bimboh5
