Born winner Ferguson a manager of no equals

IF FORTUNATE enough to be in Rome, the city where tonight Manchester United meet Barcelona in the final of the Champions League, it is considered almost compulsory to visit the Pantheon, the origin of a figure of speech so beloved by sporting historians, among others.

The generic term is now applied to a monument where the illustrious dead are buried, though in the sporting firmament it is where the great jostle for position.

Sir Alex Ferguson, however, should have no need to for those elbows he once employed when an awkward centre-forward in Scotland. In the section marked finest British managers of all-time, his seat upon a plinth lifting him above all other contenders is assured, whether he lifts his third European Cup this evening or not. In the crowded penalty box of celebrated managers from these shores, Ferguson already stands tall.

Earlier this week a documentary which profiled the Manchester United manager ran on STV, its tagline being: Sir Alex Ferguson: Greatest ever British manager? The question mark, surely, is redundant. His successes have spanned an incredible 20 year spell with United, during which he has exceeded the achievements of Bob Paisley, the legendary Liverpool manager. In an era of far greater demands, of far higher pressures, Ferguson has done more than just keep on keeping on. He has built a succession of great teams from scratch. Paisley himself acknowledged that he was bequeathed a great side from Bill Shankly in 1974 when he quipped, in the understated style of a northerner: "Mind you, I've been here in the bad times too – one year we came second."

Ferguson aims to become the first British manager to successfully defend the Champions League title, although he also remains the only one to have won it. The switch in format of Europe's premier club football tournament in the early 90s has made grading achievements all the harder.

The irrepressible Brian Clough had a ready line in original wit, and would never have thought to re-heat the famous reply uttered by Ally MacLeod when asked what he might do after the 1978 World Cup. Retain it, said the then Scotland manager. Clough was smarter. He simply went out and did it, first winning the European Cup in 1979 with a team not long out of the Second Division, and successfully defending the title of European champions in 1980. He remains, at least until later this evening, the only British manager to have done so. Many have been stimulated by the recent spate of books on Clough's life, and the release of a film, The Damned United. Although this dealt with his failed attempt to follow in Don Revie's footsteps, enough light is thrown on his genius, which came to the fore as he led Derby County from lower division also-rans to English champions.

But Clough's achievements came in bursts, and though always captivating, he must bow to Ferguson's endurance. Including the Super Cup, which he has won with both Aberdeen and Manchester United, Ferguson has lifted six European titles, although the trophy which dominates his thoughts, which lured him back from the brink of retirement, is the one he hopes to wrestle from Pep Guardiola, his young adversary, in Rome tonight. In the city of seven hills, a seventh European crown awaits.

Paisley, who won three European Cups, operated before the cult of manager was forged. He remains Ferguson's closest British competitor. Yet his claim to be greatest Liverpool manager – not that the self-effacing miner's son would ever have dreamt of proposing it – is debated around Anfield itself, with Shankly, Paisley's predecessor, credited with a perhaps greater feat of pulling an ailing club up by its boot strings.

Ferguson was not asked to revive Manchester United from quite the state which Shankly found Liverpool, who were then in bottom half of the Second Division. But just how lame United had become by the time Ferguson made the decision to leave Pittodrie for Old Trafford in 1986 is the 2-0 defeat they suffered in his first game in charge, at Oxford United. It is well documented that only a Mark Robins winner in a FA Cup tie against Nottingham Forest spared Ferguson after three trophy-less years at United, and with the fans agitating for another change. Four months later United defeated Crystal Palace in the final at Wembley, though only after a replay. The triumph also provided evidence of Ferguson's will to succeed, whatever the cost. He dropped goalkeeper Jim Leighton after an uncertain performance in the first game, and despite an association stretching back to Aberdeen times. Les Sealey justified the change by keeping a clean-sheet, though Leighton found it hard to forgive Ferguson.

He cannot, however, doubt Ferguson's Midas touch, even if it took time to reveal itself in Manchester, where he battled to root out a firmly established drinking culture. Ferguson is a curious mix of firebrand and friend. Although he knows when he cannot afford to act from sentiment, he committed himself to selecting Paul Scholes for last season's Champions League final long before United reached it. Scholes had missed out on the 1999 victory over Bayern Munich due to suspension. Ferguson's compatriot Darren Fletcher, however, was left on the bench as an unused substitute in Moscow 12 months ago. The midfielder misses out tonight due to suspension.

Yesterday marked the 100th anniversary of the birth of Sir Matt Busby, who came into the world on a convenient date in the context of European Cup finals. He led United to their first success two days after his 59th birthday in 1968, and saw United win it again under Ferguson in 1999 – Busby's 90th birthday to the day. While both men were born to greatness, both men also earned it. In the shipyards in Ferguson's case, down the pit shafts in Busby's.

But Ferguson strides across both Aberdeen and Manchester like a colossus. He has inhabited different environments, and never lost the competitive desire. He brought down footballing empires on both sides of the Border. The Old Firm were pallid with comparison to Aberdeen in the mid-Eighties. In England, Liverpool cocked a snook at his arrival, but in time surrendered. The Anfield club have not won a title since the year Ferguson's trophy haul began at Old Trafford. Earlier this month United equalled their 18 championships with the 11th title of the Scot's reign.

Ferguson was a winner when he landed in Rome on Monday. He will leave its ancient streets as one as well, whatever the outcome in the Stadio Olimpico tonight.