5. The Bench And Beyond
As mentioned before it is clear that 99 team had a quality starting eleven: they were playing in an era where the number of games a season was in the 50s rather than in the modern day 60+ seasons if you go deep into the cup competitions. As a result the squads today have to be strong; there needs to be competition and therefore practically two teams in the squad. It has to be the hardest part of contemporary football management when you have a squad of 25 quality international players vying for 11 places every week. Nevertheless, Ferguson would prefer it that way. Having such an established 11 as in 1999 is great for continuity and form, but it can engender complacency or cause disharmony and limit the impact you can have in the final stages of the game. A prime example of an impact player is of course Solskjær. He was the epitome of the super sub and in much the same way so is Chicharito for the present squad. They both are quick, tireless runners and born to finish. Past Solskjær, especially in midfield, there wasnt anybody else to give the same impetus. However, looking at the rest of the bench at Fergusons disposal now and then there is a stark contrast in quality. All of his current stand-ins have international experience and have been tested with a run of games in the team. The midfield in particular includes Cleverley, Anderson, Kagawa, Carrick, Fletcher, Scholes and Giggs - and that is just for the central positions! Of course, do the choices outweigh a Roy Keane or a Paul Scholes at the height of his powers? All in all quality permeates through the whole squad, from the back-ups to the fringe players and that is of far greater use to Ferguson than a superb first team, especially in an era of congested fixture lists. Look at it the other way, analysing the weakest areas of both squads, and if you look past the bench in 1999 you have players without experience or pedigree, literally academy players. That is simply not the case with the 2013 squad, so much so, that it is no longer a rarity to see bona fide United stars missing out on the match-day squad completely. It shows that Fergie is not averse to trusting his squad to carry the burden and perhaps he has learned not to place all his eggs in one basket, so to speak. And if Fergie says its so then it usually is. Ask yourself, if you picked a 25 man squad from both eras would todays crop outnumber the greats of the past? Let us know what you think. Leave your comments below.