Will to Win: The Manager's Diary

This is a great read. The caveat - and full disclosure: I spent a good part of my childhood in the olde country (Scotland) - is at least a working knowledge of the arcane culture of British soccer, in particular the various competitions that are held concurrently, is perhaps a necessity. This is written as a day to day diary and so if you don't already know the difference between the Champions League, the Coca-Cola Cup, the FA Cup, the Charity Shield, the Premiership and the old Championship, you probably won't really be enlightened along the way, especially as there are no footnotes whatsoever added by the publisher. There is just no US equivalent of Alex Ferguson. I have tried to think of one - perhaps in college sports, or way back, but come up blank. He has been the most successful manager ever of the biggest and richest soccer club in Britain, perhaps the world, and he has done this for over twenty years. Kind of like managing the Yankees for twenty plus years. Joe Torre would have needed ten more years and at least five more championships to come close. Ferguson has built three completely separate winning teams - his first championship side 1991-1993, then the young side, including Beckham, that won the treble in 1999, and his latest side with Ronaldo that won back to back titles and the Champions League in 2008. The periods inbetween have not exactly been that of transition - he has always won trophies, almost every year since the early 90s. This is one of the keys to his longevity. He has managed to tinker and alter his playing staff while continually winning most of the games. This is some achievement, particulary as most other teams approach a game against Man U as a cup final (similar to teams playing harder against the Yankees sometimes). This diary is of the 96/97 season, when Fergie was making his first serious bid for European glory, whilst still trying to win a domestic trophy or two. As you might expect, whilst still fascinating, this, like the man himself, is a professional job. It was written at the heights of his success after ten years in a job he expected to continue in, and so absolutely no bridges are burnt here. There are almost no personal revelations - just some Scottish style banter about "the wife" etc - about himself or his players. This is a man's book about tactics, preparing for games, who to play and who not to etc. As bare as skin and bones, but riveting nonetheless. Will the key players recover from injury in time? How much time does he have left to move his pieces around?