Man Utd boss Ferguson regrets withdrawing team from FA Cup
Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson says he was wrong to withdraw the club from the FA Cup ten years ago.
Ironically, Ferguson has always felt the move benefited United that season because they were able to recharge their batteries in the South American sunshine while major rivals Arsenal and Leeds were starting to struggle and, refreshed and raring to go, the Old Trafford outfit went on to retain their title by a massive 18 points.
However, he told Inside United: "It turned out to be a disaster for us.
"We did it to help England's World Cup bid. That was the political situation. I regretted it because we got nothing but stick and terrible criticism for not being in the FA Cup when really, it wasn't our fault.
"The FA and the government felt that playing in this tournament would help England's bid to host the 2006 World Cup.
"There was a lot of undue criticism - but it was a great two-week break."
Tribal Games
Tribalfootball Store
- home
- News
- Leagues
- A-League
- Argentine Primera División
- English Premier League
- Football League One
- French Ligue 2
- German Bundesliga 2
- Scottish Premier League
- Swiss Challenge League
- Swiss Super League
- Belgian First Division
- Brazil Serie B
- Campeonato Brasileiro Série A
- Chinese Super League
- English Championship
- Eredivisie
- German Bundesliga
- Italian Serie A
- Italian Serie B
- Italian Serie C1
- J-League
- Ligue 1
- MLS
- Portuguese Liga
- Prva HNL
- Russian Premier League
- Segunda División
- Segunda División B
- Spanish Liga
- Super League Greece
- Turkish Super Lig
- transfer news
- Results & Fixtures
- football store
- video games
Results & Fixtures
Matches
| Home | Away | Score | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sat Feb 11th | |||
| Manchester United | Liverpool | 2 - 1 | 12:45 |
| Blackburn Rovers | Queens Park Rangers | 3 - 2 | 15:00 |
| Bolton Wanderers | Wigan Athletic | 1 - 2 | 15:00 |
| Sunderland | Arsenal | 1 - 2 | 15:00 |
| Everton | Chelsea | 2 - 0 | 15:00 |
| Swansea City | Norwich City | 2 - 3 | 15:00 |
| Aston Villa | Manchester City | - | 15:00 |
| Fulham | Stoke City | 2 - 1 | 15:00 |
| Tottenham Hotspur | Newcastle United | 5 - 0 | 17:30 |
| Sun Feb 12th | |||
| Wolverhampton Wanderers | West Bromwich Albion | 1 - 5 | 13:30 |
| Aston Villa | Manchester City | 0 - 1 | 16:00 |
Tables
| Team | P | W | D | L | GD | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Manchester City | 25 | 19 | 3 | 3 | 45 | 60 |
| Manchester United | 25 | 18 | 4 | 3 | 36 | 58 |
| Tottenham Hotspur | 25 | 16 | 5 | 4 | 24 | 53 |
| Arsenal | 25 | 13 | 4 | 8 | 13 | 43 |
| Chelsea | 25 | 12 | 7 | 6 | 13 | 43 |
| Newcastle United | 25 | 12 | 6 | 7 | 0 | 42 |
| Liverpool | 25 | 10 | 9 | 6 | 6 | 39 |
| Norwich City | 25 | 9 | 8 | 8 | -4 | 35 |
| Sunderland | 25 | 9 | 6 | 10 | 8 | 33 |
| Everton | 25 | 9 | 6 | 10 | -1 | 33 |
| Swansea City | 25 | 7 | 9 | 9 | -4 | 30 |
| Fulham | 25 | 7 | 9 | 9 | -5 | 30 |
| Stoke City | 25 | 8 | 6 | 11 | -14 | 30 |
| West Bromwich Albion | 25 | 8 | 5 | 12 | -6 | 29 |
| Aston Villa | 25 | 6 | 10 | 9 | -5 | 28 |
| Queens Park Rangers | 25 | 5 | 6 | 14 | -17 | 21 |
| Blackburn Rovers | 25 | 5 | 6 | 14 | -19 | 21 |
| Wolverhampton Wanderers | 25 | 5 | 6 | 14 | -21 | 21 |
| Bolton Wanderers | 25 | 6 | 2 | 17 | -22 | 20 |
| Wigan Athletic | 25 | 4 | 7 | 14 | -27 | 19 |
Related Stories
- Jan 31 Pundit Hansen earns rebuke from Man Utd boss Ferguson
- Feb 14 Man Utd watching Real Madrid midfielder Sami Khedira
- Feb 12 Man Utd boss Ferguson plans Nani comeback for Ajax clash
- Feb 06 Man Utd boss Ferguson: Chelsea's Cahill should've been sent off
- Feb 03 David Luiz risks Chelsea row over Olympics ambition
Popular Stories
- Feb 14 Ronaldo hands Florentino Real Madrid contract nightmare
- Feb 14 Real Madrid coach Mourinho prepared to replace Casillas with new keeper signing
- Feb 14 Man Utd agreement for Gaitan still watertight with Benfica
- Feb 14 Man City rebel Tevez: Man Utd stars, Ferguson are the BEST!
- Feb 14 Chelsea players attacked AVB, Cech in crisis meeting


Post new comment