How Did Alex Ferguson Manage Players in Bleak Times?

Michael Moritz says Alex Ferguson understood what motivated each of his players. Ferguson had a reputation for being very hard and harsh. Moritz calls that reputation unfair, while granting that hardness was one part of how Ferguson managed. Ferguson did not want to be loved and did not want to be feared. He wanted the players' respect, and he showed up in their bleak, dark times, when they felt lower than a snake's belly and needed support. Almost none of that was written down, because it happened with no cameras around.

David Beckham had been sent off playing for England in a World Cup, and the British press was merciless about what it called Beckham's stupidity. Ferguson went to meet him because he knew Beckham needed an arm around his shoulder. Moritz says Ferguson was much more skillful at the same work than he was.