History

Manchester United F.C was founded as Newton Heath in 1878. Their first colours had been green and gold as they competed in their first recorded match in 1880.

The Busby Years (1945-1969)

During the Busby years, the club’s traditional values of promoting youngsters through the rank and into the first team has been reckoned with since. For a consecutive 4,000 games, United have played an academy graduate as this had been a value of Sir Matt Busby. In 1952, Busby led United to their first division title in over 41 years. They went onto win back to back league titles in 1956 and 1957. The squad’s average age had been 22 and were named the ‘Busby Babes’ by the British media to the testament of Busby’s faith in the youth.

In 1958, the team travelled to Munich to play Red Star Belgrade in the European quarter final. With the victory in hand, the team boarded the plane which would fatally crash, claiming the lives of 23 and injuring several others. Jimmy Murphy took over as manager while Busby recovered from his injuries.

The team had been revitalised a few years later with the introduction of new young stars with Denis Law, Pat Crerand and George Best. In 1968, 10 years after the Munich Air Disaster, Manchester United became the first club to win the European Championship, winning 4-1 against Benfica.

Ferguson Years (1986-2013)

Sir Alex Ferguson had been appointed as Manchester United manager in 1986. A few rough starts to his first few seasons saw journalists paint him as a ‘fraud’ and upon the verge of being dismissed, a victory in the FA Cup final against Crystal Palace in 1990 ultimately saved his job.

Bringing the greats of Cantona, Denis Irwin and Peter Schmiechel, Ferguson won his first division and the first Premier League title with Manchester United in 1993. In the 1998-1999 season, United became the first team to win the Premier League Title, FA Cup title and UEFA Champions League.

Ferguson had been the traditional Manchester United manager. Bringing in youth and playing with a counter attacking approach. His great rivalry between Arsene Wenger and Arsenal in the early 2000 era defined the golden era of the Premier League as it had been one of the great rivalries ever.

Ferguson brought in 13 Premier League titles to United along with 2 Champions League titles and 5 FA Cup titles. He has been renowned as the best ever manager to succumb the Premier League and the world. Playing average players, his squad proved to be fantastic throughout the duration of the season as his tactics provided a statement of intent. Many teams had been afraid to visit Old Trafford due to the pressure and the personality his teams had.

Ultimately, United have a rich history and moving forward, use this to perform as it represents their dominance of the premier league. Being one of the best teams in the world, it is expected for United to perform week in week out and prove to be the powerhouse they are.