An open letter to Sir Alex Ferguson

Dear Sir Alex,

A major share of the success and laurels that United have achieved all through their footballing years has come after 1986, when you took charge and woke up the sleeping giants of English Football. The changes that you brought into the club are phenomenal; from getting relatively unknown players and moulding them into some of the world’s best, to being crowned the League and European champions, you have achieved it all. You have been the key behind making the Manchester United academy into a conveyor belt delivering the best young talents. Although there are many who have come and gone, Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes, David Beckham and Neville brothers have all been the ones who have made their impact against teams around the world and made United proud by showcasing their talent and having never-say-die attitude playing for their boyhood club. Manchester United’s “Class of ’92? would prove to be an exceptional bunch and would go on to dominate the English (and European) footballing landscape for well over a decade.

Paul Pogba and Ryan Shawcross – lost talents

As a supporter of youth football, I would like to ask you one thing; why is there no class of 2002 or 2008 ? Has United failed to capture the most talented youngsters around the world and turn them into one like Beckham and Giggs? No ! There have been good and talented youngsters coming up from the academy but they are forced to leave due to lack of chances. Although there have been cases when these youngsters have shown a lot of arrogance and received the right treatment from you, there are some who have been loyal and still have not got a chance to play for us. Remember Ryan Shawcross and Paul Pogba ? They were multi talented and hailed as the best players to make it to the academy. All of them left United to join clubs around the world and have made a big impact. Why didn’t they get a chance to play for our first team even after you mentioned that they have a huge potential? Atleast loan moves would have helped them gain much needed experience and rub shoulders with the best in the world. When given a chance, they performed and showed that they are capable of coming good. When there were opportunities for these youngsters to start in minor games, you preferred to employ a midfielder as a make-shift defender. With so much of talent at our disposal, it can help in preventing the never-ending transfer sagas as well. It is really disappointing to see them seek greener pastures after coming with dreams of shining for their favourite club.

Darren Fletcher, Tom Cleverly and Danny Welbeck have made it to the main team, but are we failing to see how much talent we have lost due to their frustration and lack of chances? Having one of the greatest football academies and improvements in the facilities with the recent investments, we hope to see them stay at the club and flourish, rather than seeing them move to other clubs and finally coming to haunt us. Hope you can propel the bunch of youngsters including Scott Wooton, Joshua King, Jesse Lingaard, Davide Petrucci and the Keane brothers into the “Class of 2012″ , just like you did the “Class of 1992″ who can lead the club to more glory.

- A Passionate Manchester United fan