Manchester United fan who made ‘Ta Ra Fergie’ banner urges patience for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer as Premier League results worsen
It’s all going wrong for Manchester United.
The 20-time English league champions are only two points above the relegation zone thanks to the 1-0 defeat to Newcastle and the club are enduring their worst start to a season since the 1989/90 campaign when they picked up eight points from their opening eight games and ended up in 13th spot.
And 30 years ago, during that tricky period for United, it all got a bit too much for one supporter, who held up a banner in the Stretford End after a 2-1 home defeat to Crystal Palace in December, which read ‘Ta Ra Fergie’, as he called for the manager to be sacked.
Fergie remembers the tough period, which saw them fail to win throughout December.
“I suppose my confidence was shaken a bit because the day after the [Palace] game I phoned my brother, Martin; I knew he would be objective, give me a fair assessment and tell me where I stood,” he wrote in his 2015 book, Leading.
“He said, ‘you’re just going to have to dig in,’ which was a sentiment I found reassuring. Years later, the person who had held up that banner wrote a book titled ‘Ta Ra Fergie’, and a copy showed up at the house. I mailed it back to the publisher.”
Pete Molyneux was the man who unfurled the banner at Old Trafford, drawing cheers and applause from fickle United fans in the process.
The title is what fans craved, with previous managers bringing cup success to the club.
Ferguson arrived from Aberdeen in 1986 with a good reputation as he had usurped Celtic and Rangers’ dominance in Scotland and even won the Cup Winners’ Cup, but the long wait for league success went on.
Luckily for Pete and the rest, Fergie came spectacularly good, beginning with the FA Cup in 1990 and then landing the first league title for 26 years in 1993.
So what would Pete write for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer now?
Fergie Honours List
Starting with the FA Cup in 1990, United under Fergie went on to dominate at home and abroad
Premier League x13
FA Cup x5
League Cup x 4
Champions League x 2
Cup Winners Cup x 1
“Quite simply, I’d say keep going, Ole and that we’re right behind you – and stay off Twitter,” he told talkSPORT in reference to news that the manager has deleted his account.
“They’d be words of encouragement,” he continued, urging patience in what are impatient times.
“There’s a world of difference between what you read on social media and what you see at the ground.
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“At the ground – and it’s not just blind faith – the fans have seen the good, the bad and the ugly over the years, but know this guy is trying his best.
“They know he’s had a good window where he’s brought in three good players, he’s getting people in who have fire in their belly and want to play for the United shirt and he needs a couple of windows and then we can decide.”
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Asked about the infamous banner, Molyneux explained he was simply unhappy with what he was seeing from Fergie’s side.
“I didn’t think he was the right guy,” he finished. “I didn’t hold the banner up lightly and there was a mixture of anger and frustration in me about the situation and manager, but also fear because I didn’t know how people around me would react within the ground.
“What was a relief that, of the 33,000 that were there that day, the majority stood and applauded and it went like a row of dominoes around the ground.”