Premier League fans will witness yet another episode of the fierce rivalry between two of Premier League’s finest tacticians, as Ferguson’s United take on Benitez’s Chelsea at Old Trafford.
The duo will clash on Sunday night, when Chelsea enter Old Trafford hoping for a victory which will put them one point above Arsenal in third place. A victory will surely put the Blues in the driving seat for the Champions League spot and they will be eager to avoid the embarrassment of having to play in the Europa League next season.
The Red Devils will however have stern instructions from their Scottish manager to make life miserable for the Champions League hopefuls and even though the title is already in the bag, Ferguson will want to make the victory even sweeter by scoring a win against one of his bitter rivals.
There were no fireworks when the two tacticians met for the first time back in September 2004, the tie possessed much more tranquility than the encounters which followed. In their first clash Alex Ferguson gained an advantage over his opposite number, and a surprise brace from Mikaël Silvestre, inspired the Red Devils to a 2-1 victory over the Merseyside outfit.
It was not till 2008 when the rivalry gained momentum, the incident which spurred one of the greatest managerial rivalries was Javier Mascherano's sending off in the 44th minute against Man United. Liverpool took a 3-0 beating from the Manchester side and the Liverpool boss expressed his dismay over the decision also claiming that Ferguson had a huge influence on the referees.
In 2009 the rivalry was at it’s peak, the war of words continued with Alex Ferguson claiming that Liverpool’s “inexperience” could hinder their chances of a Premier League title and foretold that it was unlikely that the kop side would be able to secure the title for the first time since 1990.
Benitez’s response was rather aggressive, he took the rivalry a mile ahead in one of his press conferences famously known as the “facts” speech. The then Liverpool manager carried with him a piece of paper in which were listed a number of facts which accused Ferguson of having an influence over the referees as well as the FA authorities. The Spaniard went as far as saying that Ferguson was a “hypocrite” and blamed him of “killing the referees”
Benitez also expressed his concern over David Gill’s dual role at United as well as the FA.
"I don't think it's a mind game when you have control over everything and your chief executive is on a lot of committees at the FA. To me that is very strange," said the Spaniard
Ferguson in reply labelled Benitez as an “angry man” and claimed that the Spaniard “facts” rant was ridiculous.
In the encounter which was to follow Benitez’s men ran riot at the Old Trafford defeating the Red Devils 4-1, with Liverpool gaining a considerable advantage over their rivals in the title race. However it was Ferguson who had the last laugh as United won the title that season, with Liverpool finishing four points behind the league leaders.
In the following season Benitez outwitted Ferguson for the third consecutive time as his Liverpool side defeated Man United 2-0.
Benitez stepped down from the Liverpool hot seat in the summer of 2010 but that did not bring an end to the war of words.
While expressing his views on the title race and the importance of temperament last season in April, the United manager took the opportunity to take a jibe at his counterpart.
“I remember a few years ago when Liverpool beat us 4-1 at Old Trafford. That genius [Rafael] Benítez said they had planned to beat us by playing long balls behind us. Remember that? Clown”
Benitez’s appointment as the interim manager of Chelsea back in November 2012 took a lot of people by surprise, it also gave Ferguson the chance to reignite his rivalry with the Spaniard.
Just 24 hours after his appointment, Ferguson took a snipe at Benitez, claiming that the Spaniard took advantage of former Inter Milan manager Mourinho’s achievements and that he had no part to play in the Italian club winning two trophies at the beginning of the season.
"Benítez is very lucky because on his CV in two weeks' time he could have two world championships to his name and has had nothing to do with the construction of the teams."
In March 2013, the two sides met in an FA Cup tie, with both men refusing to embrace each other with a handshake, Benitez however claimed that it was his Scottish counterpart who refused to shake hands with him.
All in all Benitez can hope for no favours from Ferguson’s side as the Blues venture on a top four claim. The animosity between the two men will further entice Ferguson to deny his counterpart of any sort of achievement. Chelsea will thus have to be at their level best to get anything out of an all important tie at Old Trafford.
The Red Devils will however have stern instructions from their Scottish manager to make life miserable for the Champions League hopefuls and even though the title is already in the bag, Ferguson will want to make the victory even sweeter by scoring a win against one of his bitter rivals.
There were no fireworks when the two tacticians met for the first time back in September 2004, the tie possessed much more tranquility than the encounters which followed. In their first clash Alex Ferguson gained an advantage over his opposite number, and a surprise brace from Mikaël Silvestre, inspired the Red Devils to a 2-1 victory over the Merseyside outfit.
It was not till 2008 when the rivalry gained momentum, the incident which spurred one of the greatest managerial rivalries was Javier Mascherano's sending off in the 44th minute against Man United. Liverpool took a 3-0 beating from the Manchester side and the Liverpool boss expressed his dismay over the decision also claiming that Ferguson had a huge influence on the referees.
In 2009 the rivalry was at it’s peak, the war of words continued with Alex Ferguson claiming that Liverpool’s “inexperience” could hinder their chances of a Premier League title and foretold that it was unlikely that the kop side would be able to secure the title for the first time since 1990.
Benitez’s response was rather aggressive, he took the rivalry a mile ahead in one of his press conferences famously known as the “facts” speech. The then Liverpool manager carried with him a piece of paper in which were listed a number of facts which accused Ferguson of having an influence over the referees as well as the FA authorities. The Spaniard went as far as saying that Ferguson was a “hypocrite” and blamed him of “killing the referees”
Benitez also expressed his concern over David Gill’s dual role at United as well as the FA.
"I don't think it's a mind game when you have control over everything and your chief executive is on a lot of committees at the FA. To me that is very strange," said the Spaniard
Ferguson in reply labelled Benitez as an “angry man” and claimed that the Spaniard “facts” rant was ridiculous.
In the encounter which was to follow Benitez’s men ran riot at the Old Trafford defeating the Red Devils 4-1, with Liverpool gaining a considerable advantage over their rivals in the title race. However it was Ferguson who had the last laugh as United won the title that season, with Liverpool finishing four points behind the league leaders.
In the following season Benitez outwitted Ferguson for the third consecutive time as his Liverpool side defeated Man United 2-0.
Benitez stepped down from the Liverpool hot seat in the summer of 2010 but that did not bring an end to the war of words.
While expressing his views on the title race and the importance of temperament last season in April, the United manager took the opportunity to take a jibe at his counterpart.
“I remember a few years ago when Liverpool beat us 4-1 at Old Trafford. That genius [Rafael] Benítez said they had planned to beat us by playing long balls behind us. Remember that? Clown”
Benitez’s appointment as the interim manager of Chelsea back in November 2012 took a lot of people by surprise, it also gave Ferguson the chance to reignite his rivalry with the Spaniard.
Just 24 hours after his appointment, Ferguson took a snipe at Benitez, claiming that the Spaniard took advantage of former Inter Milan manager Mourinho’s achievements and that he had no part to play in the Italian club winning two trophies at the beginning of the season.
"Benítez is very lucky because on his CV in two weeks' time he could have two world championships to his name and has had nothing to do with the construction of the teams."
In March 2013, the two sides met in an FA Cup tie, with both men refusing to embrace each other with a handshake, Benitez however claimed that it was his Scottish counterpart who refused to shake hands with him.
All in all Benitez can hope for no favours from Ferguson’s side as the Blues venture on a top four claim. The animosity between the two men will further entice Ferguson to deny his counterpart of any sort of achievement. Chelsea will thus have to be at their level best to get anything out of an all important tie at Old Trafford.
