Ferguson comes under fire

English FA Premiership/Manchester Utd - 1 Blackburn Rovers - 2: This felt like the beginning of the end for Alex Ferguson. That is some statement but what other conclusion is there to draw from a match that concluded with vitriolic abuse being directed at Manchester United's manager from the club's own supporters?

How can any shred of optimism be drawn from this defeat when he has been booed for the first time in 16 years? Ferguson was a plain old mister when it last happened and a knighthood did not spare him on Saturday from being called, among other things, a "disgrace", a "shambles" and "f**king clueless".

A tape recording of this match would tell the whole story. At times one could hear a pin drop. Mostly it was audible disenchantment, not just muted groans but the type of open hostility that nobody could have envisaged. Long before the end the loudest noise inside Old Trafford was of thousands of plastic seats being emptied - a mass walk-out that must have made Ferguson's teeth ache.

The pity for Blackburn is that the focus has been on the cries of dissent that tormented Ferguson from his dugout to the tunnel rather than their first victory at Old Trafford since Jack Marshall was manager in 1962. It would be harsh in the extreme if, 17 managers later, Mark Hughes did not get the credit he deserves for having the gumption to recognise and tackle the flaws in this United team but it was undeniable, too, that the most dramatic Premiership story over the weekend was the mutinous air that engulfed Old Trafford after both occasions Morten Gamst Pedersen billowed Edwin van der Sar's net.

The hostility directed at Ferguson after the final whistle was made even more callous when contrasted with the standing ovation for Hughes a few moments earlier.

Ferguson cannot even console himself with the thought it was a one-off, having already been subjected to several angry tirades from behind his dugout. Once he swivelled as if to face one of his detractors, then decided against it.

What must really have surprised him was the angst in thousands of dissenting voices bellowing Wayne Rooney's name towards the end of a first half in which Blackburn would have scored three but for van der Sar's excellence. Do not be misled into thinking the crowd's mantra was directed at Rooney, inexplicably omitted here. No, this was a communication to Ferguson that the fans had grievous doubts about his judgment and it was then, at 3.42pm to be precise, that many in the crowd decided no longer to bite their lips and accept it.

When the first chant of "4-4-2" came from the old Scoreboard End it was not a plea but a grievance, just as the thousands of early deserters were not trying to beat the traffic but delivering a brutal, choreographed protest.

It is not a knee-jerk reaction to say these are moments Ferguson will file away with that infamous December night in 1989 when a 2-1 defeat by Crystal Palace saw a banner appear saying: "Three years of excuses and we're still crap - tara Fergie."

Back then it needed Bobby Charlton to persuade the board Ferguson should be retained. But who will bat on his behalf with the Glazer family if he ends another season in Chelsea's slipstream and a third in a row without a league title?

The Glazers are entitled to have expected better than the title to have been conceded before the end of September, and from within Old Trafford as well. Paul Scholes was not exaggerating when he declared last week that failure to beat either Blackburn or their next opponents, Fulham, would rule them out of contention. Scholes, a shell of what he was, suffered more than most; his mistake led to Pedersen slashing a left-foot shot past van der Sar for the winner. Scholes' form will alarm Ferguson but it is far from a solitary concern.

Ferguson's players looked confused with their puzzling new formation and his biggest challenge now is to convince a sceptical public that the 4-3-2-1 line-up is not a Christmas tree without baubles. Deep down he must also realise he erred by leaving out Rooney until the 54th minute and, if he is still uncertain, he need only refer to the video of how the teenager created Ruud van Nistelrooy's goal.

Then again maybe the fans are targeting the wrong man. In Ryan Giggs's autobiography one small paragraph has largely gone unnoticed. Ferguson has given his assistant Carlos Queiroz the responsibility to "train us, prepare us for games, organise the team and decide the things we need to work on".

So what exactly does Ferguson do, except fall out with the media? If ever there was a match demanding an explanation, this was it. But Ferguson is not speaking to the BBC, the press and, most laughably, the club's own television station, MUTV.

And Sky spent the weekend panicking after he took offence to a relatively trivial question about Rooney and ripped off his mic mid-interview. Ferguson should realise the first way he can win back United's fans is by answering their questions.

Otherwise the damage to their relationship might become irreparable.

Guardian Service