When Manchester United deposed Chelsea as Premiership champions at the end of the 2006-07 season Sir Alex Ferguson described it as the 'greatest achievement' of his twenty years in charge. A year earlier his managerial career had reached its nadir amid speculation he would be forced out of Old Trafford. He was taken to the limit over the Roy Keane scandal, his volatile relationship with the media, the political fallout of Malcolm Glazer's takeover and a miserable six-month run in which the team were humbled in Europe, embarrassed by the Conference side Burton Albion and barracked by their own fans. Ferguson, it is claimed, came close to
quitting. But the great man has used his inimitable managing skills and bloody-minded determination to turn it around yet again and remind everyone he is still the most formidable manager in the business. Written over the course of two hugely eventful, diverse and controversial seasons, This Is The One offers a unique, warts-and-all portrait of Ferguson from a privileged behind-the-scenes position. As a football writer for the (italics) Guardian, Daniel Taylor has been there from day one and seen every side of Ferguson, from the flint-faced authoritarian to the kind, quick-witted man with the heart the size of the Old Trafford trophy room. Entertaining, revelatory, sometimes shocking but always affectionate, this is the close-up look at one of the most talked-about figures in sport, in
good times and bad, and culminating in the glory of his ninth title win.