David O'Leary has disclosed that he was one of a select group of managers considered to succeed Sir Alex Ferguson as Manchester United boss a quarter of a century ago. The former Leeds United manager, now 68, enjoyed a highly successful four-year tenure at Elland Road, most notably guiding the West Yorkshire club to the semi-finals of the UEFA Champions League. His impressive achievements caught the attention of Ferguson, who recommended O'Leary as a potential successor when the legendary Scot initially announced his intention to retire at the conclusion of the 2001/02 season.
O'Leary's Confirmation of the Approach
Speaking on The Overlap's Stick to Football programme, O'Leary confirmed that his solicitor, Michael Kennedy, was contacted regarding the position. He stated: "Michael Kennedy did, yeah, about it. Alex had recommended about three people or something like that. It never went any further than that. One of the chosen ones, yeah." Ferguson ultimately reversed his decision, remaining at Old Trafford until his eventual retirement in 2013. Meanwhile, O'Leary was dismissed by Leeds in 2002, shortly after the initial approach.
Comparisons to Michael Carrick
The former Republic of Ireland international initially took over as caretaker manager at Leeds after serving as assistant to George Graham. This career path bears similarities to Michael Carrick's current situation at Manchester United, although Carrick's interim spell has been longer and arguably more impressive. With the Red Devils set to discuss Carrick's potential to remain in charge beyond the current season, O'Leary offered a stark warning about the magnitude of the step up involved.
"On the Michael Carrick thing, one thing after taking the team (is) when then they said, 'This is your office and you're the manager of this football club'," O'Leary explained. "On Michael, I don't think they were ever going to give him the job because I think they had he's going to come in, do the job for us and we're going to go and get somebody, but now that situation's changed big time."
He added: "But I'd say to Michael now that, for all he thinks he's the manager of Man United, when you get it officially and when you've got told that and then you've got to play midweek games and got to make all these other decisions, it's a bigger thing. And Man United, they don't come much bigger than that."
Current State of Manchester United
Manchester United have already secured Champions League football for the upcoming season. A positive result this weekend will see them clinch third place in the Premier League standings, further solidifying their return to the top tier of English football.
