This is the One is a fascinating insight into the mindset and winning temperament of the recently retired Sir Alex Ferguson, the most success manager in English football. When This Is The One was first published in 2007 it was hailed by Michael Crick as 'one of the all-time Manchester United classics' and featured by The Times in their quest to find the 'Best Ever 50 Sports Books'.
Written over the course of two eventful and controversial seasons, it offers a unique portrait of Sir Alex Ferguson from Daniel Taylor’s position behind the scenes as a football writer covering Manchester United for the Guardian.
During the 2005-06 season, Taylor saw Ferguson at one of the lowest ebbs of his quarter of a century in charge, with a failing team, explosive fallouts with Roy Keane and Ruud van Nistelrooy, a disenchanted fan-base and speculation that he might be forced out of the job. The season that followed demonstrated why Ferguson deserves to be seen as the greatest manager the modern game has produced, with Manchester United deposing Chelsea as Premier League champions and eventually seeing off José Mourinho. Ferguson would later call it the 'greatest achievement' of his time at England’s biggest football club.
This Is The One is the close-up, warts-and-all account of what happened during those two helterskelter seasons – the excruciating lows and the exhilarating highs. It is also a fascinating exploration of the many different facets of Ferguson himself, from his infamous 'hairdryer' treatment to the softer, more humane side of the most successful manager in the business.
