When Ole Gunnar Solskjaer took the Manchester United job last year, the club was in shambles and any hope of reaching the top 4 looked far. Rumor of Paul Pogba leaving was everywhere because the club looked like a joke and in total disarray.

started the season poorly, dropping points against teams in the bottom half of the table and collecting maximum points from the top teams.

The "Ole out" discussion was gaining ground as results were getting nastier. Fans were losing faith in the club's system, calling out on their best players and Ed Woodward. Manchester United looked like a club in jeopardy. But something has changed. The red devils are now the big boys in the league with a 15 game unbeaten run. What happened?

These are the 4 transformations Ole Gunnar Solskjaer made to change Manchester United from a mediocre team to the best in England.

1. Return of Matic.

The return of Nemanja Matic to the starting lineup is one of the best things Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has done.

For more than a year, Ole didn't have a stable defensive midfielder. He has always alternated Fred, Mctominay, and on very few occasions, Nemanja Matic. He wanted a young and energetic machine but he never knew Matic was the Engine if that machine.

He relegated Matic to the 3rd choice until he had injury crises and had to bring back the veteran.

All these while, Matic was patient, waiting for his time to sparkle. The Serbian was asked one sky sports how he felt now that he is in the starting XI. He said: "I always try to be professional and give my best when I am on the pitch, it doesn't matter if it is training or a game."I've played football for a long time already and this situation is normal, sometimes you don't play and the coach doesn't see you as a first option. You can accept it or not but you have to be professional.

"You have to work hard, wait for your chance, and use it. This is exactly what I did.

"Now the situation is different, the coach trusts me more. I'm a soldier and I wait for the instructions from my coaching team."

2. Faith in his best players.

Ole Gunnar solskjaer has got blind faith in his best players. Even when they make mistakes, the coach protects them.

He has always protected Paul Pogba and David De Gea whenever they face strong condemnation by fans, pundits, and other club legends.

This faith has been repaid. The players now give their all to the game just to ensure the coach doesn't feel disappointed.

3. Perfect Signing.

Manchester United have always signed the wrong crop of players until Jose Mourhino. We have to give it to Jose Mourhino also because most of the players he signed are pivotal to Manchester united. He brought in Matic, Fred, gave Mctominay his debut and also requested Harry Maguire who Woodward failed to deliver to him.

Ole Gunnar solskjaer continued from where Jose stopped and even got better. Solskjaer detected the problem in his team and then went after the players he needed.

He signed Wan Bisaka, Harry Maguire, Daniel James, and finally Bruno Fernandes. These players have transformed Manchester united into one of the best teams in England.

4. He Gave Martial His Number 9 Jersey.

This may sound funny but the truth is that it has a mental role to play. Anthony Martial was Manchester united number 9 and was doing exploit. He was on fire in the first season, banging goals left, right and center. But, his number 9 was reallocated to Zlatan by Jose Mourhino when he signed.

From then on, the French stickers form deteriorated. You can call it a coincidence but when he got his number 9 back under solskjaer, the goals started coming in again.

It all has to do with the mind and Ole Gunnar set the mind of Martial in the right direction to yield results.

Adidas and PUMA are household names, but you probably don’t know the story of how these successful companies came to be. It’s a story of brothers who started out as business partners and ended up as bitter enemies and rivals. If you’ve ever tried to work with family, maybe you understand how this could happen, but these brothers took it to a whole ‘nother level. Today we’re going to tell the story of the enemy brothers who founded Adidas and PUMA. There’s definitely something to learn from the success of each of these brothers, so let’s start at the beginning.

Who are the Dassler Brothers?

Adolf and Rudolph Dassler were brothers who were born in the small town of Herzogenaurach [Hers-ah-gin-or-ick], Germany, about 12 miles outside Nuremberg. Rudolf, who was born in 1898, was two years older than his brother. The brothers went by the nicknames Rudi and Adi. Their family came from a long line of weavers, but once the textile industry was overtaken by industrialization, Rudi and Adi’s father Christoph learned the art of shoemaking.

In 1913, Adi began an apprenticeship as a baker, but he was much more interested in athletics. After completing his apprenticeship, he decided against being a baker and instead began to learn about shoemaking from his father. He began thinking about how different types of shoes could potentially affect how athletes perform in different sports. After serving in the army for over a year at the end of World War I, Adi decided to start his own shoemaking business that focused on innovative athletic footwear.

Beginnings

Adi started the business in his mother’s laundry room, but he had many challenges in the beginning. Germany was devasted after the war, and there were very few sources of materials or machines. But Adi was creative and resourceful. He scavenged debris left over from the war to find materials he could use such as army helmets with leather that could be used for soles and parachutes that could provide silk for slippers.

He also created a leather milling machine that could be powered by a stationary bicycle instead of electricity. Adi had a strong vision for a unique shoe company that would focus on specialized shoes for various sports. He was constantly experimenting with innovative designs and materials like shark skin and kangaroo leather to see what would be most effective for different sports.

Rudi, on the other hand, had planned on becoming a police officer after the war but saw promise in his brother’s shoe business and eventually decided to join him on July 1, 1923. They officially opened the Dassler Brothers Sports Shoe Factory one year later and began making football boots and track shoes with hand-forged spikes.

By 1926, they had moved the company out of the family home and were producing 100 shoes a day with a staff of 25 people. Both brothers joined the Nazi party in May 1933, and Adi saw the opportunity to expand production by supplying shoes to sports clubs in the Hitler Youth movement. In 1934, 34-year-old Adi married 16-year-old Käthe [Kate-uh] Martz, which would lead to problems later on, but more about that in a minute. The brothers’ would experience their big break two years later.

1936 Olympics

Joseph Waitzer, the coach of the German Olympic track and field team, became an early fan of their specialized shoes. He became a vital consultant for the brothers, and this relationship gave them unique access to the athletes at the 1936 Berlin Olympics. Athletes had worn the brothers’ shoes in the 1928 and 1932 Olympics, but the Berlin Olympics gave them the opportunity to showcase their products in their home country.

However, their greatest exposure came from American Jesse Owens, who accepted a pair of shoes from Adi and went on to win four gold medals while wearing the shoes. This led to a major spike in business internationally, and by 1938 their company was producing 1,000 pairs of shoes a day with specific designs for 11 different types of sports. But then World War 2 started and everything changed.

From Partners to Enemies

While Rudolf was conscripted into the army, Adi was permitted to remain as the head of the factory. Rudi resented this and thought that his younger brother was trying to take over control of the company, which he very well may have been. Rudi even threatened to have the factory shut down just so that his brother would also have to go to war.

Although Adi continued to make shoes, the majority of the production was geared toward weapons and supplies for the war effort. Near the end of the war, Rudi defected from the army but was caught and arrested. He was in prison for about a month before the Allied liberation in May 1945.

After the war, tensions got even worse between the brothers. Rudi was still angry at how Adi had taken over during the war, and the brothers also disagreed on the focus of the business. While Adi was more concerned with developing the best shoes, Rudi was more focused on profitability and cash flow. Rudi also thought Adi’s wife was interfering with the business too much, and personal conflicts bled into the business as there was constant bickering in the household where Adi, Rudi, their wives, and their mother all lived.

The final breaking point may have been when the brothers were investigated for their ties to the Nazi party and they each tried to save themselves and threw each other under the bus. In 1948, Rudolf left along with one-third of the staff and went to the other side of the river in their small town, where he started his own shoe company, which was initially called Ruda and then PUMA. After the brothers were done splitting the assets of their business, they never spoke again.

It’s 14 years since Cristiano Ronaldo winked after getting Wayne Rooney sent off at the 2006 world cup

Source : Givemesport.com

July 1 has been a key date in Cristiano Ronaldo’s illustrious career.

On July 1, 2009, the Portuguese superstar completed his world-record £80 million move from Manchester United to Real Madrid.

And three years earlier - on July 1, 2006 - Ronaldo became public enemy number one in England for his role in Wayne Rooney’s sending off against Portugal.

Rooney was shown a straight red card by referee Horacio Elizondo for stamping on defender Ricardo Carvalho.

But would Elizondo have sent Rooney off without Ronaldo’s controversial intervention?

Ronaldo, much to Rooney’s disbelief, protested to the match official about the severity of the foul.

Elizondo subsequently flashed the red card at Rooney, while Ronaldo was caught on camera winking towards the Portugal bench as if to say ‘job done’ shortly afterwards.

It was this wink which infuriated the English public.

“I think there is every chance that Wayne Rooney could go back to the United training ground and stick one on Ronaldo” Alan Shearer said live on the BBC after reviewing the incident.

That Ronaldo was the player who stepped up and scored the winning penalty in the shootout, condemning England to heartache at yet another major international tournament, made him all the more unpopular in the country where he earned his living.

Peter Crouch came on as a second-half substitute in that 2006 World Cup quarter-final and genuinely thought that Rooney and Ronaldo would never speak again.

“I was on the bus on the way back from the game. We see the footage of him winking and Rooney’s not happy a single bit.

“I think that did happen [Rooney texting Ronaldo asking ‘what the f*** was that?’]. There were definitely words exchanged.

“At first he was like ‘I’m never talking to him again’, ‘I’m not going to go back there and speak to him’.

“I remember Gary Neville was angry - obviously a teammate of Ronaldo’s - I remember us being so down and Wayne being gutted about it.”

But despite Rooney’s initial anger, the fiery forward quickly realised that he’d need to forgive Ronaldo for the good of Manchester United.

Ronaldo had been inconsistent at times during his first three seasons at Old Trafford but clearly had the potential to become one of the world’s best players.

And Rooney knew that United would be in a difficult situation had he decided to hold a grudge.

In a 2017 Interview, Sir Alex Ferguson revealed: “I have to say that on that occasion, Rooney was fantastic and managed the situation very well.

“He came to me and asked if he and Cristiano should do an interview together to silence all the critics before the start of season.

Place Your Adverts Here

“I told him that the idea did not seem wise. I thought that it was some sort of gimmick, and I do not like gimmicks.”

It’s no exaggeration to suggest that Rooney was partly responsible for saving Ronaldo’s United career.

Had he decided to remain angry there would have been a problem, and it’s not beyond the realms of possibility that Ronaldo would have been sold.

The media created a big drama which never existed. So when I arrived back in England I was kind of afraid, not because of Rooney but because of England supporters,” Ronaldo admitted in an interview with Goalhanger.

“They made a huge story when I did the wink, but it was not because of the circumstances with Rooney, it was another situation.

“It was difficult timing for me because I thought when I arrived in Manchester, people were going to boo me in all the stadiums.

“But it's the past, I had a chat with Rooney when I arrived back in Manchester. We are still friends, we speak about that and he understands my point of view.

Of course, he helped me in all circumstances. He said: ‘Cristiano, this is the past, let's speak about the present, let's win trophies together’.”

And win trophies they did.

United, inspired by Rooney and Ronaldo, ended up winning the Premier League in 2007, 2008 and 2009.

They also won the Champions League in 2008, plus the FIFA Club World Cup in the same year.

As for the mutual respect between Ronaldo and Rooney

Featured Slider

Featured Post

1. Return of Matic.

2. Faith in his best players.

3. Perfect Signing.

4. He Gave Martial His Number 9 Jersey.

Who are the Dassler Brothers?

Beginnings

1936 Olympics

From Partners to Enemies

It’s 14 years since Cristiano Ronaldo winked after getting Wayne Rooney sent off at the 2006 world cup

Website Search

About

Popular Posts

Follow Us!

Community Web Numbers

Blog Archive

Categories

Announcement