 STEVE McCLAREN

by Dr. Michael Calleja

Steve McClaren certainly needs no introduction insofar as Manchester United fans are concerned. The 61-year-old returns to Old Trafford after more than a twenty-year absence following his initial stint as assistant manager under the great Sir Alex Ferguson. McClaren was by no means a prolific footballer in the mould of an Ancelotti, Capello or Zidane. In fact, he spent the twilight years of his playing career in the lower leagues – particularly with Hull City FC (playing a total of 178 games) between the 1979 and 1985. He eventually also featured for Derby County, Lincoln City, Bristol City and finally Oxford United before retiring in 1992 – due to injury.

His tenure at Oxford United was by no means over since the young McClaren immediately turned his attention to coaching – particularly as a youth and reserve team coach before eventually joining Derby County back in 1995 – serving as assistant manager to Jim Smith.

The majority of United fans will surely remember an unknown quantity joining the Red Devils back in January of 1999. A new assistant manager (replacing former coach Brian Kidd) was unveiled to the media as “Steve McClaridge” by then Chairman Mr. Martin Edwards. Little did players and fans know that McClaren’s impact would not only be immediate – but reach epic proportions – unheard of in British football.

Joining United at such a crucial and delicate time of the season was surely very daunting – and McClaren did confess, many years later, that the step up to Manchester United was both taxing and inestimable. The level of professionalism (initiated by Sir Alex Ferguson) and reinforced by the mercurial Roy Keane pleasantly surprised McClaren – who had even noted that the players were willing to forgo rest days in exchange for putting in that extra training session. Such traits, particularly near the business-end of the season, would prove fruitful as the Reds entered into the latter stages of the 1998-1999 season battling on all three fronts.

United fans certainly need no reminders as to how the end of season panned out. McClaren surely must have been pinching himself – noting how he had managed to form part of a technical staff that saw the club achieve the unthinkable – a treble of epic proportions which has not been replicated by any English team since the heydays of Barcelona.

Sir Alex Ferguson himself had always credited McClaren for developing a reputation as one of the most tactically astute coaches in the land who certainly wasn’t afraid to introduce

modern methods which nowadays would be considered to be rather conventional – such as video analysis and the use of sports psychologists. Furthermore, McClaren was not afraid to create a new “learning environment”, travelling across Europe to study new patterns and skills – and imparting such knowledge on the squad back home. On one particular occasion, McClaren noticed a trend whereby many teams in Italy would end their sessions with plenty of shooting practice. That session was quickly adopted into United’s training regime – wherein players would commend McClaren for improving their finishing abilities.

Steve McClaren’s talent and positivity managed to rub-off on the FA – when he was eventually introduced as a coach – under Peter Taylor’s tenure. It was under Sven-Goran Eriksson, however, that McClaren fully embedded himself as a permanent fixture of the England national team. Juggling his commitments for both club and country must have certainly been challenging – yet McClaren grabbed the bull by its horns and endeavoured to contribute as best as he could.

Unfortunately for a United fan, the Old Trafford fairy-tale ended at the end of the 2000-01 season. With United winning a seventh Premier League title, McClaren decided to try his hand at first team management‑ joining Middlesbrough FC after much persuasion from then-Chairman Steve Gibson.

Under McClaren’s management, “Boro” improved tremendously, and in his first full season at the club (2001-02), not only did Middlesbrough knock United out of the FA Cup but inflicted what remains one of United’s most painful defeats at Old Trafford (a 0-1 loss) courtesy of Alen Boksic. That loss was akin to a death knell for the club – as it severely hampered United’s championship bid. The league would eventually be won by an impervious Arsenal side.

Steve McClaren managed to win his first silverware as manager during the 2003-04 season, when his Middlesbrough side defeated Sam Allardyce’s Bolton (2-1) in the League Cup final. The win guaranteed the Teesside club a place in the UEFA Cup. The young manager was able to use his charisma to attract the likes of Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink, Michael Reiziger and Mark Viduka to the cold North – wherein The 2005-06 season was certainly a case of “so close, yet so far” for Middlesbrough – particularly in the cup competitions when McClaren seemed to excel. The club reached the semi‑finals of the FA Cup (losing 0‑1 to West Ham) and reached the final of the UEFA Cup (after some epic displays along the way against the likes of Basel and Steaua Bucharest). The final proved to be a step too far for a rising Sevilla FC side that would go on to dominate the competition for many years to come. Despite departing at the end of the season (particularly on the back of a rather lacklustre league campaign), McClaren was the first Englishman to win a trophy since 1996 and the first English manager to reach a European final with an English club since 1985.

After Sven Goran Eriksson’s departure in 2006, the FA initially chose Luiz Felipe Scolari as their first‑choice candidate though eventually settled for McClaren after the Brazilian rejected the offer to become manager of the England football team. Unfortunately, McClaren’s tenure as manager was one to forget. With England needing a simple draw vs Croatia in the last game of the Euro 2008 qualifying group, the “Three Lions” lost 2-3 and were ignominiously knocked out. McClaren was promptly dismissed and replaced by Fabio Capello.

The Englishman certainly didn’t throw in the towel and enjoyed further spells with FC Twente (winning the Dutch League in the 2009-10 season – a remarkable feat in itself considering the traditional “big three” clubs in the Netherlands), VFL Wolfsburg, Nottingham Forest, Derby County, Newcastle United, Maccabi Tel Aviv and Queens Park Rangers.

In May of 2022, McClaren confirmed that he would be returning to the Red Devils – wherein his knowledge and experience will certainly prove to be useful components for incoming manager Erik Ten Hag. Having already spoken to the media, McClaren discussed three key components which he will work on at Manchester United. The first is the “safe space” – encouraging players to express themselves on the pitch and experiment with new combinations. The second is “collective vulnerability” – a no bighead policy, fostering humility and camaraderie – which will permeate all levels of the club. And finally, a “shared purpose” – ensuring all players bond well and share in a common vision and methodology. Forming a strong unit with great team spirit will be high on McClaren’s agenda!

As aptly summed up by the new assistant manager himself, “‘When I first went to Manchester United there was hardly any rules but what they did; they did the right things and if they didn’t do the right things, they owned it and they suffered the consequences and accepted the consequences!” We can only hope for more of the same! Good luck Steve!