Manchester United manager David Moyes was the wrong choice to replace Sir Alex Ferguson

HE has one of the toughest jobs in the world. Every time he goes to work, millions of people are watching, and those people are getting sick of seeing him fail.

THROUGHOUT his 27 years as manager of Manchester United, Sir Alex Ferguson was rarely wrong about anything.

To prove that point, the man celebrated his retirement last year by casually winning his 13th English Premier League title. That’s easily a record.

But Sir Alex’s other parting gift to the fans at Old Trafford was a huge, terrible, harebrained mistake. He picked a bloke called David Moyes to replace him.

“What. Have. I. Done?”

Since then, Sir Alex has spent much of his time watching from the stands as United’s reputation has collapsed.

Last season’s champions are stuck in seventh on the table, 17 points behind the leaders, Liverpool. They’re scoring less than two goals per match, and have lost six league games at home. That would have been unthinkable with Sir Alex in charge.

It’s not as though United’s star players left with their manager. Any side with Robin van Persie and Wayne Rooney up front should be finding the net a lot more often.

No, Moyes has managed to achieve such incredible mediocrity with the same squad that dominated England less than 12 months ago.

“Ah, there’s our problem. We’re not winning enough.”

Those are the statistics. The raw numbers. On their own, they’re sufficiently awful to warrant the calls for Moyes to be sacked.

But the problem is far deeper than a handful of bad results. Under Moyes, England’s most intimidating football club is losing its soul.

Moyes is treating his new, flamboyant, uber-talented players just like the honest toilers he left behind at Everton. He’s training the squad harder, physically speaking, than Sir Alex ever did. And on the field, he has replaced the fast, incisive style of play that defined United’s football for years with the tough but sluggish strategy he perfected at Everton.

“Slower. Come on guys, you really need to pass the ball slower.”

The concept is simple enough. Form up in defence, win the ball back, get it wide and chuck in a cross. That’s the Moyes mantra, and it worked brilliantly for the Toffees, keeping them in constant contention for the top six.

Funnily enough, that’s exactly where United finds itself now. But this is not a “top six” team, and you don’t win Premier League titles just by grinding out tough draws. You need more goals, and more wins to go with them.

The Chosen One? Should have picked The Special One.

The club has lost its aura off the field as well. Sir Alex knew when to be insufferably arrogant, and when to bully the other teams. Moyes, on the other hand, mopes his way through press conferences, giving his rivals too much credit and far too much respect.

Compare his demeanour to that of Jose Mourinho, who was also discussed as a potential replacement for Sir Alex. Mourinho once called himself “The Special One” — he is, in short, swagger personified. There is no shortage of self-belief in his skull.

“They picked that joker instead of me?”

Moyes is not a terrible manager. He isn’t even a bad one. But his style does not suit a team with Manchester United’s talents, and at some point he will have to go.

The one thing we have learned since Moyes took over is that Sir Alex deserves all of the praise he ever received.

Any suggestion that he freeloaded off a talented squad is dead. We’ve seen United without Sir Alex, and it’s just as fallible as every other team in the league.

Ironically, by choosing the wrong man to replace him, the red-faced Scot has finally put his own achievements in perspective.

Here are Sir Alex Ferguson’s eight success tips.