Following a Legend Is Hard, Sir Alex Ferguson Edition

Alex Ferguson left his job as manager of Manchester United on top. The club had just won the English Premier League for the 13th time in his 26 years at the helm. Ferguson, considered by many to be the best ever at his job, had been knighted. On his way out, he helped choose his own successor, David Moyes, from the Everton Football Club, 35 miles west in Liverpool. But not quite a year later, on April 22, 2014, with Manchester United three weeks away from the end of a disappointing season, the club fired Moyes. Ferguson’s final act proved a failure.

Succession planning is notoriously difficult, and even more so in the case of a retiring hero. When Moyes took the Manchester United job, it seemed like a professional triumph. After 11 seasons at Everton, where he’d built a reputation for getting the most from limited means, Moyes had an opportunity to work with more talented, higher-paid players. United demonstrated its trust by offering him a six-year contract, and Ferguson counseled fans to give him time.