City Assistant Speaks Fondly Of The Gaffer

Brian Kidd spent 11 years wearing our shirt, after progressing through the ranks, winning two league titles, the FA Cup as well as scoring in our 1968 winning European Cup final. Sir Alex Ferguson then brought him back to the club in the 1980s to work with our youngsters, before promoting him to assistant manager in 1991.

In his autobiography, Sir Alex Ferguson revealed the tensions between himself and Brian Kidd, after it looked like his assistant was trying to undermine him.

Kidd left to manage Blackburn half way through our historic 1998-1999 campaign, missing out on our fabulous Treble, and was sacked less than a year later after failing to save Blackburn from relegation from the Premiership and leaving them 19th in the division below.

Last season, Kidd was appointed Roberto Mancini’s assistant manager at City, where he had spent three years as a player during the 1970’s, but still refers to the Manchester United manager as ‘the gaffer’.

“All of the time, I speak to the gaffer,” he said with a smile. “It was fantastic, the experience and the apprenticeship he gave me. I don’t want to get into the book. But I appreciate everything he’s done for me. I can totally believe that he is still doing it at United, definitely. It’s because it is in him. The thing that drives him is that he loves it.”

Garry Cook said it wasn’t a matter of if, but when, City knocked United out of the League Cup last season in the semis. Roberto Mancini promised that he personally would take down the banner, which mocks City for the number of years they’ve gone without a trophy, when his side visited Old Trafford for the second leg. But of course, like the home and away league matches against the blues, United were triumphant.

Kidd insists that he has no problem with the banner because it’s simply stating the truth. It has been 34 years since City have won a trophy.

“The banner is fair,” he continued. “It is a fact. It is no good talking about ifs, buts and maybes. That is it. It is staring every one of us in the face. We have got to face it up and deal with it. ‘So what if they have got the banner up? They’ve got the banner up. No big deal.”