Manchester United legend Gary Neville recalled the key decisions that iconic former Red Devils boss Sir Alex Ferguson made “over many, many years” at Old Trafford.
Sir Alex Ferguson called it time on his legendary 26-year reign at Manchester United in 2013 after capturing the Red Devils’ last Premier League title.
The 83-year-old legendary Scotsman is widely regarded as one of the best managers of all time after his impact at United in England and with Aberdeen in Scotland.
Ferguson was well-known for his ruthless mentality with his players and the United legend wasn’t afraid to axe those who overstepped their boundaries.
The former Aberdeen and United manager also pulled no punches towards underperforming players, including dropping his infamous ‘hairdryer treatment.’
United players under Ferguson have since opened up about their time under the iconic Scot and revealed the interest that he took into their lives off the pitch.
Ferguson’s legacy at Old Trafford included becoming the first manager in history to lead an English club to a continental treble, with United pulling off the feat in 1999.
Neville on Ferguson and Man Utd players
Gary Neville spent his entire legendary playing career at Manchester United and enjoyed incredible silverware success under Sir Alex Ferguson.
One of the famed ‘Class of ‘92’ stars, the Sky Sports pundit rose through the ranks of the youth academy and became a key first-team player at Old Trafford.
Neville made 598 appearances for the Red Devils and he lifted eight Premier League titles, two Champions League trophies, three FA Cups and three League Cups.
The 49-year-old former United star, who called it time on his illustrious career in 2011, witnessed first-hand when Ferguson dropped the axe on different players.
Neville admitted that it was surprising to see Norman Whiteside, Paul McGrath, Jaap Stam, David Beckham, Roy Keane and Ruud van Nistelrooy leave United.
However, the ex-England and United right-back felt that Ferguson’s “major fallouts” were defined by his motivation to “wrestle control” back at Old Trafford.
“If you think about what Sir Alex Ferguson did over many, many years,” Neville said on The Overlap US’ ‘It’s Called Soccer’ show.
“Sometimes some of the major fallouts were with the big players but that was for him to wrestle control.
“Sometimes it was unfair, sometimes it wasn’t. Sometimes it was a shock to players who stayed at the club but if you look back and think that when he [Ferguson] first came in Norman Whiteside and Paul McGrath were let go in his early days and beyond that, Jaap Stam leaving, David Beckham, Roy Keane, Ruud van Nistelrooy, massive players.
“You thought, ‘These players can’t leave the club, it’s not right!,’ but he did it to wrestle control, whether you liked it or didn’t like it, agreed or didn’t agree with it.”
Neville on Ruben Amorim’s approach at Man Utd
Neville insisted that Ruben Amorim might be taking his own Ferguson-esque approach at Old Trafford and could axe “high-profile players” at the club.
Marcus Rashford has been tipped with a United exit after falling down the order under Ruben Amorim, while Alejandro Garnacho has attracted transfer interest.
Speaking on United manager Amorim, Neville added: “Maybe Ruben Amorim has to go basically for the most high-profile players and say, ‘I’m in charge here, I don’t care who you are, I’m the one who is going to be implementing the standards at the football club and if you don’t quite hit them, I don’t care how talented or valuable you are, what the fans think of you, what your pay packets are, you’re done.’
“This will be a big transfer window. It might not be as big as we think but if Garnacho and Rashford were to go, they would be big moves.
“It wouldn’t surprise me if there was a mini clear-out and he brought in one or two players.”
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