Manchester United icon Sir Alex Ferguson is widely regarded as one of the most intimidating managers in football history, and was well known for his commanding presence on the touchline and the infamous ‘hairdryer treatment’ that kept even the biggest stars on edge.
While the Scottish tactician is undoubtedly one of the best – if not the best – managers to ever grace the game, his polarising figure and formidable personality often made players, referees and even journalists feel the weight of his presence.
One of these examples dates back to the 2009/10 season, when Ferguson forced a former Man United star to feature in a Premier League game injured, despite the midfielder suffering from a long-term setback and ‘feeling something in his hamstring’ during the warm-up.
The plan immediately backfired – the former England international lasted just five minutes before limping off with another setback, despite Ferguson’s insistence on including him after a long spell on the sidelines.
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Sir Alex Forced Owen Hargreaves to Play Injured
During Man United’s 2-1 win over Wolves in 2010
Owen Hargreaves
Paul Scholes, speaking on The Overlap Fan Debate, revealed that Ferguson once forced midfielder Owen Hargreaves to play for Man United while injured, after growing frustrated by the player’s persistent absence:
“I remember, we had Owen Hargreaves who was unfortunately injured a lot, and the manager eventually became frustrated because we couldn’t get him back.
“I remember one game where we were playing Wolves at home, Owen had been out for some time and was nearly back, and he went out for the warmup and came in feeling his hamstring and you could just see the anger and frustration in the manager’s face.
“He said, “You’re playing,” and that was it. It didn’t end well - within 15 minutes, Owen had to come off and was out for a long time after that – there has to be frustration from managers as well.”
Despite Hargreaves being forced off early, Man United managed to edge out a narrow 2-1 win over Wolves, in what was the former England midfielder’s first start for the Red Devils in over two years.
Hargreaves faced persistent injury problems at Old Trafford following his arrival from Bayern Munich in 2007, and made just 39 appearances across all competitions during his four-year stint under Ferguson.
The infamous appearance against Wolves proved to be his final Premier League game for United, as he remained sidelined for the rest of the 2010/11 campaign, which ended with the Red Devils lifting another English title – Ferguson's penultimate at the club.
Hargreaves joined local rivals Manchester City after the season, where he only made four appearances amid continuous injury problems, before retiring in the summer of 2012.
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