Sir Alex Ferguson said that he was “blessed with several world-class players” and even claimed that one Manchester United legend could have done even better.
The 83-year-old legendary former Manchester United manager called it time on his illustrious 26-year reign at Old Trafford back in 2013.
Sir Alex Ferguson bowed out of the Red Devils at the end of the 2012-13 campaign after he led United to their last Premier League title.
The iconic Scot is regarded as one of the best managers of all time and Ferguson enjoyed incredible success in both England and in his native homeland of Scotland.
Ferguson engineered all 13 of the Red Devils’ Premier League title wins and the Scotsman famously led United to an iconic treble win in the 1998-99 campaign.
The former United and Aberdeen boss established a reputation for bringing the best in class to Old Trafford and giving a youth a chance to shine from United’s academy.
Ferguson himself has famously claimed that he only managed four world-class United players at Old Trafford, despite the star-studded talent he had at his disposal.
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Photo by Christopher Furlong/Getty Images
Photo by Christopher Furlong/Getty Images
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What Sir Alex Ferguson said about Eric Cantona in his five-man ‘world-class’ tier at Man Utd
Sir Alex Ferguson admired Eric Cantona and the legendary former Manchester United player had a sensational impact at Old Trafford in the 1990s.
The ex-United boss signed Eric Cantona from rivals Leeds United in 1992 for a £1m transfer fee and the Frenchman became a larger-than-life figure at the Red Devils.
Cantona had a transformative influence on the United first team and the 58-year-old former forward lifted four Premier League titles and two FA Cups with the club.
Ferguson was known to have treated Cantona differently from other United players amid the Scot’s desire to unlock the true potential of the eccentric United legend.
The former United manager put Cantona in the “world-class” bracket alongside the likes of Ryan Giggs, Wayne Rooney, Roy Keane and Peter Schmeichel.
However, Ferguson admitted that the former United could have “been even better” had it not been for parts of Cantona that he had to “control.”
“In my time I’ve been blessed with several world-class players,” he said in the Manchester United Opus in 2006, as per Sky Sports.
“Peter Schmeichel was certainly one, and Ryan Giggs for me, definitely. Eric Cantona could have been even better, but for the parts of him you had to control.
“Wayne Rooney, that’s four. Then there’s Roy Keane, that’s five.”
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Nicky Butt explained how Sir Alex Ferguson handled Eric Cantona differently from other Man Utd players
Speaking to Paul Scholes on the Football’s Greatest podcast in 2024, Nicky Butt recalled one instance that highlighted how Ferguson handled Eric Cantona.
“I remember going to a Player of the Year award or some function and I walked in with a suit and tie on,” he said.
“My tie was probably an inch loose because I drove in and didn’t want a tight tie.
“The gaffer [Ferguson] has gone, ‘Do your tie up… you look like a tramp!’ So I’ve done it and then Eric’s walked in with white jeans and Nike trainers on and a cap.
“The gaffer’s gone, ‘Look how cool he is, he’s some man him.’ I looked at him like, ‘What a p—-,’ you’ve told me to do my tie up by an inch!
“But that was Eric, wasn’t it? He was very different and the genius of the manager was he understood that. I didn’t back then.
“But when you get older and do a bit of coaching and leadership courses you realise you have to treat people differently sometimes.”
United legend Cantona stunned Ferguson — and the whole world — with his sudden decision to announce his retirement from football at the age of 30 in 1997.