Sir Alex Ferguson’s incredible and historic reign at Old Trafford did not come without some major hurdles that the Manchester United legend never overcame.
The 84-year-old Scotsman enjoyed incredible high points throughout his legendary managerial career, including at Manchester United and Scottish side Aberdeen.
Sir Alex Ferguson went down in folklore at the Pittodrie Stadium after he led Aberdeen to a famous European Cup Winners’ Cup win over Real Madrid in 1983.
Meanwhile, the iconic former United manager etched his name in the history books at Old Trafford after he led the Red Devils to a famous continental treble in 1999.
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Manchester United legend Sir Alex Ferguson in the winners’ enclosure after victory with his horse Caldwell Potter in the second race during racing on day three of the Cheltenham National Hunt racing festival at Cheltenham Racecourse in 2025 in Gloucestershire, England
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Sir Alex Ferguson saw a lot of highs in his managerial spell at Man Utd — but not against Atletico Madrid
After replacing Ron Atkinson in 1986 at Old Trafford, Sir Alex Ferguson would only cross paths with La Liga side Atletico Madrid twice while he was at the Red Devils.
Neither of the two aforementioned encounters came in the Champions League either, with both being played in the old European Cup Winners’ Cup format.
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Ferguson’s record against the La Liga club never saw him walk away with a win before he bowed out of Old Trafford as Manchester United manager in 2013.
The legendary former Aberdeen boss oversaw a 3-0 Man Utd defeat to Atletico Madrid in his first outing at the Vicente Calderon Stadium in Spain in 1991.
Only a month after the first-leg second-round clash in October 1991, Man Utd played out a 1-1 draw against the Spanish side under Ferguson’s rule at Old Trafford.
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Sir Alex Ferguson’s ‘real devil’ pick summed up the challenges he faced against Atletico Madrid as Man Utd boss
Paulo Futre scored a brace in the 3-0 win for Atletico Madrid in the first leg of the La Liga club’s clash with Man Utd in the European Cup Winners’ Cup competition.
The 60-year-old Portuguese ex-winger admitted that he had heard that Ferguson alluded to him being the “real devil” after the match at the Vicente Calderon.
“I was very lucky to play against United, to score two goals and to be involved in two great matches,” he told MUTV, as per Manchester United’s official website.
“It was an historic match for both me and Atletico Madrid. It is one of the most remembered matches. Recently, I had the chance to ask Peter Schmeichel about the first goal I scored past him and he said: ‘Yeah, you fooled me.’
“I remember Sir Alex Ferguson saying to the media after the match, something similar to Futre was the real devil that night; it was him, he was the game changer. That was a great, great honour, coming from him.”
United were defending champions going into the 1991-92 European Cup Winners’ Cup and were knocked out at the hands of Atletico in the second round.
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