Ferguson on brain haemorrhage and games that shaped his life
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Ferguson on Man Utd return, St Johnstone and Class of 92
- Published11 minutes ago
“I was terrified,” says Sir Alex Ferguson, one of the fiercest, most explosive and most decorated managers in football history.
The legendary former Manchester United boss is recalling the day he returned to Old Trafford for the first time after suffering a brain haemorrhage in May 2018.
Four months after emergency surgery, Ferguson – famous for his ‘hairdryer treatment’ when United dominated English football – was back to watch his beloved club take on Wolves in the Premier League.
The man responsible for making the dreams of United fans around the world come true for once was unsure of the reception he would receive from supporters.
“I wish I could say I was comfortable. I wasn’t,” Ferguson tells BBC Breakfast.
He need not have worried.
Ferguson and his wife Cathy received a standing ovation when they took their seats in the directors’ box before kick-off.
“My wife was with me, and she was nearly crying. When we sat down, she said ‘that’s fantastic’.”
Ferguson had been retired five years – after winning 38 trophies during 26 years in charge of United – at the time of his brain haemorrhage, aged 76.
Now three months short of 85, he says: “I’m feeling quite good despite small injuries.”
The Scot has a new book coming out – ‘Games of My Life’. It tells the stories of 21 defining matches in his playing and managerial career, revealing fresh insights into his journey from working-class Glasgow to dominating the English game – and Europe – as United boss.
Ferguson is thankful he is able to talk about the games that helped shape him.
“I had lost my voice; I couldn’t speak,” he says about the days immediately after brain surgery. “That was a frightening moment.
“I remember my grandsons coming to see me and I had lost my voice.
“Then they brought in a therapist and she started doing things like asking me to write down the names of birds, names of animals, names of rivers.
“That way my voice came back.”
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Unseen pictures in new Sir Alex Ferguson book detailing his favourite games
- Published9 March
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Special: Sir Alex Ferguson interview
‘I almost quit football for Canada’
Ferguson won the lot during his time in charge of United between 1986 and 2013, including 13 Premier League titles.
He transformed them into a winning machine, and the history and tradition of United ran red through his veins.
As well as delivering two Champions League titles, Ferguson masterminded five FA Cup triumphs, won the League Cup four times and added the Club World Cup, European Super Cup, European Cup Winners’ Cup and the Intercontinental Cup to the Old Trafford trophy cabinet.
In his book, Ferguson has picked standout games in his career, from winning his first cup final playing for Govan High School in Glasgow in 1955 at the age of 13 through to his retirement as a manager in 2013.
“That was my starting point,” he says, holding the medal he received after that cup win 71 years ago.
“I played for Glasgow Schools, Scotland Schools and the Scotland youth team. The starting point of my career was there and I can look back with great satisfaction.”
Ferguson describes growing up in Govan as “the making of me”. He says he developed his inner confidence from his mother Elizabeth and a drive to succeed from his father Alexander, who worked in the Govan shipyards on the River Clyde.
“He was so proud of me and my brother,” says Ferguson.
“He was a hard taskmaster because whenever I scored a hat-trick or a goal, my mother would say ‘that’s great, son’.” His father, meanwhile, offered tough constructive criticism however many goals Ferguson had scored.
After making his debut as a 16-year-old striker for Queen’s Park, Ferguson ended up at St Johnstone, where he endured a frustrating spell and nearly quit football for a new life in Canada.
“I wasn’t enjoying it. I wasn’t playing first-team football; I was in the reserves all the time,” he says.
“I filled out all the forms and phoned my aunt in Canada, because you needed a sponsor then, and never told my mother and father.”
The next day St Johnstone, decimated by a flu bug in the team, arrived at Ibrox to take on Rangers. A 21-year-old Ferguson was promoted to the starting XI and scored a hat-trick.
That life-changing performance in 1963 revived his playing career and set him on the path to becoming one of football’s greatest managers.
“I would say this to young people – don’t miss the biggest opportunity in your life. It’s recognising it.”
Image caption,
Ferguson took charge of 1,500 Manchester United games between 1986 and 2013
‘Don’t sell Ince to Inter – or you’ll regret it’
Ferguson is sat in front of a table for the interview, which was conducted before the Premier League announced on Tuesday that Manchester City had been found guilty of all charges relating to breaches of financial regulations between 2009-10 and 2017-18.
On the table are several items from his career, including the Scotland cap he was finally presented with in 2021 – 54 years after appearing for his country.
Ferguson received the cap at Hampden Park on the night Scott McTominay – then a United player – scored a dramatic stoppage-time winner in a 3-2 win over Israel in a World Cup qualifier.
“I remember signing McTominay at seven years of age,” Ferguson says.
Also on the table are old letters addressed to Ferguson from disgruntled United fans amid speculation he was about to sell midfielder Paul Ince to Inter Milan in the summer of 1995.
One reads: ‘Don’t sell Incey to Inter – or you’ll regret it’. Another reads: ‘Every Red is disgusted with you’.
“Paul was a tremendous footballer, there’s no doubt about that,” says Ferguson.
“He had incredible ability, but I just had that feeling that he just got carried away a bit at the time.
“He then got this offer from Inter Milan. I’m trying to weigh up one thing against the other. I’m looking at Paul Scholes and I said ‘should we?’
“Milan’s offer went from Β£7m to Β£7.5m and I said ‘do it’.
“That’s what your job is as a manager. You have to make hard decisions, and some decisions don’t suit everyone.”
There is also a notebook on the table with a list of words scribbled down by Ferguson when he used to address his players.
The names of Bernard “Monty” Montgomery, the World War Two general who outwitted his arch rival, and former prime minister Winston Churchill are on the list. So too is Ince.
“I didn’t notice that before. I couldn’t escape him,” laughs Ferguson, who once called Ince a “big-time Charlie”., external
“I regret saying that. That was a mistake,” Ferguson would later say.
The pair have since reconciled.
“He’s a good friend of mine,” says Ferguson. “He used to come over and play snooker with me. He texted me not so long ago.”
‘Beckham thought I was trying to get rid’
“You can’t win anything with kids,” former Liverpool and Scotland defender Alan Hansen said after a youthful United side lost 3-1 at Aston Villa in August 1995.
Ince, 27, and forward Mark Hughes, 31, had been moved on in the summer to Inter and Chelsea respectively.
Meanwhile, Ryan Giggs, 21, Gary Neville, 20, Scholes, 20, and David Beckham, 20, were beginning to make a name for themselves.
By the end of the season, Ferguson’s side had won the Premier League and FA Cup double.
“We’d worked really hard getting youth into the club again and this bunch of young lads became the spirit of Manchester United,” says Ferguson.
“They added something. Apart from the great abilities they had, they had desire. I put Beckham out on loan at Preston [in March 1995] and he thought I was trying to get rid of him, which was not true.
“David was the last to really develop because of his physique. Although he grew to 6ft, he was small and thin as a young kid.”
Did Ferguson ever fear that throwing his young players in at the deep end could backfire?
“I did exactly the same when I was in charge at St Mirren and Aberdeen,” he says.
“I had belief in young people because if you give them an opportunity there are two things that happen – they become real stars and they can remain loyal to you as a manager.”
Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption,
Manchester United’s famous ‘Class of 92’, including Ryan Giggs (second left), David Beckham (fourth left), Gary Neville (fourth right) and Paul Scholes (second right)
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