Manchester United supporters enjoyed a golden era under Sir Alex Ferguson, who led the club for almost three full decades.
Sir Alex Ferguson had already written his place in history as the greatest manager of all time when he retired from Manchester United in 2013.
The struggles Manchester United have endured since his retirement have underlined what a huge impact Fergie made at Old Trafford, with the club now on the fifth permanent boss since.
Ferguson was 71 when he retired and his age and desire to spend more time with his wife were among the reasons he called it quits. But not the only reasons…
Rio Ferdinand on Sir Alex Ferguson exit
Former Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand played under Sir Alex Ferguson for 11 seasons and won the Champions League in 2008.
He saw plenty of changes during that time, just a small portion of Ferguson’s total span at the club.
Speaking to Five, Ferdinand was involved in a discussion about post-season tour matches, with Newcastle and Tottenham recently flying to Australia.
And he said the growing commercial demands of modern football were a contributory factor behind the manager’s retirement.
Ferdinand explained: “That’s why one of the reasons Fergie retired, all this commercial stuff, overriding health and quality output.
“The demands on us commercially were huge. We were getting bigger and bigger, and he wasn’t used to that. And he couldn’t understand it.
“He understood it, but he didn’t agree with it. Mate, the Man United training ground used to turn into a commercial compound once a month by the time he finished.”
Ferdinand added that what began with requests for players to sign a few shirts on their way out of the training ground, grew into far more substantial demands.
These demands and focus on the commercial side of the club grew after Ferguson’s exit, with Ed Woodward replacing David Gill – in what amounted to a double hammer blow for United.
Louis van Gaal spelled out commercial frustration
The commercial demands on players had grown further by 2014, which exasperated then boss Louis van Gaal, who had replaced Ferguson’s hand-picked successor David Moyes.
Van Gaal told MUTV just a fortnight into the job: “Maybe it is too big a club. Not only in a sporting sense but also commercially. We have to do a lot of things that normally I don’t allow.”
Years on, he was warning Erik ten Hag not to take the gig, quoted by BBC Sport in 2022: “Manchester United are a commercial club, so it’s a difficult choice for a coach. He’d better go to a football club.”