‘He was evil’ – Sir Alex Ferguson would be in JAIL if he managed today, jokes Man Utd legend Patrice Evra
SIR ALEX FERGUSON’S “evil” management antics would land him in PRISON if he was still in the dugout, according to Patrice Evra.
Evra, 43, saw the fiery Scot up close, playing under him for seven-and-a-half years at Manchester United between 2006 and 2013.
And that meant he was exposed to the way Ferguson went about managing his players – which included the famous hairdryer treatment.
But Evra joked in today’s football, Fergie’s methods would cross the line and see him in trouble with the law – after losing count of the number of players he reduced to tears.
The former left-back told the SDS podcast: “If Ferguson was coaching right now he would probably end up in jail.
“There’s no way Ferguson would not be in jail with what he would do to.
“Do you know how many players I saw cry because he gave them the hairdryer, throwing boots – he was evil.”
Ferguson’s most high-profile incident came after an FA Cup defeat to Arsenal in 2003 when he kicked a boot at David Beckham, leaving the England captain with stitches just above his eye.
But he was just as passionate and lost his temper over so-called friendlies, too.
Evra recalled a time when Fergie let rip at a young Danny Welbeck in Saudi Arabia.
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He explained: “Wayne Rooney gave the ball to Welbeck but he missed the penalty.
“We lost the game but it was a friendly, like a 45-minute game.
“When we got back into the dressing room, Ferguson [shouted] ‘Welbeck!’
“Me and Welbeck were in the toilet, he was having a pee, but Ferguson was shouting.
“‘Who the f*** do you think you are, coming in the first team, taking a penalty?’
“I was like, ‘Boss, it’s just a friendly game.’
“He was like, ‘F*** the friendly game.'”
I hope your leg is broken, a United player cannot cry at Anfield
Sir Alex Ferguson
Ferguson’s approach – however controversial and harsh it was – clearly had the desired effect.
He won 38 trophies during his 26 years as Old Trafford boss, including 13 Premier Leagues, five FA Cups and two Champions Leagues.
But the attitude he instilled in his United players, especially the senior members of the squad, led to some brutal treatment of some team-mates.
Jamie Carragher’s shocking lunge into Nani at Anfield in 2011 left the Portuguese winger with a bleeding gash down his shin.
But the likes of Paul Scholes allegedly said “f*** that” and refused to back Nani when they spotted him crying on the floor.
‘WE WERE BAD PEOPLE… WE DIDN’T CARE’
According to the Frenchman, Ferguson fumed: “I hope your leg is broken, a United player cannot cry at Anfield.”
Evra added: “We were bad people.
“I want to apologise to all the youngsters who trained with us. We were animals.
“After the game, we were waiting for the next day when we were going to kill Nani, to tell you how nasty we were, we didn’t care.
“If you’re bleeding and you cry, you’re done, you’re not part of us.
“Ferguson had to give him a week off to recover from that because we were waiting to kill him.
“Even now in the United WhatsApp group, we still put that picture of Nani crying at Anfield.”