Sir Alex Ferguson gave fascinating team talk before Man United vs Liverpool in 1998 | OneFootball

Sir Alex Ferguson is arguably the greatest manager of all-time.

The Scotsman had great success at St Mirren and Aberdeen but undoubtedly his best spell came at Manchester United.

Ferguson spent 27 years at The Red Devils.

In that time he won an incredible 39 trophies, including 13 Premier League titles and two Champions League triumphs.

What made Ferguson such a good manager was his tactical nous.

Football fans were given a fascinating insight into his tactics back in 1998.

Per the Mirror, Granada TV had been granted access to Ferguson for a behind the scenes documentary and they captured him giving a team talk ahead of their game against Liverpool in April 1998.

It makes for a fascinating watch and you can view it below...

The clip starts off with Ferguson warning his players about Steve McManaman.

He starts: "It's straight forward, as far as I'm concerned, you look after McManaman and you close him down quickly.

"You don't need to detail a player. Whoever is nearest to him, you close him down and don't allow him to dictate the areas of which they play.

"Three years ago, we lost the league at Anfield by not listening to instructions about McManaman."

He then turns his attention to Paul Ince, who used to play for Man United from 1989-1995.

Ferguson says: "If he [Ince] tries to bully you, f**king enjoy it. Don't attempt to let him bully you. Right?

"You just make sure you're ready for him tomorrow. That's all you need to worry about him, his f**king big time Charlie bit. He's against f**king men, am I right?

Is Conte to Man United CLOSE? Ronaldo demands Ole Sacking? | The Football Terrace

"That's all you need to worry about him."

Ferguson then points to the board and says: "We get the ball transferred into these areas here, I don’t think they’ve a chance against us. I don’t think they have a chance with what you have got.”

The United legend then asks his players if they've got any questions but the room is completely silent. We don't blame them...

United went on to draw the game 1-1. Ronny Johnsen gave United an early lead, but Michael Owen's equaliser meant the two sides shared the spoils.

1 of 10

Who was the most expensive Manchester United signing of 2021?

next story previous story