Sir Alex Ferguson recalls emotional Old Trafford return after brain haemorrhage

Sir Alex Ferguson has spoken about his new memoir, which looks at the 21 matches that shaped his life, and revisited the emotional day he returned to Old Trafford in 2018 after surgery for a brain haemorrhage.

In an interview with Nina Warhurst, Ferguson said the reception at Old Trafford left him terrified. He recalled that he did not know how fans would react when the manager made an announcement over the public address system. The loud applause that followed was heart-wrenching, he said, and his wife was nearly crying beside him. He described the recovery from the brain haemorrhage as long, lasting around seven or eight months.

The memoir traces several turning points. In 1955, aged 13, he played in a cup final for Govan High School. His side won 6-0 to take the Castle Cup, and Ferguson scored two goals. He said it was the moment he realised he enjoyed winning medals. He later played for Glasgow schools, Scotland schools and the Scottish youth team, and called that period the starting point of his career.

He then looked back to 1963, when he was a 21-year-old at St Johnstone. Flu had struck the squad and Ferguson came off the bench. He admitted that he had faked illness before the game, after going to the swimming baths with friends and asking his brother's girlfriend to phone the manager. At the time he was not enjoying his football and was stuck in the reserves. He had also suffered a broken eyebrow and a broken nose, had not played for six weeks and had watched three reserve games. He took forms from Canada House and phoned his aunt Isabel in Canada, who needed a sponsor, without telling his mother. The next day he scored a hat-trick and appeared in the newspapers. He said that without that hat-trick he would have been on the boat to Canada.

A later chapter covered Manchester United's 3-0 win over Bolton at Old Trafford in 1995, a match tied to the comment that 'You'll never win anything with kids'. Ferguson said the third goal took seconds but was ten years in the making. He had worked hard to bring young players into the club again, and that group became the spirit of Manchester United. He accepted it had been a gamble but said he believed in giving young people opportunities, because they can become stars and stay loyal to their manager. He recalled criticism from fans as he prioritised the Class of 1992, including letters warning him not to sell Paul Ince and one that said every red was disgusted with him.

In 2021, Ferguson was finally presented with his Scotland cap before Scotland's 3-2 win over Israel. He said it had taken him from 1967 until 2021 to receive it, and noted that two or three other players were awarded caps on the same night.

The interview ended with a light exchange about the medal from his 1955 school cup final.