Cristiano Ronaldo scored in Manchester United’s win over Burnley in front of a watching Sir Alex Ferguson.
Sir Alex was at Old Trafford ahead of celebrating his 80th birthday today and saw fans unfurl a new tribute banner in his honour.
Sir Alex Ferguson is English football’s most successful ever manager, leading United to a staggering 13 titles between 1986 and 2013.
The Scot is now enjoying his retirement and is still a regular in attendance at Old Trafford, playing a key role in helping United to re-sign Cristiano Ronaldo.
Ronaldo netted United’s third in the 3-1 win and after the victory he posted a message on Instagram wishing his former manager a happy birthday, sharing a picture of the pair together from several years ago.
Ronaldo and Sir Alex spent time together in a pre-Christmas feature for MUTV and the Portuguese star spoke highly of his former gaffer.
Ronaldo said: “It’s difficult, you understand. Imagine you’re an 18-year-old, you arrive from Sporting and you play with the stars: Giggs, Scholes, Keane, Solskjaer.
“I was a little bit nervous but he helped me a lot by the communication. He called me sometimes to his office with the translator there, but it doesn’t matter. The important thing is to tell me things to help me to grow up like a person, like a player, and since day one, everything that he told me did. So I appreciate that a lot.
“I always say that for me he’s like a father for me in football.”
The United star is charging up the club’s all time top scorers charts since returning to the club, going from 18th on the list to 13th, and he still has plenty left in the tank at 36. Hopefully Sir Alex at 80 has a long future ahead too.
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