Sir Alex Ferguson fully tapped into the “psyche” of one Manchester United legend and proved he “knew how to manage” him during his time at Old Trafford.
The 82-year-old legendary former Manchester United manager has been out of the Old Trafford dugout since his retirement in 2013.
The Red Devils captured their last Premier League title under United legend Sir Alex Ferguson in the 2012-13 season.
Ferguson engineered all 13 of United’s league title triumphs and led the Premier League club to an iconic treble in the 1998-99 season.
The iconic Scotsman had a long-lasting impact on football after his impressive spells with United in England and with Aberdeen in Scotland.
Ferguson brought the best in class to Old Trafford and the former Aberdeen manager is still thought of highly by some of his legendary former players.
Ferguson’s impact on Man Utd legend
Speaking on The High Performance Podcast, Manchester United legend Andy Cole opened up about his experience under Sir Alex Ferguson at Old Trafford.
Andy Cole was snapped up from Newcastle United in 1995 and the former United striker had a remarkable playing spell at Old Trafford.
The 52-year-old former England international lifted five Premier League titles, a Champions League and two FA Cups under Ferguson at the Red Devils.
Cole scored an impressive 121 times in 275 appearances for United, with the former striker forging a memorable partnership with Dwight Yorke at the club.
The former Newcastle and United star admitted that Ferguson was the “only person” who could be in his head and praised the Scot’s incredible management skills.
“He could scream and shout at me as much as he liked,” Cole said.
“Because that’s what I grew up with. If I do this right, I do this right, he’ll forget about it. And that’s what he did, you know? But it was always a gee up. And I always responded to a good gee up.
“You know, I wasn’t a flaky individual; like, if someone has a go at me, I’m a shrinking violet. No, that’s what I enjoyed. I enjoyed the manager pulling me up at times and saying, ‘Look, I want more from you.’ Or whatever it may be.
“Yeah, I think that galvanised me. I think mentally he wasn’t just your manager. He always wanted to get into your psyche as well. Always wanting to know what made you tick.
“I remember sitting down, having a conversation with him. I used to say to myself: he’s the only person who can actually get into my head. Because at times I can’t get into my head. But he was so good because he just knew how to manage me.”
Cole’s differences with Ferguson
Andy Cole’s illustrious spell at United came to an end in 2001 and the former Red Devils striker went on to sign for Blackburn Rovers.
The United legend, who retired from football in 2008, admitted that he fell out with Ferguson when he was at Old Trafford because he wouldn’t play in a reserve match.
“I wasn’t a sub kind of guy,” Cole told The Overlap’s Stick to Football show in May.
“I remember one year I fell out with the manager [Ferguson], he asked me to play in a reserve game and I said that I’m not playing.
“I think I was coming back from injury or something, but I said that I wasn’t playing. He said, ‘Okay, no problem.’
“We went down to Highbury [Arsenal’s former stadium], and he put me upstairs to watch the game and we lost 3-0. The week after that I got back involved and got myself back into the team.”
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