Manchester United legend Rio Ferdinand has candidly opened up on how Sir Alex Ferguson went “crazy” at him before a match after he “refused” to do one thing.
Ferdinand played the majority of his time at United under Ferguson and has openly praised the influence of the legendary former Red Devils manager.
The 45-year-old TNT Sports pundit recently opened up on how Ferguson was “devastated” over his failure not to sign one legendary former player for United.
And Ferdinand shared his experience at United when Ferguson announced his retirement in 2013 and how one of his former teammates was on the verge of tears.
The United legend has spoken about his time at Old Trafford and how even one legendary manager would have struggled to replace Ferguson in 2013.
Ferdinand was a key figure for Ferguson during his time at Old Trafford and the footballer-turned-pundit was at the heart of the United defence in the past.
But the former United centre-back, who shared a close relationship with fellow legend Nemanja Vidic, didn’t always see eye to eye with Ferguson on everything.
Ferdinand left Ferguson furious on one occasion
Ferdinand famously refused to wear a Kick It Out T-shirt before United’s Premier League match against Stoke City in 2012.
The ex-Red Devils star didn’t believe that Kick It Out had supported Anton Ferdinand – his brother – enough when he had allegedly been racially abused by John Terry.
Ferdinand’s stance at the time left Ferguson furious after the former United manager had said that his players would all wear Kick It Out T-shirts.
“At the press conference I spoke about it, it is disappointing,” Ferguson said in 2012 (via BBC Sport).
“It is embarrassing for me.”
According to BBC Sport at the time, Ferguson had also told MUTV that the actions of former England and United defender Ferdinand had “let us down.”
Ferdinand on Ferguson’s reaction and aftermath
Speaking to Chelsea legend John Obi Mikel, Ferdinand recalled his decision not to wear the Kick It Out T-shirt and how Ferguson lost it with him before the match.
However, he said that he spoke with Ferguson in the aftermath of the incident and how the Scotsman admitted he could have talked with him in the first place.
Ferdinand told The Obi One Podcast: “I refused to wear a Kick It Out T-shirt because I didn’t believe they backed my brother in the situation with John Terry, so I just didn’t wear the T-shirt.
“I said I’m not wearing it. My mistake was that I didn’t tell the manager.
“The manager’s mistake was that he did a press conference saying all the team would wear it, but he knew the situation that revolved around my brother and didn’t ask me.
“When I said I’m not wearing it, he went crazy in the changing room before the game.
“Luckily, we won and he didn’t need to kill me anymore, but I went to see him the next day and we kind of just talked it out.
“He said maybe he should have come to see me before, because he’s an honest guy, that’s what I liked about him. He wasn’t just wrong and strong.
“If he thought he could have done something differently, he would always own up to that which, as a player, you respect it even more.”
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