Going on 70... Fergie will not quit Man United

Ferguson has won 37 trophies during a quarter century at the helm of Manchester United. (FILE)

Published Wednesday, September 07, 2011

By Staff

Alex Ferguson will be completing a staggering 25 years as coach of Manchester United on November 6 and is going on 70 but has no plans to retire much to the disappointment of his Premier League rivals.

On the other hand, he has repeated his desire to remain as Manchester United boss for as long as possible, it has been reported.

Speaking to the Italian media at an awards ceremony at University of Rome Tor Vergata, Ferguson confirmed he is going nowhere.

“Over the years I’ve had the question who do I think could replace me? Now in those years, some of the coaches they were talking about to replace me don’t have jobs any more.

“So it becomes very difficult because someone who I think has potential may be sacked by his club and disappear.

“I think you would need someone very experienced in the long term. But I have absolutely no idea... first of all, I’m not retiring.”

He has achieved unparalleled success during a quarter of century at Old Trafford, winning 37 trophies during his time at the helm.

It is also nearly a decade since he performed an abrupt U-turn on his retirement plans.

What has followed, in addition to five more Premier League titles and another Champions League triumph, has been a guessing game about when Ferguson will eventually call it a day.

At various times, Bryan Robson, Steve McClaren, Mark Hughes, Martin O’Neill and a host of top continental bosses have been linked with the job.

Current favourite to replace Ferguson is Jose Mourinho, although a mounting disciplinary record at Real Madrid is not helping his cause.

But the fiery Scot reiterated he has no plans to walk away from the club he has transformed into arguably the biggest in the world despite the fact he turns 70 on December 31.

With Arsene Wenger’s crown slipping badly in recent times, Ferguson is unquestionably the most powerful manager in England.

But Ferguson admits the lure of playing at the Theatre of Dreams does not always ensure he gets his man.

He added: “There’s only one certainty: I will always be in charge.

“I wanted Maldini. I asked his dad Cesare about Paolo and he told me I was crazy.”

Nobody told Ferguson he was crazy for trying to sign Wesley Sneijder in the summer and for a long time, even the Dutchman thought he would end up at Old Trafford.

Eventually, Ferguson decided the sums did not add up given he was not the like-for-like replacement for Paul Scholes he had been after.

“Sneijder is not the ideal replacement for Scholes,” he said.

“He’s a fantastic player but he was not who we were looking for to replace Scholes. Only Xavi and Iniesta are comparable to Scholes.”

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